Indiana men’s basketball is set for its first high-major test of the 2026-27 season today, taking on Syracuse at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, a semi-home environment for the Hoosiers.
The theme of this matchup is definitely “new”. Indiana and Syracuse are two of the sport’s more tradition-rich programs and everything is pretty new for each. Darian DeVries is in his second season leading the Hoosiers with an almost entirely new roster featuring an all-new identity as a rebounding unit. Gerry
McNamara is in year one at Syracuse and is looking to return the Orange to glory as one of the program’s most prominent alumni.
Here’s a few predictions for the matchup:
Indiana shows its strength on the glass
As previously stated, this is a team built to rebound the basketball. Indiana starts a pair of 7-footers in Aiden Sherrell and Samet Yigitoglu and will look to control the game by earning as many extra possessions as possible through the glass.
Syracuse isn’t an especially big team up front, with its front line staying under 7-feet. The Orange have, however, shot the ball relatively well in the early going all around the court. Indiana’s backcourt will present a challenge to that as the Hoosiers look to force misses for the bigs to grab.
I think Indiana, as it did in exhibition play against North Carolina, shows its rebounding might with a strong performance on the glass that helps set the tone for what this team is going to be this season.
Markus Burton plays as more of a facilitator
Indiana brought Markus Burton to Bloomington to be the Hoosiers’ point guard, creating an interesting new role for the Notre Dame transfer.
This is as much talent as Burton has ever had around him. He’s also an incredibly gifted scorer whose twitch and quickness with the ball lets him get to his spots and create his own opportunities off the dribble. The coaching staff has been adamant he maintain that scoring aggression.
He’s also deft as a passer, averaging 4.5 assists through Indiana’s first two contests. I think he leverages that passing a bit more against a Syracuse defense that’s been letting up some decent looks off of ball movement.
Aiden Sherrell stars
I’m not sure Syracuse will have a reliable answer for both of Yigitoglu and Sherrell given the lack of size in the frontcourt. Sherrell is the more offense-inclined of the two and I think he takes full advantage of this one.
He’s every bit of 7’ tall and weighs in at 250lbs. He’s bigger than the entirety of the Orange’s frontcourt at the power forward spot with someone who has to account for the even bigger Yigitoglu.
Sherrell, who’s faced several different kinds of frontcourts during his time in the SEC, should be well positioned to have a strong night against Syracuse. Look for him to get going early and give McNamara something to ponder defensively throughout the matchup.
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