Arafan Diane, the No. 1-ranked center in the class of 2026 and an Indiana recruiting target, picked Houston over the Hoosiers on Wednesday, per On3/Rivals’ Joe Tipton.
Diane, as stated above, is ranked as the highest-rated center and 16th highest-rated prospect overall in the class per On3’s Rivals Industry Ranking. Kelvin Sampson, who previously coached at Indiana prior to his firing in 2008, won out over current head coach Darian DeVries. Other programs under consideration by Diane included Kentucky,
Arkansas and Virginia.
Indiana seemed to put something of a priority on landing a center in the upcoming high school class, particularly the kind that could start right away. Indiana was in on Ethan Taylor, who has since committed to Big Ten rival Michigan State, and its two current rotational centers, Reed Bailey and Sam Alexis, will exhaust their college eligibility upon the conclusion of the 2025-26 season.
Barring a decommitment, from Diane or a different center, the Hoosiers will likely turn to the transfer portal for a starting center during the offseason.
