The men’s basketball team will usher in the Ronald Nored era with a Family Weekend exhibition matchup against Indiana. The clash will be the first of three tune-ups for the Dawgs ahead of the regular season.
Here is what you need to know before the Bulldogs take on the Hoosiers:
Who: Indiana vs. Butler
When: Oct. 11, 6:30 p.m.
Where: Hinkle Fieldhouse
How to watch: WISH-TV
What’s new?
Only a few constants remain for Butler between this season and the last, with 10 new players entering the fold alongside an overhauled coaching staff led by Nored, the Dawgs’ head coach.
The group reflects the current state of college basketball, featuring five transfers, three overseas first-years and just two high school recruits. They are joined by two returning starters: graduate guard Jalen Jackson and senior center Drayton Jones.
For Jackson, the abundance of new faces means a responsibility to step into a leadership role.
“It’s pretty important this year for me and Drayton [to be leaders],” Jackson said. “We’re used to playing against the high-level talent and seeing it. It’s important for all the new guys here to understand that every game we play is going to be a dogfight, like we see in the Big East.”
The Hoosiers represent an immediate opportunity to face that talent off the bat, giving the Bulldogs an idea of how they stack up to the competition. Coach Nored is looking forward to seeing his squad square off against a team not sporting blue and white.
“[We’re] really excited to get on the court,” Nored said. “We’ve spent a lot of time together on the practice court going against each other, so [being] able to see where we are is a big part of exhibition season.”
Battles to keep an eye on
For some Bulldogs, there is more than just moral victories and in-state bragging rights on the line against Indiana. Starting spots can be won and lost during exhibitions, leaving players to prove they deserve the role.
“We plan to tinker [with lineups] a good bit,” Nored said. “Again, this exhibition season is about trying to learn our teams, see how guys fit together [and] how they play together.”
Jackson and Drayton likely have the starting roles locked up at point guard and center, respectively, but the jury is still out on the rest of the lineup.
Graduate Christian Moore, first-year Asim Djulovic and junior Treyson Anderson are all players to watch at forward. Meanwhile, junior guard Eduardo Klafke is drawing strong early returns, but could be challenged by sophomore guard Jordan Ellerbee, and performances against the Hoosiers will loom large when decision time rolls around for Nored.
Scouting the Hoosiers
Indiana features exactly the type of blue-chip talent Jackson referenced, making it a perfect measuring stick for the Dawgs to be tested by. The Hoosiers have a deep arsenal of transfer portal additions, including players from Duke, Florida, Villanova and Alabama, among others.
The frontcourt figures to be a strength, with two big bodies patrolling the paint. Junior forward Aiden Sherrell, a 7-foot Alabama transfer, will pair up with SMU transfer center Samet Yigitoglu, who stands at 7-foot-2. Jones, first-year center Marko Maric and redshirt junior center Kevin Ndzie will get an early reminder of the physicality of power-conference basketball.
Blue-chip players highlight the Hoosier backcourt, including a familiar face in senior guard Markus Burton. The former Notre Dame standout faced off against Butler in an exhibition game last season, dropping 12 points but racking up seven turnovers. He is joined by senior Villanova transfer Bryce Lindsay and Darren Harris, a former four-star Duke recruit who will stretch the Dawgs’ defense with their three-point shooting prowess.
Butler faces a talent deficit across the board against the Hoosiers, leaving ample room for learning opportunities. Holding their own physically against a talented and experienced unit would be an encouraging sign for the Bulldogs’ upcoming campaign.