Big Ten Dominating NCAA Tournament — What It Means for Indiana Basketball

The Big Ten's impressive first two weekends of the NCAA Tournament don't make things any better for Indiana

Mar 11, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Indiana Hoosiers head coach Darian Devries yells instructions to his team against the Northwestern Wildcats during the second half at United Center. | David Banks-Imagn Images

As I sit in an Iowa Hawkeyes bar on the North Side of Chicago, getting ready to take in an all-Big Ten Regional Final in a couple hours, I can't help but think about how this NCAA Tournament has gone for the Indiana Hoosiers.

Yes, I'm aware the season came to an end for Indiana after it was laughed off the court by Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament, but what does the conference's success in the NCAA Tournament mean for the Hoosiers?

As much as Big Ten fans like to take pride in the conference and cheer for one another each postseason, nothing good comes of that for Indiana this Elite Eight weekend.

Let's take a look at the Indiana perspective of each remaining Big Ten team in the Elite Eight.

Illinois Fighting Illini

As much as Indiana fans like to call Purdue their rival, and they're right in doing so, the friendship with Illinois isn't exactly strong. From the days that Bob Knight and Lou Henson would feud to the Eric Gordon saga, there isn't a love loss here.

Now that Illinois has put it all together and is knocking on the door of the Final Four and possibly more, Indiana's recruiting battles with Brad Underwood and the Illini will only get that more challenging.

Iowa Hawkeyes

Iowa would normally be harmless in this situation but considering the coaching comparisions, this one only stings Indiana.

Darian DeVries led Indiana to a first year that saw it fall on its face the last month of the year and miss the NCAA Tournament.

Ben McCollum knocking on the door of the Final Four in his first season only makes Hoosiers fans think that Indiana went after the wrong guy in the coaching search last year.

Michigan Wolverines

Dusty May took Michigan from laughing stock under Juwan Howard to one of the nation's most impressive teams all year. He may be a former Indiana student manager but May is threatening to make sure the Big Ten goes through Ann Arbor on a regular basis, something Indiana hasn't said with any regularity in over 30 years.

Purdue Boilermakers

Do I really need to write out why Purdue winning isn't in the best interest of Indiana fans? Purdue has had the upper hand by a wide margin in national relevance, and another trip to the Final Four or national title game would only add to that.

Indiana is the second basketball program in its own state and that gap only grows with the more success Purdue has.

Nick Shepkowski's Quick Thoughts

Maybe it's being bitter, but I've never understood the "root for your own" thing.

I get that college sports are different now with the transfer portal but the Big Ten is currently loaded with great basketball coaches, and 2025-26 showed us nothing in terms of Indiana having one.

Indiana didn't really do anything to close the gap between it and the Big Ten elites this year, and if anything, it looks like more outstanding coaching has joined the conference, with the jury still very much out on if any of that has to do with Indiana.

Indiana's got its own problems to take care of, but the more success the Big Ten has, those problems only grow for Hoosiers basketball.