How Indiana's NET Ranking, NCAA Tournament Chances Were Affected By USC Loss

The Hoosiers are squarely on the NCAA Tournament bubble with eight Big Ten games to play.

Indiana coach Darian DeVries against Michigan at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Indiana dropped the second of a two-game California road trip Tuesday night, falling 81-75 at USC.

Lamar Wilkerson caught fire with 33 points, but he had little help as the rest of the Hoosiers shot just 15-for-43 (34.8%) from the field. Indiana was also outrebounded 40-25 and sent USC to the free throw line for 31 attempts.

That snapped a three-game win streak over Rutgers, Purdue and UCLA, and dropped Indiana's record to 15-8 overall and 6-6 in Big Ten play, good for a 10th-place tie in the conference standings. Here's a closer look at how Indiana's loss to USC affected its NET ranking and NCAA Tournament chance, and what lies ahead.

Indiana moves down in NET rankings

Indiana Hoosiers guard Lamar Wilkerson (3) is guarded by Rutgers Scarlet Knights guard Harun Zrno (13) at Jersey Mike's Arena. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Indiana entered Tuesday game at USC ranked No. 30 in the NET, and it'll leave Los Angeles ranked No. 32.

This game won't greatly hurt Indiana's resume or be viewed as a "bad loss" come Selection Sunday. Rather, it's more of a missed opportunity for the Hoosiers to boost their resume. Because USC is ranked No. 47 in the NET, it'll fall into the Quad 1 loss category.

Indiana has a 2-7 record in Quad 1 games, with wins coming at UCLA and at home against Purdue. That record alone may not seem like a positive, and Indiana will likely need to pick up another Quad 1 win or two in order to make the tournament

But it's also important to note that seven of the Hoosiers' eight losses are in Quad 1, so they don't have any bad losses holding them back. The Hoosiers are 1-1 in Quad 2 games and 12-0 in Quad 3 and 4.

The tournament selection committee may point to Indiana not having enough good wins, but it won't critique the Hoosiers for having bad losses. At No. 32 in the NET, Indiana is ranked seventh among Big Ten teams. The Hoosiers are chasing No. 21 Iowa and holding onto a sizable lead over No. 40 UCLA.

Indiana's NCAA Tournament projections

Indiana Hoosiers forward Tucker DeVries (12) is defended by UCLA Bruins forward Tyler Bilodeau (34) at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Heading into Tuesday's game at USC, Indiana was listed first among the last four byes going into the game by ESPN's Joe Lunardi.

That means the Hoosiers would have avoided the First Four round in Dayton and received a No. 10 seed, setting up a Round of 64 matchup with No. 7 seed Auburn. Lunardi projected the Big Ten to send 11 teams to the big dance.

Lunardi hadn't updated his field Wednesday morning, but CBS Sports released a new bracket and listed Indiana as the second team out. The last four teams in were St. Mary's, New Mexico, Missouri and Seton Hall, each of whom have better overall records than Indiana but worse NET rankings.

Along with Indiana, other teams in the "first four out" category were Cal, Oklahoma State and Ohio State. Similarly, those three teams have better overall record than Indiana but worse NET rankings.

What's next for the Hoosiers?

Indiana's Nick Dorn (7) celebrates a 3-pointer against Purdue at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. | Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Indiana stayed in Los Angeles Tuesday night and is scheduled to fly home Wednesday, according to coach Darian DeVries. The Hoosiers will practice Thursday and Friday in Bloomington in preparation for Saturday's Noon ET tipoff against Wisconsin at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

That will be a Quad 2 opportunity for Indiana, as Wisconsin is ranked 42nd in the NET. In order for a home game to fall in the Quad 1 category, the opponent must be ranked in the top 30.

After that, the Hoosiers host Oregon before two challenging road games against Illinois and Purdue. They finish up their home slate with a three-game stint against Northwestern, Michigan State and Minnesota, and then wrap up the regular season at Ohio State.

Four of these games –– Illinois, Purdue, Michigan State and Ohio State –– currently represent Quad 1 games. Northwestern falls into Quad 2, while home games against Oregon and Minnesota are in Quad 3. The Big Ten Tournament could prove to be a crucial opportunity for Indiana to pick up resume-boosting wins.

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