The Indiana Pacers announced Thursday that forward T.J. Warren will miss the remainder of the season with a foot injury. Warren underwent surgery in January to repair a small stress fracture in his left foot. The 27-year-old small forward suited up in four games this season and averaged 15.5 points with 3.5 rebounds, last playing on December 29th. Warren was acquired from the Phoenix Suns in 2019, and was a breakout star in the NBA’s bubble in Orlando last season. He averaged almost 27 points per game in the bubble, including a 53-point performance in the team’s first game in Orlando. The Pacers are 20-23 and play the Mavericks Friday night at 8:30 in Dallas. Indiana was quiet on the trade front as the NBA’s trade deadline came and went Thursday afternoon without the Blue and Gold making a deal.
The men’s NCAA Tournament continues this weekend in Indianapolis with the Sweet 16. The regional semifinal round will be held Saturday and Sunday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse and Hinkle Fieldhouse. The action tips off Saturday afternoon at 2:40 when 12 seed Oregon State takes on eighth-seeded Loyola Chicago in the Midwest Region. At 5:15, number five Villanova takes on top-seeded Baylor. Cinderella squad Oral Roberts is the second ever 15th seed to advance to the Sweet 16 and will take on number three Arkansas at 7:25. Saturday’s slate concludes with 11th seeded Syracuse against number two Houston at 9:55. Sunday’s games include Creighton against Gonzaga, Florida State versus Michigan, UCLA against Alabama and a Pac-12 battle featuring Oregon and USC. The Elite Eight will be staged Monday and Tuesday at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The Indiana women’s basketball team will take on top-seeded North Carolina State Saturday evening in the Sweet 16 in San Antonio. The fourth-seeded Hoosiers have won two games in the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever. IU used suffocating defense in each of the first two rounds to beat 13 seed VCU and number 12 Belmont. The 80 combined points allowed through two games are the fewest allowed by a Big Ten team through two games in the history of the women’s NCAA Tournament. NC State is 22-2 with tournament wins over North Carolina A&T and South Florida. The Hoosiers and Wolfpack get underway from the Alamodome at 6 p.m. Eastern Saturday with television coverage on ESPN2.
Butler announced that all four senior scholarship basketball players will return for another season. The players are allowed to use an extra year of eligibility granted to them by the NCAA due to the coronavirus pandemic. The seniors include Jair Bolden, Christian David, Bryce Nze and Aaron Thompson. The Bulldogs struggled with injuries last season and finished 10-15, their worst record since 1993. Butler has not played in the NCAA Tournament since 2018, although the Dawgs would have made the “Big Dance” in 2020 had the pandemic not caused the event to be canceled. Nze, Bolden and Thompson all averaged more than 10 points per game last season, while David dealt with injuries and appeared in 11 games.
Indiana Hoosiers freshman forward Jordan Geronimo became the fourth IU player to enter the NCAA’s transfer portal this week. Geronimo posted on Instagram that he will be entering his name in the portal with the possibility of returning. The 6-foot-6 freshman is originally from New Jersey, and averaged 2.2 points and 1.8 rebounds in 21 games. He attended high school in New Hampshire and was a fringe top-100 prospect who committed to Indiana over offers from schools such as Georgia, Providence, Texas A&M and Virginia Tech. The Hoosiers went 12-15 last season and coach Archie Miller was fired after four seasons. Geronimo joins Race Thompson, Parker Stewart and Armaan Franklin as IU players to enter the transfer portal this week. All have indicated a return to IU is possible after the new coach is hired.
