Instant Observations From Indiana’s Exhibition Win Over North Carolina

Indiana basketball got another opportunity to see how its rebuilt roster fits together Sunday against North Carolina.

The Hoosiers controlled the glass, received a scoring boost from Bryce Lindsay and showed they could maintain a lead even when their shots weren’t falling against the Tar Heels.

Here are four observations from Indiana’s 76-58 exhibition win over North Carolina.

Indiana dominates the glass again

Doing it against Butler was encouraging. Doing it against North Carolina gives Indiana more reason to believe rebounding can become a strength this season.

The Hoosiers outrebounded the Tar Heels 53-31, collecting 20 offensive rebounds and producing 17 second-chance points. Samet Yigitoglu, Aiden Sherrell and Sam Alexis combined for 26 rebounds, including 12 on the offensive end.

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North Carolina won’t be the biggest opponent Indiana faces this year, but it was still a tougher test for a frontcourt that overwhelmed Butler a week ago.

That gives Indiana some room for error offensively. The Hoosiers won’t shoot well every night, but consistently getting another opportunity after a miss would make them less dependent on doing so.

Two exhibitions won’t settle the question. They have, however, offered evidence that Indiana’s offseason investment in size can translate into something meaningful on the court.

Bryce Lindsay makes his case for more

Bryce Lindsay entered just 68 seconds into Sunday’s exhibition after Markus Burton picked up his second foul, and Indiana quickly found out how much scoring it had waiting on the bench.

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Lindsay poured in 18 points in 15 first-half minutes, showing he could score at all three levels. The pair of deep 3-pointers stood out, but his ability to get to the free-throw line was just as encouraging.

Lindsay finished with 26 points on 8-of-14 shooting, giving Indiana another reason to feel comfortable when Burton leaves the floor.

After the Butler exhibition, Lindsay’s role looked particularly useful as someone who could organize…

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Publish date : 2026-10-19 00:52:00

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