Indiana still searching for new head coach

The search for the next head men’s basketball coach at the University of Indiana continues, despite reports that the school had made a selection.

After Archie Miller was fired by Indiana, a national search began immediately.

There were plenty of big names rumored as potential candidates to replace Miller, and several of them had Big Ten connections. One of the top names on the list was Thad Matta, the former head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes.

On Monday, reports began trickling out that Indiana had a deal in place with Matta, but the deal fell through because of a medical concern. That report has now been refuted by a source within the Indiana athletic program.

Another top choice, according to sources, is Brad Stevens, who is the current head coach of the Boston Celtics. Stevens guided the Butler Bulldogs to the national championship game in both 2010 and 2011 but failed to win a title in each season.

Stevens has been asked about the potential of returning to college basketball and guiding the Hoosiers, and his answer has been what you might expect. The Celtics coach has said all of the right things in the media and doesn’t appear interested in taking over the Hoosiers program.

The Indiana athletic department has not revealed its potential list of candidates, but some of those candidates could still be coaching in the NCAA Tournament. Several college coaches have been asked about the opening, but none have expressed any public interest at this time.

Indiana failed to make the NCAA Tournament during Miller’s tenure, and the program is looking to make a big splash with this hire.

Minnesota Makes Its Choice

The Minnesota Golden Gophers were also searching for a head coach, and there was some concern that the two schools were battling for the same candidates. That concern is now gone as Minnesota has made its selection, and it didn’t remove a top candidate from the table.

Former Xavier assistant coach Ben Johnson has been tabbed as the next head men’s basketball coach at Minnesota. Johnson will replace Richard Pitino, who was fired following the 2020-21 season.

Johnson is a former player at Minnesota, graduating from the school in 2005. He began his playing career with Northwestern, and he has some serious ties to the Midwest and the Big Ten Conference.

The new head coach spent five seasons on the staff under Pitino and was known to be a great recruiter during his time in that role. He received a five-year contract from Minnesota and will likely spend some time recruiting in the state of Indiana.

Minnesota hopes that Johnson will be able to keep the top talent in the state and return the Golden Gophers to the top of the Big Ten Conference. Indiana is in a similar position as Minnesota in terms of talent and players returning and will likely be looking to make the same jump next season.

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