The Indiana basketball program hosted a key visitor last weekend in 2024 five-star forward Asa Newell of Montverde Academy.
This was the second official visit he has taken this fall, his first being Georgia a few weeks ago. His brother is a walk-on on the UGA roster.
Newell took an unofficial visit to Indiana earlier this spring/summer. The result of this past weekend was raving reviews, once again, of Indiana.
Justin Newell, Asa's dad, told TheHoosier.com: "Indiana is high on our list. It’s a basketball school... The fan base has offered Asa overwhelming support on social media and in person."
"The coaches have a good relationship with Asa. Mike Woodson is obviously well-connected in the NBA where Asa would like to land in a few years... there is a deep desire to win in Bloomington and a winning culture is what Asa wants to be a part of."
"We have a lot of basketball to watch this season and will be looking for how coaches use players like Asa in their system."
Asa is a 6-foot-9 hybrid forward who is going to use his versatility on the floor. Both he and his dad have made it very clear, they want to see how players in his spot fit in Indiana's system -- and the other programs recruiting him.
Indiana sits near the top of the list for Newell at this moment.
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2024 five-star Don Bosco (NJ) guard Dylan Harper scheduled his official visit to Indiana for the weekend of November 11-13. That is a significant step, but talking with others around the recruitment, Rutgers and Duke seem to be the two at the top right now.
Harper is on an official visit to Michigan this weekend.
TheHoosier.com scouting notes:
"At 6-foot-4, Harper has a good frame and size at the lead-guard position. While Harper has a lot of scoring ability, the biggest takeaway this week I had was his ability to make plays as a passer and floor general for his teammates. Harper was terrific getting his teammates involved and not forcing the issue. Whether it was making the right decisions on fast breaks or in half court settings, Harper was always making plays with the ball in his hands.
"Harper's scoring ability shined when needed. While he rarely forced his shots, his ability to get to his spots on the floor and create good looks for himself was a steady force all week. He does a good job at using his body to draw contact and get to the free throw line and helping him get into a rhythm. With his shot, while it wasn't always on, he has such a smooth form and an ability to get his shot off over almost any defender. He struggled earlier on this week but hit some big shots when needed."
More on Harper:
indiana.rivals.com
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2024 four-star guard Rakease Passmore has also set an official visit to Indiana. He is visiting the weekend of November 5. He is scheduled to be at Indiana's first game of the season on Nov. 7 at the moment.
Passmore is a 6-foot-5 guard who is a tremendous athlete. He is a big, physical guard who can get to the rim at will and when he does, is looking to finish through contact. He has good elevation and that is an added boost with his size and length. He has a very quick first step and turns the corner at will.
Passmore previously played for Asheville (N.C.) AC Reynolds High before transferring to Combine Academy ahead of his junior season
More on Passmore:
indiana.rivals.com
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Indiana head coach Mike Woodson and assistant Kenya Hunter made a stop down at IMG Academy (Fla.) this week to see a few targets.
Of those are 2024 five-star Bryson Tucker and 2023 Braden Pierce. This is the second time that IU has been down to IMG in the last few weeks.
Pierce was originally in the 2022 class but decided to take a prep year and move to 2023. He is a 7-foot and 240-pound big man that is getting a look from some bigger programs, including Indiana. The thought process behind this is: He’s not really rushing to make any sort of decision so in IU’s mind, you wait and monitor how he plays this year against tough competition and go from there. No harm in that. It’s a door that Indiana wants to keep open, especially with a decision no time soon.
Pierce said Indiana 'will be in contact with me throughout the year because they know i’ll be signing late'.
He has offers from Rutgers and USF. But has interest from Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Davidson, Georgia and others.
For 2024 five-star Bryson Tucker, he's a name to continue to monitor -- he currently has an Indiana offer. He also has Duke, Villanova, Illinois, Maryland, LSU and other offers. North Carolina continues to monitor as well.
Rivals analyst Russ Wood on Tucker earlier this summer:
"Tucker’s combination of size, shot making ability, ball handling and bounce made him one of the best wings I saw. He has a high basketball IQ and values the ball. When I watched he only missed two of his six shot attempts, had two assists and zero turnovers in 23 minutes. The 2024 class in the DMV is loaded and Tucker is arguably sitting in the top spot."
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On the floor, Indiana gets going with an exhibition game against Marian this weekend -- Saturday ad 3 pm ET.
Mike Woodson spoke to the media today and here were a few quotes regarding tomorrow's exhibition.
Q. Just to start off, what are the key things you want to see from your team in these two exhibition games:
A: "Well, from a coaching standpoint, you like to see if they've picked up some stuff that we've put in from this summer. All the work that we've put in up until this point, we want to see from a defensive standpoint if they've picked things up and can carry over in a ball game as well as the offense. We want to see if they are able to execute. There are a lot of things that we're looking for come tomorrow at 3:00 to see if these guys obtained a lot of the stuff that we've taught."
Q. Curious how everybody is doing from a health perspective, and also how just as a coach how do you approach exhibition games? Is it your goal just to try to -- obviously it doesn't count for the record, but you're out there trying to mix and match lineups. How do you approach the rotations and distribute minutes tomorrow?
A: "Well, right now we're a little banged up. Trayce is a little banged up. Tamar Bates has been sidelined for the last couple practices. You know, we've kind of been going at each other, and it's been a long run from the summer in terms of competing against another one. So now it's time to see where we are against an opponent. I don't know; I don't know how many minutes guys will play. I've got to get a rotation in play before we open up. I'll be using these two games to look at different combinations and just see where we are."
He mentions both Jackson-Davis and Bates as 'game-time' decisions.
Marian is highlighted by some talented players and former D1 players, including four-star wing Taeshon Cherry. He was a top-40 guy who committed to Arizona State in the 2018 class.
We will have full pre and postgame coverage today through the end of the weekend.
This was the second official visit he has taken this fall, his first being Georgia a few weeks ago. His brother is a walk-on on the UGA roster.
Newell took an unofficial visit to Indiana earlier this spring/summer. The result of this past weekend was raving reviews, once again, of Indiana.
Justin Newell, Asa's dad, told TheHoosier.com: "Indiana is high on our list. It’s a basketball school... The fan base has offered Asa overwhelming support on social media and in person."
"The coaches have a good relationship with Asa. Mike Woodson is obviously well-connected in the NBA where Asa would like to land in a few years... there is a deep desire to win in Bloomington and a winning culture is what Asa wants to be a part of."
"We have a lot of basketball to watch this season and will be looking for how coaches use players like Asa in their system."
Asa is a 6-foot-9 hybrid forward who is going to use his versatility on the floor. Both he and his dad have made it very clear, they want to see how players in his spot fit in Indiana's system -- and the other programs recruiting him.
Indiana sits near the top of the list for Newell at this moment.
---
2024 five-star Don Bosco (NJ) guard Dylan Harper scheduled his official visit to Indiana for the weekend of November 11-13. That is a significant step, but talking with others around the recruitment, Rutgers and Duke seem to be the two at the top right now.
Harper is on an official visit to Michigan this weekend.
TheHoosier.com scouting notes:
"At 6-foot-4, Harper has a good frame and size at the lead-guard position. While Harper has a lot of scoring ability, the biggest takeaway this week I had was his ability to make plays as a passer and floor general for his teammates. Harper was terrific getting his teammates involved and not forcing the issue. Whether it was making the right decisions on fast breaks or in half court settings, Harper was always making plays with the ball in his hands.
"Harper's scoring ability shined when needed. While he rarely forced his shots, his ability to get to his spots on the floor and create good looks for himself was a steady force all week. He does a good job at using his body to draw contact and get to the free throw line and helping him get into a rhythm. With his shot, while it wasn't always on, he has such a smooth form and an ability to get his shot off over almost any defender. He struggled earlier on this week but hit some big shots when needed."
More on Harper:
2024 top-10 prospect Dylan Harper sets official visit to Indiana
Class of 2024 five-star prospect Dylan Harper has set an official visit to Indiana.
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2024 four-star guard Rakease Passmore has also set an official visit to Indiana. He is visiting the weekend of November 5. He is scheduled to be at Indiana's first game of the season on Nov. 7 at the moment.
Passmore is a 6-foot-5 guard who is a tremendous athlete. He is a big, physical guard who can get to the rim at will and when he does, is looking to finish through contact. He has good elevation and that is an added boost with his size and length. He has a very quick first step and turns the corner at will.
Passmore previously played for Asheville (N.C.) AC Reynolds High before transferring to Combine Academy ahead of his junior season
More on Passmore:
2024 top-50 guard Rakease Passmore schedules Indiana official visit
2024 four-star guard Rakease Passmore has scheduled his Indiana official visit.
---
Indiana head coach Mike Woodson and assistant Kenya Hunter made a stop down at IMG Academy (Fla.) this week to see a few targets.
Of those are 2024 five-star Bryson Tucker and 2023 Braden Pierce. This is the second time that IU has been down to IMG in the last few weeks.
Pierce was originally in the 2022 class but decided to take a prep year and move to 2023. He is a 7-foot and 240-pound big man that is getting a look from some bigger programs, including Indiana. The thought process behind this is: He’s not really rushing to make any sort of decision so in IU’s mind, you wait and monitor how he plays this year against tough competition and go from there. No harm in that. It’s a door that Indiana wants to keep open, especially with a decision no time soon.
Pierce said Indiana 'will be in contact with me throughout the year because they know i’ll be signing late'.
He has offers from Rutgers and USF. But has interest from Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Davidson, Georgia and others.
For 2024 five-star Bryson Tucker, he's a name to continue to monitor -- he currently has an Indiana offer. He also has Duke, Villanova, Illinois, Maryland, LSU and other offers. North Carolina continues to monitor as well.
Rivals analyst Russ Wood on Tucker earlier this summer:
"Tucker’s combination of size, shot making ability, ball handling and bounce made him one of the best wings I saw. He has a high basketball IQ and values the ball. When I watched he only missed two of his six shot attempts, had two assists and zero turnovers in 23 minutes. The 2024 class in the DMV is loaded and Tucker is arguably sitting in the top spot."
---
On the floor, Indiana gets going with an exhibition game against Marian this weekend -- Saturday ad 3 pm ET.
Mike Woodson spoke to the media today and here were a few quotes regarding tomorrow's exhibition.
Q. Just to start off, what are the key things you want to see from your team in these two exhibition games:
A: "Well, from a coaching standpoint, you like to see if they've picked up some stuff that we've put in from this summer. All the work that we've put in up until this point, we want to see from a defensive standpoint if they've picked things up and can carry over in a ball game as well as the offense. We want to see if they are able to execute. There are a lot of things that we're looking for come tomorrow at 3:00 to see if these guys obtained a lot of the stuff that we've taught."
Q. Curious how everybody is doing from a health perspective, and also how just as a coach how do you approach exhibition games? Is it your goal just to try to -- obviously it doesn't count for the record, but you're out there trying to mix and match lineups. How do you approach the rotations and distribute minutes tomorrow?
A: "Well, right now we're a little banged up. Trayce is a little banged up. Tamar Bates has been sidelined for the last couple practices. You know, we've kind of been going at each other, and it's been a long run from the summer in terms of competing against another one. So now it's time to see where we are against an opponent. I don't know; I don't know how many minutes guys will play. I've got to get a rotation in play before we open up. I'll be using these two games to look at different combinations and just see where we are."
He mentions both Jackson-Davis and Bates as 'game-time' decisions.
Marian is highlighted by some talented players and former D1 players, including four-star wing Taeshon Cherry. He was a top-40 guy who committed to Arizona State in the 2018 class.
We will have full pre and postgame coverage today through the end of the weekend.
