Report: Gavitt Games will not be played in 2024-25 season as future of series remains up in the air

The Indiana basketball program has put together some extremely notable and difficult non-conferee matchups under third-year head coach Mike Woodson. But, one notable game could be missing from the Indiana schedule moving forward.

College basketball insider Jon Rothstein reported that the Gavitt Games would not be played in 2024-25 and the future of the series is up in the air. The Gavitt Games are the yearly matchups between the Big Ten and Big East.

The Gavitt Games have been played every year since 2015 but this upcoming season was the final series matchup. A major hold up in a potential new series agreement has come from the Big Ten. According to Rothstein, the ‘Big Ten expressed concern regarding future scheduling flexibility with UCLA, USC, Oregon, and Washington’ next season.

While Indiana typically plays, because of the size of the conferences, not every Big Ten team sees this matchup on the yearly schedule. This year, Indiana was left out of the matchup.

Indiana holds the highest win total in the series among either conference with four wins. Overall, Indiana is 4-1.

Last season could be the final matchup that Indiana sees, at least in the near future. It was an 81-79 win at Xavier.

Indiana has notable non-conference matchups with Kansas, Auburn and the Empire Classic this season. IU will play defending-champ UConn in the first game of the Empire Classic and then either Texas or Louisville in the second matchup.

Last season the Hoosiers played the first home-and-home matchup with Kansas, a neutral site matchup with Arizona in Las Vegas and North Carolina in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.

Other notable games that has been added to Indiana’s non-conference slate is a future series with Kentucky and a reported trip to the Bahamas for the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament next year. It is a four-game series against Kentucky set to begin in the 2025-26 season.

“I think it’s important to prepare yourself with high-level competition as much as possible as your team gets ready for a 20-game Big Ten schedule,” Woodson said last season. “I think you’ve got to challenge your team as you move forward. As we’re building this, we’ve got to challenge ourselves with big time programs.”

Indiana begins its 2023-24 season against Florida Gulf Coast on Nov. 7.

SEE ALSO: Indiana basketball picked sixth in preseason Big Ten Media Poll; Mackenzie Mgbako picked as Freshman of the Year

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