The Indiana Hoosiers (15-7, 6-5) built a 10-point lead with 1:38 left in the second half against the UCLA Bruins behind tremendous efforts from Nick Dorn and Reed Bailey. The duo combined for 50 points, 16 rebounds and five assists. Don’s 26 points led all scorers. However, IU saw the 10-point lead evaporate and neither Dorn nor Bailey saw the ball go through the hoop again.
“I feel like it’s going in regardless of where I shoot it or how I shoot it.” Dorn said after the game. “So,I just always I had that confidence ever since I was little. So, my brothers used to say like I’m delusional and I feel like I live up to that”
Dorn has been on a burner lately as he has worked his way back from a foot injury that kept him out of games early in the season. Against the Bruins Dorn made six three-pointers and finished 8-18 from the floor. He also added seven rebounds.
“He’s been playing great. He’s really confident. I think he really fits well with what we try to do and the spacing that we have on the floor. So I thought the guys did a good job, really finding them, feeding him.” Indiana head coach Darian DeVries said after the game.
As UCLA tried to close out on Dorn, Indiana big man Reed Bailey found his groove. Bailey had an outstanding game off the bench with 24 points on 6-7 shooting. He went to the free throw line 13 times, sinking 12 of them. He added six rebounds and five assists before fouling out in overtime.
“I think we’ve kept encouraging him just to be aggressive and and go make plays, be yourself, and I think he’s doing a really nice job of that.” DeVries said of Bailey. “He’s starting to find his way around as the season’s gone along, too. And I I think he’s he’s picking those moments and and he had some really really big plays for us there at both ends of the floor.”
Bailey fouled out with 2:46 left in the first over time and Nick Dorn only took one shot in the extra periods. However, other IU players stepped in when needed.
In stepped Lamar Wilkerson who scored 10 of his 24 points in the two over time periods. His four field goals and two free throws helped IU survive a late game collapse and grab a very important win at UCLA 98-97.
“I thought Lamar was a big part of that in overtime.” DeVries said. ” I thought Lamar was terrific. We started going to him a lot more. I told him to be assertive and he had up and down game a little bit, but he just took it on his shoulders and went and got to the rim, got fouled, got some layups.”
The Hoosiers received contributions from everyone on Saturday evening, including freshman Trent Sisley who sank the game winning free throw. Sisley who has been struggling lately has earned enough truth with this staff to get the ball in big spots. Conor Enright had five points and seven assists in 39 minutes before fouling out.
Other Notes Provided by IU
- IU had 22 assists on 28 made field goals on Saturday. The Hoosiers have won all seven
contests this year where they’ve had at least 20 helpers. - Dorn is the first IU player with at least 25 points and six made 3-point field goals in a road Big
Ten contest since Robert Johnson in 2018 at Iowa (29 points, nine 3-points makes). - Bailey is the first IU player to score at least 20 points off the bench since Malik Reneau at
Washington last season (22 – March 1, 2025). It’s the most bench points by an IU player since
Devonte Green against Ohio State (26 – March 14, 2019). - For IU, it’s the first time a player has had a 20-5-5 game off bench since at least 1996-97.
Bailey played 28 minutes before fouling out in overtime. - Fifth-year senior guard Lamar Wilkerson scored 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds. He
scored 10 of his points in the overtime periods. Today was his 10th 20-point game of the year. - Up Next: IU completes its trip out west with a matchup against USC at the Galen Center on Tuesday (Feb. 3) evening. Tip is set for 10 p.m. ET on
Peacock.