Indiana Men’s Basketball: Hoosiers to Play in 2023 Empire Classic

Indiana will be one of four teams participating in the 2023 Empire Classic this November in Madison Square Garden, per a release. Texas, Louisville, and defending champion UConn will be the other three teams in the field.

The invitational will be Mike Woodson’s first trip back to Madison Square Garden as a coach of the Indiana Hoosiers. Before taking the Indiana job, Woodson was in his second stint as an assistant coach for the Knicks, after briefly serving as the head coach and spending his first season as an NBA player with the franchise.

Indiana’s last game in MSG came in 2019, when it beat UConn 57-54 in the Jimmy V classic. That game was also Indiana’s last game against any of the other three teams in the field, as it hasn’t seen Louisville since beating the Cardinals by a single point in 2018.

The event is scheduled to take place between November 19-20th, replacing the Gavitt Games event that Indiana had participated in on that weekend in years past. With UConn and Texas in the field, it should give the Hoosiers an opportunity to notch an impressive non-conference win that would help seeding in March.

Based on Indiana’s scheduling last year, which featured games against Kansas, Arizona, and Xavier before Big Ten play kicked into full gear, it’s safe to say the Hoosiers will add a few more big names to its non-conference schedule. No matter who else is added though, the chance to knock off both Texas and UConn before December should give Indiana fans plenty to look forward to.