Darian DeVries reveals 1 thing that was ‘too much’ for Indiana in Illinois loss

It has been an up and down year for Indiana basketball coach Darian DeVries, in his first season in Bloomington. Indiana lost on Sunday to Illinois by a 71-51 score. DeVries opened up after the game about what went wrong for his scrappy Hoosiers team.

“The offensive rebounding on their end was really too much for us to overcome,” DeVries said, per The News-Gazette in Illinois.

“The offensive rebounding on their end was really too much for us to overcome.”@IndianaMBB’s @Coach_DeVries weighs in on his team’s 71-51 loss to @IlliniMBB on Sunday afternoon in Champaign. #Illini #B1G pic.twitter.com/Pt1lyd6ALq

— Scott Richey (@srrichey) February 15, 2026

Illinois out rebounded the Hoosiers, 36-22. Indiana posted just two offensive rebounds in the game. The Hoosiers also struggled to defend the paint, as Illinois finished the game with 40 points in the paint.

Indiana fell to 17-9 overall on the season with the loss. The Hoosiers, who are battling for a spot in the NCAA tournament, are now 8-7 in the Big Ten. Indiana went into the Illinois game having won five of their last six contests.

Illinois improved to 21-5 on the campaign with the win. The Fighting Illini are 12-3 in the Big Ten, and second in the conference.

Indiana basketball struggled in the Illinois game 

Indiana was able to stifle Illinois on Sunday with their three-point defense. Illinois shot just 23 percent from the perimeter against the Hoosiers. Indiana though also struggled; the Hoosiers shot just 25 percent from three-point range in the game.

“I actually thought we had some really good possessions, we got some pretty clean looks,” DeVries added. “…We didn’t make them. The problem is we couldn’t get enough stops during that time to withstand it.”

Rebounding is an area where the Indiana head coach wants his team to improve. Illinois posted 15 offensive rebounds in the game, which hurt the Hoosiers.

“We’ve got to clean up the glass better,” DeVries added, “so we can get our own transition opportunities.”

DeVries came to Bloomington this season after spending last season at West Virginia. He won 19 games in his only season in Morgantown. DeVries also led Drake to three NCAA tournament appearances.

Indiana basketball next plays at Purdue on Friday.

The post Darian DeVries reveals 1 thing that was ‘too much’ for Indiana in Illinois loss appeared first on ClutchPoints.