Report: Indiana basketball fires long-time staffer Adam Howard one game into season

Indiana men’s basketball has fired assistant director of recruiting and operations Adam Howard, per Zach Osterman of The Indianapolis Star. Although this season was Howard’s first in as assistant director of recruiting and operations, he’s long been a part of the program.

He was a student manager for four years while in college and joined the coaching staff as a graduate manager in the 2022-23 season. Now, only one game into the season, Indiana has dismissed Howard from his new role.

As of this report, Trent Sisley is Indiana’s lone commit in the 2025 recruiting cycle. He is a four-star prospect and the No. 82 overall player in his class, according to the On3 Industry Ranking.

Per Indiana’s team website, Howard also “serves as the President of Men’s Basketball Operations for Grow The Game, a manager-run organization helping the next generation of coaches build genuine relationships and advance in their career.”

Additionally, Howard was named the National Student Manager of the Year at the 2022 NCAA Final Four in New Orleans by the Grow the Game manager community.

Indiana wins season opener in comfortable style

Indiana’s decision to part ways with Adam Howard certainly wasn’t due to its season-opening 80-61 win over SIU Edwardsville. In the win, Mackenzie Mgbako stole the show, tallying a game-high 31 points and nine rebounds while shooting 13-17 from the field.

Mgbako was from the Hoosiers’ only contributor. The team had four players score double figures and notched 18 assists on their 30 made field goals. Despite Indiana’s convincing victory, head coach Mike Woodson knows his team must continue to improve to meet expectations this season.

“We can’t hide from it,” Woodson said after the game. “Expectations, that’s a good thing. We expect that. So I expect our players to play at a high level. I thought in stretches we did tonight.

“I just got to get us where we’re playing 40 minutes a game throughout the game no matter what, no matter who we play.”

Next, Indiana will square off against Eastern Illinois on Sunday at noon ET. The game will air live on B1G+.