Mike Woodson’s emotional post-game comments leave the door open for an IU return
When Mike Woodson announced he would be stepping away from Indiana basketball at the end of the season and retiring, Hoosier fans everywhere rejoiced as it was what they had been calling for. However, as the end of the regular season unfolded, this team played with a different kind of fire that no one saw in them early on, and now Woodson could be having second thoughts.
After Indiana’s huge win over Ohio State on Saturday, a win that clinched them a bye in the Big Ten Tournament, the former player and current Hoosier head coach spoke with Jim Spanarkel on the court, and his first comments could leave the door open for Woodson’s return to IU next season.
“Maybe I am leaving too soon, I don’t know,” Woodson said. “This brings back old memories, my last game on this floor was against Ohio State for the Big Ten title back in 1980.”
Woodson had a storied playing career at Indiana, playing under legendary Hoosier coach Bob Knight. While he never won an NCAA Championship with the Hoosiers, he was a part of the 1978-1979 team that won the NIT Tournament.
Woodson’s time as a coach at Indiana, though, is not quite as favorably remembered by most. Woodson led the team to the NCAA Tournament in his first two seasons as a head coach, losing in the first and second rounds. However, in 2023, the Hoosiers missed the Tournament and finished tied for sixth in the Big Ten.
Now, the Hoosiers are right on the line of making the tournament and missing the tournament, and their fate lies in how they perform in the Big Ten Tournament.
Even though Woodson is having some second thoughts about leaving Indiana, the administration has already been looking for his replacement, Since Woodson wasn’t fired, and he hasn’t technically retired yet, he could potentially make a return to the Hoosiers, but a solid run in the NCAA Tournament might be the only thing that would allow that.
