The Indiana Hoosiers found themselves on the wrong side of the bubble on Sunday’s Selection Show to determine the field for the 2025 NCAA Tournament. And while many have argued this decision, an unlikely personality at ESPN argued against Indiana’s case for an NCAA Tournament bid.
ESPN NFL reporter Courtney Cronin attended Indiana from 2008 to 2012 and served as the sports director for the Indiana University Student Television program during her time at IU. But her admitted allegiance to the Indiana basketball program didn’t stop her from calling into question how the program has conducted itself this season.
In particular, Cronin, a regular panelist on Around the Horn, took issue with Indiana announcing that they would part ways with Mike Woodson last month and then going on a run towards the end of the season, which culminated in a lackluster Big Ten Tournament run that she believes spelled the demise of the team’s NCAA Tournament chances.
“I have a problem with it for West Virginia,” said Cronin, of North Carolina’s NCAA Tournament bid on Monday’s edition of Around the Horn. “As the only panelist on this show who went to one of the teams that was snubbed and left out, which is Indiana, I should come in here and get the homer graphic behind me. But you know what, I’m not going to. Tie goes to the blue-blood program. The committee has told us, UNC is a blue-blood program.
“They don’t view Indiana as that anymore because they decided that they wanted to part ways … with Mike Woodson in the beginning of February. Then, they start going on this run, rack up a couple Quad 1 wins in that stretch. They build up all this good will to lose to Oregon in the Big Ten Tournament… Indiana has no sympathy from someone who loves this program, loves this team. You’re 4-13 in Quad 1 games, no losses outside of the Quad 1. But you are no longer a blue-blood program when you handle business this way. The metrics, the optics, they give them no reason to be crying about it today as much as I would love to see my own team in the tournament.”
Indiana alum Courtney Cronin on UNC in the NCAA Tournament over the Hoosiers:
“I have a problem with it for West Virginia… Indiana has no sympathy from someone who loves this program, loves this team… You are no longer a blueblood program when you handle business this way.” pic.twitter.com/OXlhiepRib
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 17, 2025
As Cronin alluded, most media members have been significantly more upset with West Virginia, which had six Quad 1 wins this season, missing out on the NCAA Tournament than Indiana’s snub.
While Indiana’s resumé seemingly stacks up favorably to North Carolina as well, Indiana didn’t exactly make it a sure thing that they should be an NCAA Tournament team.
The common trend that appears to be at play for both Indiana and West Virginia missing out on Selection Sunday is a pair of lackluster runs in their conference tournaments. Both teams were unable to win a single game in the Big Ten and Big 12 Conference tournaments, respectively.
Meanwhile, North Carolina took care of Notre Dame and Wake Forest before ultimately taking Duke to the wire in the ACC Tournament Semifinal.
Perhaps the lone silver lining for Indiana’s program is that they will now be able to shift their focus solely to their head coaching search to replace Woodson. But at least in the eyes of Cronin, whoever ends up taking the job will have the enviable task of returning the program back to the status of being a blue blood, which is obviously easier said than done.
