Woodson Gives Injury Update On Galloway, Newton

The Indiana basketball coach hopes Trey Galloway will be ready for the Hoosiers’ first official practice. He also said Jakai Newton has been in and out of practice throughout the summer.

Indiana Hoosiers guard Trey Galloway (32) shoots over Purdue Boilermakers forward Mason Gillis (0) at Mackey Arena. / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Fall classes began Monday at Indiana, and the men’s basketball team is still working its way back to full strength.

Coach Mike Woodson appeared on the College Hoops Today with Jon Rothstein podcast and mentioned that guards Trey Galloway and Jakai Newton have not been full participants during the offseason.

Galloway suffered a knee injury prior to Indiana’s regular season finale against Michigan State, which caused him to miss the Big Ten Tournament. He underwent knee surgery after the season, and Woodson updated the fifth-year senior’s status on Monday.

“I think [Galloway] might be ready to go the first day of practice,” Woodson said. “We kind of slow-walked him and didn’t rush things because we don’t have to. Again, there’s enough talent around him that we don’t have to rush him back. So he’s done his work this summer in terms of continuing to grow to get back out on the floor, but it takes time from these knee surgeries, man. But he’s heading in the right direction, and I’m hoping that from day one, he’ll be back out on the floor ready to go. But only time will tell with that.”

Indiana announced on Aug. 16, 2023 that Newton was out indefinitely after undergoing a procedure to treat a pre-existing injury. Newton missed part of his senior season at Newton High School in Covington, Ga. and then missed his entire true freshman season at Indiana in 2023-24.

He warmed up in full uniform prior to the Michigan State game and the Big Ten Tournament but did not play in any games. Newton redshirted the season and maintained four years of eligibility.  Woodson shared some insight into his availability this offseason.

“This summer play that we had, our eight-week program, has been very competitive, and we still haven’t had Gallo and Jakai Newton, two guys that I think are tough and hard-nosed players that are very competitive,” Woodson said. “So I’m looking to get both of those guys back. Jakai’s been in and out a little bit, but Gallo is still rehabbing from knee surgery.”

Indiana's Jakai Newton is announced during Hoosier Hysteria at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Friday, October 20, 2023. / Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

Galloway averaged a career-high 10.6 points and 4.6 assists last season. When healthy, he and Newton will join a backcourt that underwent significant changes after the 2023-24 season. 

Starting point guard Xavier Johnson graduated and backup guard CJ Gunn transferred to DePaul, making way for Woodson to add two guards from the transfer portal: Myles Rice from Washington State and Kanaan Carlyle from Stanford. Indiana also landed five-star freshman Bryson Tucker, who’s listed as a 6-foot-6 forward but has experience playing guard at Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, Va., and can play multiple positions.

Those newcomers join a group of returning guards like Galloway, Newton, senior Anthony Leal and sophomore Gabe Cupps. Various injuries to Johnson last season led to Indiana starting Cupps in 22 games and playing him 21.7 minutes per game, something Woodson said he did not expect. 

But after retooling the roster this offseason, Woodson feels Indiana is more equipped to handle injuries in the backcourt.

“That kind of prompted me this summer to go out into the portal and make sure that we got enough talent that if we caught like that again, it wouldn’t affect us, we could keep things moving hopefully,” Woodson said.

The increased talent and depth of Indiana’s back court also means there will be competition for minutes, something Woodson is glad he can promote in his fourth season.

“Gallo is still in rehab trying to get back, that’s not to say that he won’t be in the lineup,” Woodson said. “Competition and putting enough talent on the ball club is, I think, healthy and it eventually will play its way out in terms of who plays and who don’t play a whole lot.” 

Related stories on Indiana basketball

• 2024-25 INDIANA BASKETBALL SCHEDULE: Here's what we know about the 2024-25 Indiana men's basketball schedule, including game times, location and television designations. CLICK HERE