Lamar Wilkerson won't be the only Indiana player that Kentucky fans are familiar with

At this point, most of us know that Indiana’s Lamar Wilkerson went for 44 points earlier this week, hitting a program record 10 three-pointers en route to the Hoosiers’ 113-72 blowout win over Penn State.

His performance was salt in the wound for some Kentucky fans, knowing that Wilkerson was close to being a Wildcat back in the offseason. The 6-foot-4 sharpshooter put his name in the transfer portal after three seasons at Sam Houston State, where he averaged 20.5 points per outing last season. He was down to a pair of finalists: UK and IU, ultimately choosing the Hoosiers and new head coach Darian DeVries.

Looking back on that decision, Kentucky sure would benefit from having a bucket-getter like Wilkerson. He currently leads Indiana (8-2) in scoring at 18.8 points per game with shooting splits of 46.8/43.2/79.3. Wilkerson will still get to play in Rupp Arena, but he’ll be the enemy when Indiana comes to Lexington on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN) in what is essentially a must-win for Mark Pope and the Wildcats.

But Wilkerson won’t be the only name you might recognize when Indiana takes the hardwood this weekend.

Of course, there is Coach DeVries’ son, Tucker DeVries, who has followed his dad from Drake to West Virginia and now to Indiana. The younger DeVries was a two-time MVC Player of the Year in 2023 and 2024, but only played eight games at WVU before suffering a season-ending surgery. He’s healthy this season, though, currently serving as Indiana’s second-leading scorer at 17.2 points per game.

But that whole storyline played out on the national stage. Two other players on the IU roster are more specifically connected to what’s happened with Kentucky basketball during the year 2025.

One of them is 6-foot-3 guard Tayton Conerway, who the Big Blue Nation might remember from last season’s NCAA Tournament. Conerway was the best player on a Troy team that made the field of 68 as a 14-seed and was matched up against 3-seeded Kentucky in the opening round. Conerway was the Sun Belt Player of the Year in 2024-25 after posting per-game averages of 14.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 2.9 steals for the Trojans. He was at the very top of Kentucky’s scouting report, and the Wildcats did a solid job of keeping him in check. Conerway finished with 12 points, four rebounds, and four assists on 5-12 shooting as Kentucky took down Troy 76-57.

Conerway then dipped into the transfer portal and landed at Indiana, choosing to play for Coach DeVries over the likes of Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, and Mississippi State. He’s arguably been the Hoosiers’ third-best player this season behind Wilkerson and DeVries. Conerway is once again stuffing the stat sheet, averaging 12.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.9 steals per contest. He had 17 points and seven assists in Tuesday’s win over Penn State.

The other familiar name is Reed Bailey, a 6-foot-11 forward who is Indiana’s fourth-leading scorer at 11.1 points per game. He also averages 4.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game while shooting a career-high 60.4 percent from the field. If his name rings a bell, it would be because Kentucky expressed interest in him in the transfer portal back in the offseason.

Bailey, who spent three seasons at Davidson and was named All-Atlantic 10 in 2024-25, was on the Wildcats’ transfer Big Board during the spring, and at one point, UK was reportedly a school to watch for once he entered his name into the portal. That being said, it never felt like Kentucky went all-in on pursuing Bailey — not to the level they did with Wilkerson, at least. Compared to Bailey, Alabama transfer forward Mo Dioubate (when healthy) has posted similar stats this season for Kentucky anyway.

Kentucky desperately needs a win against the Hoosiers on Saturday. But the Wildcats will have to go through Wilkerson, Conerway, and Bailey to make it happen.