LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The tipping point for Mike Woodson as the Indiana University men's basketball coach was not the back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back losses to Northwestern.
It wasn't four straight gut punches from Nebraska by an average of 19 points. It wasn't season-ending defeats by 29, 16 and 27 points in his first three years as the Hoosiers' coach.
It was this: Louisville 89, Indiana 61.
The official 10-count came Friday afternoon when Woodson and IU athletic director Scott Dolson announced the embattled coach will "step down" from the IU job at the end of the season.
"He said it had been weighing on his mind for a while, and that it was an emotional and difficult decision," Dolson said in a written statement Friday. "We have had subsequent thoughtful conversations about his decision and his desire to ensure that the program is in the best position it can be moving forward. At an appropriate time, Coach Woodson will articulate his feelings about his decision and his experiences these last four years."
This is Woodson's fourth season with the Hoosiers, during which his teams have gone 77-49 without advancing to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament.
Woodson has two years remaining on the deal he signed in 2021 when he replaced Archie Miller. Dolson will lead a national search for IU's next coach.
Woodson will coach the Hoosiers on Saturday against Michigan in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington, in a game that will be nationally televised on CBS at 1 p.m.
But Pat Kelsey, Chucky Hepburn, Reyne Smith and the rest of the Louisville squad did more than anybody to K.O. Woodson's chances of completing the final two seasons on his six-year contract.
A first-season coach (Kelsey) who put together an entire roster in 25 minutes squashed a fourth-year coach (Woodson) who blew through roughly $5 million in NIL money on IU's players.
Yes, it was only a November game, the first of nine games IU would lose this season. It was followed the next day with another one-sided defeat (by Gonzaga). There were 40 and then 80 minutes of proof that nothing of substance had changed at Indiana from the struggles of last season when many clamored for change in Bloomington.
Game. Set. Match.
What went wrong for the Hoosiers?
Woodson had a string of answers that he recycled at every losing press conference.
"Gotta get them over The Hump," was a favorite.
Woodson used the word "Hump" so many times there will a $10,000 fine the first time the next Indiana coach uses that word.
"It's on me," Woodson might say.
Considering he is being paid more than $4 million per year, that seemed reasonable.
"I wish I knew," Woodson would say.
Considering he is being paid more than $4 million per year, that said a lot without saying anything.
"It's hard for me to explain," was another Woodson-ism.
Check, please.
Others will dive into Woodson's colossal whiffs in recruiting, his shot at the fan base on Senior Day last March, his strange breakups with program assistants Thad Matta, Dane Fife and Adam Howard and other airballs over the last 46 months. All of those played a part.
But the tipping point was Louisville 89, Indiana 61 in a season when the Hoosiers went to The Bahamas ranked 14th in the Associated Press Top 25 and Louisville was an afterthought.
There was no coming back from that — unless the Hoosiers went on some kind of ridiculous run this season.
But if you watched the way that Louisville picked Indiana apart that November afternoon in The Bahamas, you knew that Woodson had a better chance of quarterbacking the Indianapolis Colts to the Super Bowl than he did of getting Indiana in line for a ridiculous run.
It wasn't just the 10 three-point shots Louisville stuck on Indiana. It was the way the Cardinals made 71% of their two-point attempts, collecting layups and dunks as if they were buy-one, get-one free.
Woodson's teams often had trouble guarding the three. But protecting the lane and the rim was allegedly a strength of Woodson's nail/slot/rim system. Not against the Cards.
It was the way the Cardinals shared the basketball while generating 23 assists while Indiana was throwing the same basketball away 23 times, nearly 32% of their possessions.
And it was certainly the way that Kelsey's players sprinted after loose balls while Woodson's guys competed as if they were allergic to floor burns.
That game, one that Louisville led by 37 points before Kelsey and the Cards moved it into cruise control, was also a career crusher for another reason.
Louisville showed Indiana what 2025 college basketball is supposed to be: A heavy emphasis on three-point shooting. Four and sometimes five guys who are comfortable playing on the perimeter because they are legitimate triple threats — guys who can shoot, pass or drive.
For most of his time at Indiana, Woodson promised a more three-point friendly approach. But he couldn't do that his first season because he didn't have time to recruit shooters and the strength of his squad was inside with Trayce Jackson-Davis and Race Thompson. Ditto for Year Two.
That explanation disappeared after Jackson-Davis and Thompson departed following the 2023 season. Not much changed.
Here are the percentage of three-point shots that Indiana has averaged over Woodson's four seasons:
- 2022: 31.1, ranking No. 321 in the nation
- 2023: 26.6, No. 354 in the nation
- 2024: 27.8, No. 351 in the nation (without Jackson-Davis and Thompson)
- 2025: 32.9, No. 320 in the nation (with three full years of Woodson's recruits)
Not even close to breaking into the top 300.
Over the last four seasons in Big Ten play, IU ranked 13th, third, 11th and 14th in three-point shooting accuracy.
Those are not the numbers of a guy who either understands or accepts the realities of winning college basketball in 2025.
Those are are the numbers of a guy who failed to advance beyond the round of 32 in two NCAA Tournaments, missed the tournament last season and is solidly tracking toward missing it again this season.
And a guy that lost by 28 points to a team with a totally rebuilt roster and a coach who embraced modern college basketball.
Louisville 89, Indiana 61. That was the day the music died for Mike Woodson.
Indiana Basketball Coverage:
- Mike Woodson reportedly considering retirement as Indiana basketball coach
- BOZICH | Was Chris Beard sending bat signal to Indiana on Tuesday night?
- BOZICH | How long can Indiana basketball avoid its coaching problem?
- BOZICH | Where do Kelsey, Pope, Calipari, May rank among 15 first-season Power 5 coaches?
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