With the 2026-27 college basketball season inching closer, teams are traveling the globe to get their first taste of game action.
Due to a recent update to NCAA rules, schools are now permitted to embark on foreign tours every offseason, rather than the previous cadence of once every four years.
While teams remain in the early stages of gelling and coaches are a long way from finalizing their rotations, a lot can still be gathered from these exhibitions. They offer a sneak peek at rosters that have been completely rebuilt via the portal or the high school recruiting market.
Below is a recap of some of the tours taken so far, including the biggest standouts and most eye-popping stats from each. Tours will continue throughout August, so stay tuned for more coverage.
Indiana
After Indiana landed one of the nation’s top-ranked transfer classes this spring, the anticipation has been building in Bloomington. Darian DeVries’ new-look team recently spent a week in Lima, Peru, representing the United States in the fourth edition of the FISU America Games. The Hoosiers cruised to a gold medal, winning four games by an average of 61.3 points. Villanova transfer Bryce Lindsay, a 6-foot-3 junior guard, led the way in the final, scoring 17 points to help IU topple the Virgin Islands 99-57.
With a balanced attack, the Hoosiers averaged 110.3 points and held each of their opponents under 65. “Their unselfishness, how hard they played, their approach, their attitude, their togetherness, I thought that was terrific,” DeVries said Tuesday. The second-year coach was especially pleased with his team’s effectiveness in transition and on the offensive glass. The defensive intensity was solid, even if there were occasional lapses.
Big man Aiden Sherrell, a transfer from Alabama, was named MVP of the event. The 6-foot-10 junior forward averaged 14.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks while shooting 61.5 percent from the field. Sherrell and 7-foot-2 junior center Samet Yigitoglu, who did not play in the tournament because he is a citizen of Turkey, are expected to form one of the nation’s most imposing frontcourts.
Indiana’s freshman class, ranked No. 22 in the country by 247Sports, showed a lot of promise as well. Four-star recruit Vaughn Karvala, a 6-foot-6 wing, led the team in scoring at 16.3 points per game. He put on a show in a win over the Virgin Islands, dropping 32 points on 11-of-14 shooting from the field and 7-of-10 from behind the arc. In the same contest, 6-foot-4 freshman guard Prince-Alexander Moody knocked down four threes. The former Bishop McNamara star shot 45.8 percent from deep throughout the tournament. Top-100 prospect Trevor Manhertz, a 6-foot-8 forward, pitched in 15 points in the gold medal game.
“They’re developing their bodies and things, so time will tell in terms of getting on the floor in Big Ten basketball,” DeVries said of the freshmen. “But I love what those guys are doing. And I thought Vaughn had a great week. Just his versatility, his length, his athleticism and his ability to shoot the three. Defensively, he can give you some versatility guarding multiple positions. Trevor’s very much in that category too. And Prince comes in and can do a lot as a combo guard, can score it and playmake. I love what the freshmen did this week.”
Oklahoma State
A completely revamped Oklahoma State team journeyed to San Juan, Puerto Rico, last week to play three exhibition games against local professionals at Guillermo Angulo Coliseum. The Cowboys went 3-0 on the tour, beating Puerto Rico Fuerze twice (94-88, 120-92) and the LBP All-Stars (100-92).
UCF transfer Jordan Burks, a 6-foot-9 senior forward who joined the Cowboys in late May, averaged a team-high 14.3 points. He capped the trip with an 18-point performance against the LBP All-Stars, going an efficient 6 of 8 from the field and 3 of 5 from deep.
As a group, the Cowboys shot over 50 percent in two of their three games and averaged a whopping 20.3 assists. Both 6-foot-1 sophomore guard Jacob Walker (transfer from Sam Houston) and 6-foot-11 senior forward Andrija Grbovic (transfer from Arizona State) contributed 10-plus points per contest, while 6-foot-6 sophomore guard Luka Bogavac (transfer from North Carolina) led the squad in assists.
When assembling his new roster, coach Steve Lutz relied heavily on Profile, a behavioral assessment tool used by Illinois, Purdue and other top programs, to help identify players. He sought unselfish, team-oriented guys who were more concerned with winning than individual accolades — and it appears he found them. “This year’s team seems to be much more focused on the processes of winning and those sorts of things,” Lutz told Hoops HQ in June. “And focused on teamwork. You can already tell the way they’re wired based on our research.”
OSU’s loaded freshman class, ranked No. 10 in the country by 247Sports, also showed flashes during the tour. In a 120-92 win over Puerto Rico Fuerze, 6-foot-4 guard Parker Robinson and 6-foot-8 forward Latrell Allmond combined for 35 points on 16-of-19 shooting. Top-35 prospect Anthony Felesi, a 6-foot-5 wing, led the team in rebounding throughout the trip. As Lutz previously told Hoops HQ, all four freshmen — including 6-foot-7 forward Jalen Montonati — will contend for roles.
“I never even talk about whether you’re a senior or freshman,” Lutz said. “My job is to put the best players on the floor who can help us to win. And if these four freshmen can beat out a sophomore or a senior, that means that we’re pretty darn talented is the way I look at it.”
Purdue
The Boilermakers just returned home from a fruitful nine-day excursion to Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia. They went 4-0 during the trip, beating the Vancouver Selects (102-63), Trinity Western University (82-66), University of Calgary (79-48) and University of Fraser Valley (97-62).
With program stalwarts Braden Smith, Trey Kaufman-Renn and Fletcher Loyer all gone, there isn’t the same buzz around Purdue heading into the 2026-27 campaign. But Matt Painter’s well-balanced and deep squad certainly has the potential to surprise people.
One possible X-factor is redshirt freshman Antione West Jr., a former four-star prospect out of Whitmer High School in Toledo, Ohio. The 6-foot-3 guard shined on the Canada tour, scoring in double figures in three of four outings and averaging more than three steals. Based on what he showed, West should be in the mix for a starting position.
Six-foot-7 senior forward Caden Pierce, Purdue’s sole addition via the transfer portal, showcased the versatility that made him one of the top players in the Ivy League during his time at Princeton. He twice led the Boilermakers in rebounds and notched 11 points, 4 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals in their win over the University of Fraser Valley (UFV).
The most impressive performance of the trip came from 6-foot-6 freshman forward Jacob Webber, who finished his high school career at La Lumiere Prep ranked No. 63 in the nation by 247Sports. The four-star recruit backed up his reputation as one of the premier shooters in his class, connecting on 6 of 7 threes in just 15 minutes against UFV. Even with Purdue’s depth on the wings, Webber should play a role this season given his ability to space the floor and heat up in a hurry.
Marquette
The Golden Eagles are coming off just their second losing season in the past decade. Despite the brilliance of freshman guard Nigel James Jr., the Big East Rookie of the Year, Marquette stumbled to a 12-20 record and failed to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time under Shaka Smart.
The program is projected to bounce back in a major way in 2026-27, as Smart retained several key pieces and finally brought in some reinforcements via the portal. During their recent trip to Vancouver and Whistler, the Golden Eagles coasted to a 3-0 record, destroying their opponents (Calgary Dinos, Trinity Western and Fraser Valley) by an average of 40 points.
Perhaps the most encouraging takeaway from the trip was the play of Smart’s new starting frontcourt: 6-foot-8 junior forward Royce Parham and 6-foot-11 senior forward Sananda Fru. If those two vets can make significant leaps this season, Marquette should be in the running for a Big East title.
According to Smart, Parham has been the team’s most consistent player all summer. Through three outings in Canada, he averaged 15 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2.3 steals. The versatile Fru, who transferred from Louisville, looked very comfortable playing alongside Parham, posting 9.3 points and 8 rebounds per game.
“They’ve really developed a good relationship just in a couple short months,” Smart said of the duo. “It’s been fun to watch. Thinking back on when Sanny got here at the beginning of June, they didn’t know each other at all. And now they have really, really hit it off as forward teammates. I think in a lot of ways they relate to each other and see a lot of themselves in each other, and they do a great job supporting each other out there on the court.”
“Sanny is so great for us,” Parham added. “He’s that backline defense for us. He can shoot the ball, rebound. He can score, post up, do everything. He’s just the full package and I love playing with him and being alongside him.”
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