Aaron Fine transfers to Ball State, returns to Indiana roots

Aaron Fine is staying close to home, and that matters in Indiana.

The Noblesville guard has committed to Ball State after leaving Purdue, giving the Cardinals one of the state’s more recognizable recent high school names and sending a former Indiana All-Star to Muncie with a résumé that still carries weight. Fine grew up in the game, came through Noblesville High School as a 1,000-point scorer and finished his prep career with 17.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game while shooting 52 percent from the field and 41 percent from 3-point range.

That profile made him a familiar name long before he ever arrived in West Lafayette. Fine helped Noblesville reach a No. 2 ranking in Class 4A as a senior and was selected as an Indiana All-Star after that season. He also spent time with Indiana Elite, where he played alongside Raleigh Burgess, Flory Bidunga, Travis Perry and Cooper Koch, a sign that his game was already circulating among the state’s top prospects.

At Purdue, Fine redshirted in 2024-25 and then appeared in nine games this past season as a redshirt freshman. He played 23 total minutes, scored 11 points and added three assists while shooting 5 for 10 from the floor and 1 for 2 at the line. He scored in games against Evansville, Akron, Eastern Illinois, Marquette and Indiana, and he handed out assists against Texas Tech, Eastern Illinois and Indiana.

The move also brings Fine back into the same Indiana basketball orbit that shaped him. His father, Matt Fine, played college basketball at Ball State and later coached at Noblesville, and Aaron’s younger brother, Adam, has been part of the Noblesville program as well. Fine’s high school coach once described him as the kind of player who lives in the gym and stays late to shoot, and that kind of reputation travels in a state where people notice who keeps working after the lights come down.

Ball State is in the middle of a roster rebuild, with several transfer additions already in place, and Fine gives the Cardinals something more than depth. He brings name recognition in Indiana, a Big Ten address on his résumé and the kind of local tie that can matter when a program wants fans to believe the next step is already in the room.