Cinderella season: Team recalls run to title game

By the time the IU basketball team started the Big Ten season last year, the Hoosiers were 7-5, and drawing critical responses from their fans. \nBut as coach Mike Davis said, playing "cupcakes" in the preseason is not what helps improve a team, and IU showed that first hand.\nAfter losing to such teams as Butler, Southern Illinois, Miami and Kentucky, the Hoosiers started their Big Ten season on the road against Northwestern. The road trip to Evanston sparked a 7-1 run by IU over the next eight games, and led to arguably one of the more anticipated games of the season.\nFour games down, and still undefeated, the Hoosiers traveled to Columbus to take on the then-undefeated Buckeyes. This game would determine who had sole possession of the Big Ten.\nBy the end of the game, it wasn't the Hoosiers. They fell 73-67 to Ohio State.\n"I am really proud of the way my team played," Davis said, following that game. "I am not happy that we lost, but I thought we played well. We needed to make shots down the stretch and just didn't get it done."\nBut the IU squad bounced back from the disappointing loss to continue toward reaching that ultimate goal of winning the conference title.\nAfter routing Penn State in Happy Valley, the Hoosiers protected their home court by taking care of Illinois and Purdue. During the 88-57 win over the Fighting Illini, the Hoosiers showed off their knack for long-range shooting by setting a school and Big Ten record with 17 three-pointers.\n"Defense wins games," senior guard Tom Coverdale said, following the win. "That is the best we've played all year as far as both sides of the floor go."\nWith a 7-1 record in hand, the Hoosiers traveled to Minnesota to take on the Golden Gophers. The week before the IU-Minnesota game, the Golden Gophers upset Ohio State. Next, they took down the other Big Ten leader.\nMinnesota experienced a second half resurgence after a weak first half, and as the Hoosiers shooting went cold, the Golden Gophers warmed up, and went on to beat IU 88-74.\n"This game is just one example of how tough it is to win on the road in this conference," Davis said, following the loss. \nThe Hoosiers won four of their next eight games, and were the co-Big Ten Champions with three other teams. IU clinched the title with a 79-67 win over Northwestern.\n"We still have a long way to go until our season is over," then senior Dane Fife predicted following the win. \nBut before they got started on the their NCAA run, the Hoosiers lost to Iowa in the Big Ten tournament by a buzzer-beating shot by Luke Recker. IU fell 62-60, and went home to wait for the NCAA selection show that Sunday.\nThe first game of the tournament pitted the Hoosiers against Utah. As the No. 5 seed in the tournament, the Hoosiers faced a recent history of not faring well in the opening round of the tournament. But as Utah, and UNC-Wilmington found out, history would not be repeating itself. IU had no problem getting past Utah, picking up the 75-56 victory. \nLed by Coverdale's 19 points on a bum ankle, the Hoosiers second opponent was waiting to play upset kings. But UNC-Wilmington couldn't overcome IU in the 76-67 Hoosier victory, and for the first time since 1994, IU was headed to the Sweet 16.\n"Duke is a team that deserves a lot of respect, but I think if you psyche yourself out at this point coming into the game you shouldn't be in the Sweet 16," Coverdale said prior to the game. "We are not the type of team who will come in scared; we will fight to the end like we have all year against every other team."\nBut it looked as if the Hoosiers did come out intimidated, falling behind by as many as 17 points in the first half. But thanks to the play of sophomore Jared Jeffries, IU battled back into the game.\nCoverdale had only one field goal in the game, but it gave IU its first lead with just under a minute to play. The Hoosiers were up by two points, and junior guard A.J. Moye widened it to four as he hit two free throws. But just when it seemed the Hoosiers had pulled off the improbable upset, Fife fouled Duke's Jason Williams, who was shooting a three-pointer, with 11 seconds left. \nWilliams made the three -pointer, but missed the tying free throw, giving the Hoosiers the victory, and the spot in the Elite Eight. \n"We took our best shot and we got them," Fife said following the game. "Coach had us believing in ourselves from the get-go. It just took us some time to settle down and run our offense."\nThe Hoosiers faced Kent State in the Elite Eight game, and had no trouble getting past the Golden Flashes to the Final Four. Kent State had eliminated the Hoosiers during the 2001 tournament, and thanks to three-points shots, IU returned the favor.\nWith the 81-69 victory in hand, IU headed to the Final Four to take on Oklahoma. The Hoosiers upset the Sooners in the Final Four game, thanks to the strong surge from senior forward Jeff Newton. Newton scored 19 points, with six rebounds and four blocked shots, helping IU to the 73-64 win.\nThe Hoosiers were in the NCAA championship game against No.1 seed Maryland.\n"The run this team has made has been unbelievable," Jeffries said after the Oklahoma win. "For us to be able to come out in the NCAA Tournament and play this well to this point is really remarkable."\nBut the clock struck midnight for the Hoosiers against Maryland. In an unusual offensive absence, IU was unable to get shots to fall, while Maryland rolled. The Hoosiers were the nation's runners-up with the 64-52 loss.\nFor the team, it was a magical season, but one they plan on repeating again this year.\n"I think we have the same hopes that we had last year," Coverdale said. "We just want to win a Big Ten championship, get to the Final Four and be playing our best when the season is over"