Son of Hoosier great returns to IU

Sean May's return to Bloomington didn't go exactly as planned.\nHe came back to the town he grew up in, played in the gym his dad used to star in and watched his Tar Heels beat the Hoosiers, 70-63.\nFoul trouble limited his action to only 19 minutes for the game -- nine of which came in the first half.\n"It was definitely frustrating," May said of his performance Wednesday night.\nMay contributed only one point in the first 29 minutes and 29 seconds of Wednesday's ACC/Big Ten Challenge game. \nIt took until 11:31 left in the second half, for him to get his first basket -- a dunk and a foul over IU sophomore Pat Ewing Jr. \n"It was just a sigh of relief," he said about that first basket. \nThe first few times May touched the ball didn't go as planned, either. \nHis first shot was blocked by IU freshman D.J. White, he was fouled on his second and he was called for traveling on his third touch of the game. But that was just the beginning. He went on to miss an array of close shots and ended the first half by sitting on the bench for the last 7:35 with three fouls -- two of which were charging. \nFor the crowd of 17,404, May playing -- or May not playing, it didn't matter -- the berating was induced. \nWith the chants of "Sean May Sucks" and "Traitor," May attempted to stay focused and not let it rattle him.\n"It was exactly what I expected (from the fans)," he said. "They said exactly what I thought they'd say."\nMay's mother, Debbie, said her son needed to expect the yells and the heckles. \n"(The fans are) being very hard," she said at halftime. "He's got to deal with it. That has to do with the choices you make."\nIt began with his introduction to a roar of boo's and didn't end until the final buzzer.\nScott May, Sr., Sean's father, who starred on the 1976 IU national championship team, was convinced returning to Bloomington wasn't easy for his son.\n"It had to be hard coming back here," he said.\nThe heckling didn't just come in Assembly Hall for the youngest May. After getting a drink from a store near his hotel, May left to booing from fans outside, he said. \nReturning to play at IU didn't bring the nerves he expected.\n Knowing her son would come into a somewhat hostile environment, Debbie showed some maternal love to her son before he made the trip to IU.\n"I think he was a little nervous, as anyone would be," she said. "We had breakfast together, actually, yesterday morning before he left, because he knew he was going to get booed. It's hard to come home and get booed." \nThe former Bloomington North star ended up with eight points, four rebounds and five turnovers in front of a crowd that featured former Hoosier A.J. Moye and currently suspended guard Donald Perry sitting with the May family. \nBut coming back to Bloomington wasn't all harsh feelings for May and his family, as he received. \nEven though May went to UNC, his mother said she once wished he would sport the Crimson and Cream. \n"I actually had hoped at one time that my son would play for IU," she said. "I love IU. My kids were born and raised here, so it was definitely hard." \nBut for May, coming home was sentimental as well. \n"I love Indiana basketball," he said. "No one realizes how dear it is to my heart." \n-- Contact senior writer Josh Weinfuss at jweinfus@indiana.edu.