Hoosiers embarking on crucial stretch

Let's call this season a rebirth -- a renaissance, if you will. \nGone are the days of IU not competing on the road, looking sluggish on defense and certain individuals playing awful, lazy and sloppy but staying in the game regardless. (See: Robert Vaden, Marco Killingsworth.)\nIt's been nice for Hoosier Nation.\nBut this next stretch of games will really -- I mean really -- test this team. It starts late Saturday afternoon against Connecticut on the road. The game is certainly winnable. The Huskies have been floundering of late, losing three of their last four games. But they're still a team full of talent. Having 7-foot-3 shot-blocker Hasheem Thabeet on their side could neutralize D.J. White. And if IU isn't hitting from beyond the arc, it could spell t-r-o-u-b-l-e for the Hoosiers.\nTuesday, IU travels to Champaign, Ill. to take on the Fighting Illini. The matchup will be the toughest road game for the Hoosiers this season, no question about it. Remember that whole Eric Gordon thing? You know, the kid who verbally committed to Illinois because Mike Davis was here, then gave IU another look when Kelvin Sampson was hired and eventually decided to sign with the Hoosiers? Um, I'm thinking the Orange Krush student section hasn't forgotten that. Expect a chorus of boos all game. It's going to be a voyage into the belly of the beast.\nAgain, as is the case with Connecticut, IU has an excellent chance to beat the Illini. Most of their studs are gone to the NBA. Because of it, they're searching for their rhythm, starting out at a rather pedestrian 2-3 so far in Big Ten play. And the Illini have lost twice at home this season, something they rarely -- if ever -- do.\nA home bout with Michigan comes Saturday, the most winnable of the lot. \nThen another home game, which, with IU's perfect record at home, the Hoosiers should be fine with. Problem is, it's the Wisconsin Badgers coming to town Jan. 31. They are good -- real good. The Badgers sport an 18-1 record, senior talent and leadership and solid play on the wings and the blocks. It's all there.\n "It's a tough stretch, but I think we're up to the challenge," White said of the next few games. "Like I said before, that Penn State road game helped us out a lot with our confidence. I think we have the confidence that we can play anywhere and with anybody."\nAs I noted earlier this week, in Davis' last three seasons at the helm, the Hoosiers started out 4-1 in conference play just as Kelvin Sampson's Hoosiers have this season. Then mediocrity set in. Losing streaks occurred with frequency. The Hoosiers looked battered and beaten, incapable of rising up to the challenge at times.\nThe ball is now in Sampson's hands. Davis clanged it off the backboard. \nWill the new coach do the same? Or will he softly swish it through the hoop?\nExpect a sound a little more pleasant to the ears.