Fans unsure of new-look Hoosiers

It was suggested by an esteemed media colleague Friday night that the less-than-capacity crowd inside Assembly Hall seemed timid at times, still feeling out this team of almost all new faces.

Perhaps too many fans were trying to match faces and roster numbers in their heads.

Perhaps reality finally set in that these last 12 months really weren’t a dream, and these Hoosiers in no way resemble those of yesteryear.

Perhaps they were all just too nervous, anticipating that soon-to-be-legendary moment when Tijan Jobe would make his way onto the court, carried by his teammates – on a surfboard.

Whatever the reason, there was a muted hesitance on the part of the 8,500 or so fans who showed up, cans in hands, to catch a glimpse of what Tom Crean keeps talking about.

It was laid out for them in spades.

The 2008-2009 IU men’s basketball team appeared as something between a guard-heavy, Mike Davis nightmare and the best high school basketball team ever assembled.

But somewhere between Todd Leary’s bank shot clinic and the final whistle in the red-white scrimmage, the public finally got a firm idea of what its team will look like this season.

Jones appears to have the best vision, and his 602 career assists in high school – sixth all-time in Illinois state history – would support that claim.

Devan Dumes has the most confidence with the ball in his hands, and he and Nick Williams also display a relatively soft touch around the rim.

The inside game could be a bit of an issue, but I think we knew that already.

Still, one couldn’t quite shake the overall change in tone of Hoosier Hysteria.

Gone were the standing-room-only crowds. Gone was the high-flying Jordan Crawford show of only a year past. Gone was Eric Gordon.

For their part, if players or coaches walked away disappointed, they didn’t let on.

“It was more (than I expected),” said Jones, talking about the experience of playing on the Assembly Hall floor. “All these fans yelling and screaming. It sent chills down my spine.”

And fans should have the opportunity to learn a little more about this team when they hold an open scrimmage next weekend after the Northwestern football game, when Crean said he and his coaches will have installed more actual offensive and defensive sets, something noticeably absent Friday night.

But the truth remains – this season won’t just be a learning experience for players, but for fans as well, as they try to wrap their Cream and Crimson heads around exactly what this Hoosier team resembles.

When Crean invoked Norman Dale, the coach of “Hoosiers” fame, saying “My team is on the floor,” you couldn’t help but get xthe feeling the crowd disobeyed a reflex reaction to start chanting “We want Jimmy.”

No word yet on whether Crean will install the picket fence, but something tells me fans will be out en masse to find out next Saturday. Hey, it’s got to be better than a football game.

See you ... soon.