Column: The roller coaster is just beginning

That is the beauty of being inconsistent.

At times this year, IU has looked stagnant on the court.

They’ve settled for far too many jump shots and looked lost on defense.

They lost to Notre Dame, got blown out by Syracuse and beat LIU Brooklyn by one.

Inconsistency is the mantra of young teams like the Hoosiers, whether they like it or not.

Tuesday night, IU fans saw the benefit of being inconsistent.

Sometimes you play out of your freaking mind.

That was true when IU took down No. 3 Wisconsin 75-72.

The Assembly Hall crowd was so raucous it felt more like a rock concert than a
basketball game.

The Hoosier faithful fought and believed. This IU team was so desperate for energy to play off of.

And the crowd fed them.

Assembly Hall was a true sixth man, rattling the usually steady Badgers as IU put
together a 40-minute performance worthy of an encore. There were plenty of chances for IU to fold.

But they didn’t.

Even after Wisconsin came out shooting 7-7 from the field, the Hoosiers fought.

Even though senior forward Will Sheehey was 0-3 from behind the arc, he heaved up a three with 7:06 remaining in the game.

He believed. And the ball went in.

Even after Wisconsin built a 49-40 lead in the second half, IU fought.

Even after sophomore guard Kevin ‘Yogi’ Ferrell started 0-7 from three, he threw up the 3-point attempt with 2:53 remaining.

He believed. And boom, IU had a 3-point lead.

This game was a manifestation of the benefits of youth. The Badger program had a hex against IU, beating the Hoosiers 12 straight times.

This current Hoosier squad didn’t know any better. They didn’t know they weren’t supposed to beat Wisconsin.

But IU and Assembly Hall didn’t care.

IU fought, they believed and they oozed confidence.

“It’s amazing what happens when real confidence starts to come,” IU Coach Tom Crean said.

The confidence Crean showed in freshman guard Stanford Robinson was evident, and paid off.

Robinson had 13 points in just 24 minutes.  He was slashing to the bucket and making plays happen.

Even after he was stuffed at the rim a couple times, Robinson kept clawing and fighting to get to the hole.

The same can be said about Ferrell. Although he was not efficient, going 10-24 from the field, he had confidence in his shot.

The two free throws he hit with 18 seconds left to push the Hoosier lead to three were so ice-cold, I got a shiver as the ball went through the net.

Now comes the tough part.

Can IU sustain this intensity? Because if the Hoosiers play with the same intensity and confidence they played with against the Badgers, the sky is the limit.

Or this team could hit rock bottom. Nobody knows. Not the players, coaches
or fans.

The uncertainty is exciting if you’re an IU fan. Because you’ve seen both sides of this Jekyll and Hyde team.

Sometimes you barely escape with a one-point win against LIU Brooklyn. And sometimes last night happens.

This is the beauty of being inconsistent.