Another Big Ten win for the Hoosiers to the tune of 65-43. It's hard to criticize anything IU did tonight, so I won't even try. Iowa never really pushed IU in the second half. We'll see what Sampson has to say about the game in the press room.
Finkelmeier, Ahfeld and Taber (or as I call them, "The Pale Trio") sub in. Good night, Assembly Hall.
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Mike White subs in for the first time tonight. Mike hasn't seen much court time tonight for match-up reasons, but with IU up big, the Hoosiers' "off-White" gets in the game.
63-41@1:38
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A 3-pointer by Tony Freeman gives Iowa 40 points with 5 minutes remaining. IU has played well defensively this game. We'll see what Johnson does in the final two minutes, but it looks like IU will allow the least amount of points since giving up 46 to Coppin State in December.
61-40@4:03
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The crowd hisses as Stemler misses a 3 from the corner. The Hoosiers are up 17, but Stemler still can't catch a break.
54-37@7:41
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Ellis gets fouled by Looby on the drive. The basket is good. IU is lulling this crowd to sleep as they have opened up a 19-point lead.
54-35@9:02
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Jamarcus Ellis steals the ball and dishes to Gordon for the one-handed slam. Never gets old.
48-35@12:18
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Crawford pulls up and hits a bomb from the right side. Crawford appears to be the new Rod Wilmont for IU. When he's hitting shots, things must be going good.
46-35@13:26
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Off a missed shot, Tony Freeman finds himself wide open on the long rebound and nails the trey. Freeman had all day to size that shot up.
43-33@14:31
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At this point in the game, Iowa has 5 assists and 14 turnovers compared to the Hoosiers 12 and 8.
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D.J. White records his 17th and 18th points of the ballgame from the left block. White has been really efficient with his shot tonight (as always).
43-28@15:53
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Freeman gets blocked by Gordon as he drives for the lay up. On the other end, Ellis works his way into the lane but can't get the shot to fall.
41-28@16:53
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A steal by Armon Bassett leads to another D.J. dunk to open the half.
39-26@18:57
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DeAndre Thomas hits a baby hook near the foul line at the buzzer to bring the Hoosier lead to 11 at the half. A good half for IU.
37-26@Halftime
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Crawford misses a baseline dunk, but D.J is there for the putback. That's a senior covering up for a freshman. Time out.
35-26@1:06
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Ratliff enters the game for the first time in place of Ellis. Gorney turns it over for the Hawkeyes, a recurring theme this game. Bassett hits a 3.
33-24@2:04
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Tate's dunk pulls the Hawkeyes within four again. But D.J. comes back with a two-handed slam of his own as he gets fouled by Looby. That's called an emphatic answer.
30-24@3:22
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After a quick respite, Gordon is back in. I guess Sampson wanted to remind him that he has the power to take him out of the game.
28-21@4:51
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Iowa turns it over again as DJ and Ellis sub back into the game. Gordon sits down with 12 points in 13 minutes of first half action.
26-18@6:22
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Tate's putback jam attempt skies into the air off the rim. The crowd didn't like that one too much. The Hawkeyes have pulled back to within 4 points. Time out.
22-18@7:54
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D.J. picks up a bucket and Gordon gets a lay up off a steal.
20-13@10:25
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But not so fast, say the Hawkeyes. Johnson hits a free throw and Freeman nails a 3 from the top of the key after the timeout. Crawford and Stemler subbed in during the timeout.
16-11@11:50
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Iowa calls timeout as Bassett hits a 3-pointer off a screen. IU is seperating itself early tonight.
14-7@13:10
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Thomas feeds a nice pass to Gordon who slams it home. Sampson has always raved about Thomas' passing ability, but that was one of the first good passes Hoosier fans have seen.
11-7@13:28
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Freeman bounces one in. Then, Gordon scores after an Iowa turnover. The Hawkeyes turn it over again on the next possession as the ball goes out of bounds.
7-7@14:40
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Iowa's Freeman fouls Gordon and he will shoot free throws. It took Gordon an entire half to get to the line against Penn State. He got there right away tonight.
5-4@15:42
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Gordon connects from the right baseline to even the score. Timeout.
4-4@16:44
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The Hawkeyes score on their first two possessions before Ellis gets into the middle of the lane for the lay up.
2-4@17:28
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Bassett replaces Jordan Crawford in the starting lineup, and DeAndre Thomas gets the start most likely for match-up reasons. Iowa's Gorney and Tate measure 7-foot and 6-foot-8, respectively.
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Starters for IU: Armon Bassett, Jamarcus Ellis, Eric Gordon, DeAndre Thomas and D.J. White
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About a minute to go until tip-off. The Hoosiers should prevail tonight, but the Hawkeyes were the last team to beat IU at Assembly Hall. That was the infamous Mike Davis "black out" game where a small contingent of fans voiced their displeasure with the coach by wearing black. Unfortunately, Mike wasn't there to see it. He was sick.
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Sorry for the late post, but a twilight tennis match in Australia isn't to blame this time. (C'mon Engel, are you serious?) It's the Big Ten Network. I doubt too many college students have any qualms about 9 P.M. tip-offs, but some kiddies might.
Here's my advice to the youngsters whose parents uphold the bedtime hour like it's the eleventh commandment: Just sneak a radio under the covers. At least, that's what I used to do. Today's kids probably sneak laptops or mini HDTVs into bed. Man, I feel old.
OK, it's basketball from here on out. I promise.
