While he was not the main attraction at Saturday night's Hoosier Hysteria at Assembly Hall, IU Coach Curt Miller did get the opportunity to talk to over 17,000 Indiana basketball fans.
After a long video introduction that touted Miller's success at Bowling Green, Miller jogged onto center court at was interviewed by the night's emcee, ESPN anchor and IU alum Sage Steele.
"This is my dream job," Miller said. "Living the dream now."
Prior to the interview, Steele also praised Miller and thanked him for making the decision to come to IU.
"You have Curt Miller, a man who has come in here to lead the Hoosier women back to where they belong," she said.
Steele pointed out that Miller talked like a Hoosier. He pointed out that while he was born in small-town Girard, Pa., he sort of felt like it was a small Indiana town because of its love for basketball.
"I grew up in a basketball crazy town," he said. "When I was little, I started referring to our hometown as a 'Hoosier' town."
Miller continued on talking about how he will approach this job as a marathon, not a race. In that marathon Miller wants to see Hoosier fans come out to Assembly Hall to cheer on his team, too.
He talked about how he finished his final years at Bowling Green with a 60-4 home court record and wants that same atmosphere to carry over to Bloomington.
"No one wanted to play us at home," Miller said. "No one will want to play us at Assembly. We need your help."
He said that when people asked him why he would leave a place as successful as Bowling Green, it was because that program didn't have 17,000 screaming fans.
Miller also added that he wants to recruit the state of Indiana to rebuild the program.
When Steele asked him about his thoughts on this year's team, Miller said he likes the team's effort to adjust and learn the new system.
"I love their work ethic, their reception to the new era," he said. "We're playing completely different from last year. They're buying into it."
Miller finished his address to the crowd by recognizing strength coach Tom Morris, who is recovering from a spinal injury suffered in June. Morris received a standing ovation from the crowd.
Additional notes: The team practiced in front of the packed crowd for an hour. Miller tweeted "Proud of the players... solid hour practice in front of packed Assembly Hall. Great way to start out Hoosier Hysteria." ... Aulani Sinclair defeated Nicole Bell in the long shot contest. Sinclair said afterwards, "I told her there's no way I'm letting a freshman win." ... All of the players and coaches were introduced individually and had time to show off their dance moves. Assistant coach Kevin Eckert "Tebowed" and drew some laughs. ... Kaila Hulls walked on the court during introductions and had no visible limp and no crutches. She had surgery to repair a torn ACL in September.
