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(05/22/03 4:00am)
Doctoral student Josh Alexander saw "The Matrix" in 1999 purely for entertainment. He left the theater not only feeling amused but contemplating the sci-fi film. Like millions of other viewers, he realized the movie's deeper than its innovative special effects.\nSince its release, college professors, students and other fans have pondered, ripped apart and scrutinized the movie's dense messages relating to philosophy, religion and ethics. Books, scholarly articles and college courses have pondered the philosophical thoughts: Is Neo a Christ-like character? Do you take the red pill or the blue pill? What's real and what's virtual? \nEven the actors had to pick up academic reading -- Keanu Reeves reportedly had to read French social theorist's Jean Baudrillard's "Simulacra and Simulation."\n"Intro to Ethics (class) and every intro to philosophy class will deal with issues raised in 'The Matrix,'" says Sandra Shapshay, a visiting professor in IU's philosophy department who has used the film in class. "I encourage all 'Matrix' fans to take some philosophy. You'll love it."\nIn "The Matrix," a team of rebels tries to convince Neo (played by Reeves) that he is "The One" who must save the world from machines that steal humans' energy while forcing them to believe they live freely. In the sequel, "The Matrix Reloaded," which was released last week, Neo and the rebels try to save Zion, the last free city in the real world, from the machines. \nThe release of "The Matrix Reloaded" has only added to the pile of philosophical questions, leaving scholars and other fans hungry for answers in the final chapter, "The Matrix Revolutions," which opens in November. Until then, moviegoers have to remain satisfied unraveling mysteries from the trilogy's first two parts. \nProfessor Jonathan Weinberg has applied examples from "The Matrix" to the theory of knowledge in an introductory philosophy class at IU. He has shown the scene where Morpheus (played by Laurence Fishburne) explains the Matrix as a world where machines feed humans artificial stimulations, although they are actually imprisoned. Weinberg has related the scene to the thoughts of philosopher René Descartes, who theorized an evil demon could be making him think he has arms and legs when he really has no appendages.\nAlexander also relates Descartes's theories to "The Matrix." He recently showed the film to an introductory philosophy class at IU-Purdue University Columbus. The students are using examples from the movie to argue about Descartes's philosophical ideas in discussions and papers. \n"Philosophical writing has its own style," Alexander says. "It's also writing from the 1600s. It's translated very well, but they will use 'The Matrix' as a means to make Descartes more vivid to them."\nDescartes's "Dream Argument," which claims people should doubt what's happening because they could be dreaming it, comes up frequently in "The Matrix," Alexander says. Neo, for example, questions whether he dreamed evil agents implanted a bug in his body.\nThe films also tackle issues of ethics. In class, Shapshay has referred to "The Matrix" when debating whether happiness is the greatest value. Those who think it is the best value would choose "a life of bliss" in the matrix over the "terrible" real world, Shapshay says. This issue was shown in "The Matrix" when Cypher (Joe Pantoliano) chooses to leave the real world for the comfort of the Matrix, she said.\nScholars have also studied religious symbolism in "The Matrix." Some say Neo is a Christ figure who is the chosen one to save Zion. With character names like Morpheus and Persephone, mythology plays a large role too.\nThe movies' official Web site (www.whatisthematrix.com) also takes a stab at defining the mysterious issues. More than a dozen scholars have posted articles about subjects, such as whether living in the Matrix is actually OK, Plato's cave and "The Matrix" and Buddhism in "The Matrix."\n"The Matrix Reloaded" seems to ask more questions than it answers, and its philosophical messages are less clear than those in the original film, Weinberg says. The sequel, for example, doesn't answer if Neo and the rebels can make their own choices and shape their own future.\nBecause of the lack of clarity in "The Matrix Reloaded," many inquisitive fans anticipate the third installment, "The Matrix Revolutions," for resolution.\n"I definitely have the intention to see it on opening weekend," says Kelsey Rinella, a doctoral student studying philosophy and cognitive science. "I don't think it will be able to answer all the questions I have, like about the meaning of life. But I don't expect movies to answer that"
(05/22/03 1:28am)
Doctoral student Josh Alexander saw "The Matrix" in 1999 purely for entertainment. He left the theater not only feeling amused but contemplating the sci-fi film. Like millions of other viewers, he realized the movie's deeper than its innovative special effects.\nSince its release, college professors, students and other fans have pondered, ripped apart and scrutinized the movie's dense messages relating to philosophy, religion and ethics. Books, scholarly articles and college courses have pondered the philosophical thoughts: Is Neo a Christ-like character? Do you take the red pill or the blue pill? What's real and what's virtual? \nEven the actors had to pick up academic reading -- Keanu Reeves reportedly had to read French social theorist's Jean Baudrillard's "Simulacra and Simulation."\n"Intro to Ethics (class) and every intro to philosophy class will deal with issues raised in 'The Matrix,'" says Sandra Shapshay, a visiting professor in IU's philosophy department who has used the film in class. "I encourage all 'Matrix' fans to take some philosophy. You'll love it."\nIn "The Matrix," a team of rebels tries to convince Neo (played by Reeves) that he is "The One" who must save the world from machines that steal humans' energy while forcing them to believe they live freely. In the sequel, "The Matrix Reloaded," which was released last week, Neo and the rebels try to save Zion, the last free city in the real world, from the machines. \nThe release of "The Matrix Reloaded" has only added to the pile of philosophical questions, leaving scholars and other fans hungry for answers in the final chapter, "The Matrix Revolutions," which opens in November. Until then, moviegoers have to remain satisfied unraveling mysteries from the trilogy's first two parts. \nProfessor Jonathan Weinberg has applied examples from "The Matrix" to the theory of knowledge in an introductory philosophy class at IU. He has shown the scene where Morpheus (played by Laurence Fishburne) explains the Matrix as a world where machines feed humans artificial stimulations, although they are actually imprisoned. Weinberg has related the scene to the thoughts of philosopher René Descartes, who theorized an evil demon could be making him think he has arms and legs when he really has no appendages.\nAlexander also relates Descartes's theories to "The Matrix." He recently showed the film to an introductory philosophy class at IU-Purdue University Columbus. The students are using examples from the movie to argue about Descartes's philosophical ideas in discussions and papers. \n"Philosophical writing has its own style," Alexander says. "It's also writing from the 1600s. It's translated very well, but they will use 'The Matrix' as a means to make Descartes more vivid to them."\nDescartes's "Dream Argument," which claims people should doubt what's happening because they could be dreaming it, comes up frequently in "The Matrix," Alexander says. Neo, for example, questions whether he dreamed evil agents implanted a bug in his body.\nThe films also tackle issues of ethics. In class, Shapshay has referred to "The Matrix" when debating whether happiness is the greatest value. Those who think it is the best value would choose "a life of bliss" in the matrix over the "terrible" real world, Shapshay says. This issue was shown in "The Matrix" when Cypher (Joe Pantoliano) chooses to leave the real world for the comfort of the Matrix, she said.\nScholars have also studied religious symbolism in "The Matrix." Some say Neo is a Christ figure who is the chosen one to save Zion. With character names like Morpheus and Persephone, mythology plays a large role too.\nThe movies' official Web site (www.whatisthematrix.com) also takes a stab at defining the mysterious issues. More than a dozen scholars have posted articles about subjects, such as whether living in the Matrix is actually OK, Plato's cave and "The Matrix" and Buddhism in "The Matrix."\n"The Matrix Reloaded" seems to ask more questions than it answers, and its philosophical messages are less clear than those in the original film, Weinberg says. The sequel, for example, doesn't answer if Neo and the rebels can make their own choices and shape their own future.\nBecause of the lack of clarity in "The Matrix Reloaded," many inquisitive fans anticipate the third installment, "The Matrix Revolutions," for resolution.\n"I definitely have the intention to see it on opening weekend," says Kelsey Rinella, a doctoral student studying philosophy and cognitive science. "I don't think it will be able to answer all the questions I have, like about the meaning of life. But I don't expect movies to answer that"
(04/25/03 4:50am)
He calls home every couple of weeks. The conversations tend to last less than five minutes, but the most recent call carried on for 15 minutes. They talked about his trip into Baghdad, sandstorms and his need for clean, white socks.\nSpc. Elijah Wilburn, a former IU student, calls his parents and friends whenever he can find a few free minutes and an unoccupied phone in the Middle East. Wilburn, 20, has been stationed in Kuwait since mid-February, when he left Camp Atterbury in Edinburgh, Ind. \nHe is one of 34 students who withdrew from the University this spring because they were called to active duty, according to the Office of the Registrar. \nSome have served overseas in support of the war in Iraq, while others have remained in the United States before receiving assignments. All have put school on hold, left parents and friends behind, and some have engaged in combat for the first time.\nWilburn, a member of Company D of the 1st Battalion, 152nd Infantry of the Indiana National Guard, was already enrolled in classes when he was activated in early January. He cancelled classes, left a job at Eigenmann food court and convenience store, and withdrew as a sophomore majoring in psychology and English. He still pays $250 a month for an apartment he hopes to return to before the fall.\nBut Elijah's mother, Teresa Wilburn, said she doesn't know when he's coming home to Washington, Ind., which is 60 miles southwest of Bloomington. She last heard from him April 14.\n"You hear about the war coming to an end, but you don't let down your guard," she said.\nIn phone calls and letters, Elijah has kept mum about his whereabouts and actions because the information has to remain secret. He also doesn't want his parents to worry. His 1,500-minute phone cards don't last long either -- when he makes international calls, each minute of talk erases 60 minutes from his card.\nThe last letter to his parents, mailed April 7, addressed why he doesn't divulge the war's gory details -- "'If you haven't figured this out, I haven't been telling you how much this sucks,'" Teresa read. "'But that wouldn't do much good.'" Instead, he wrote about insects nicknamed "Camel Spiders" that gnaw on skin. One of the spiders attacked one of the soldier's guns.\nAltogether, his parents say they know little about his military responsibilities in Kuwait. Before he left, Elijah was in charge of driving a Humvee, but that role might have since changed. His unit's primary weapon, the Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided (TOW) missile, is fired from armored vehicles and can hit moving targets.\nHis parents say he has moved among Camp Doha, Camp Wolf and Kuwait International Airport. They heard a rumor that Elijah's unit entered Baghdad two weeks ago to relieve another unit's troops. When he heard his mother found this out, Elijah became upset because he doesn't want her to worry. He wouldn't tell her what he did there. \nHe would rather keep the conversation to happenings in his hometown, conditions in the Middle East and what he needs in care packages. Along with grape juice, hard candy and Ho-Hos, Teresa has sent him surgical masks so he can breathe better when the desert sand blows. Another box contained three CDs of 285 songs burned from his computer at home. \nElijah's brother Calvin, 22, is a Marine based in Cherry Point, N.C. Oscar Wilburn said he hopes his sons make the military a career so they can retire early, rather than work their entire lives like he has had to. He is a coal miner in Lewis, Ind.\nWhen his duty is completed, Elijah plans to return to IU. He hopes to become a creative writer, but his future in the military is unclear. He hasn't discussed military plans with his parents.\n"Everybody in this family calls Jesus our savior," Oscar said. "Before Elijah left, I prayed with him and committed Elijah's life into God's hands. All things work to the way of the Lord. Even if Elijah doesn't come home -- and I'm not saying I don't want him to come home -- I still have God to lean on"
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Hoosier players and coaches stood on the first step of their dugout to watch a possible comeback win from the baseball team. It was the bottom of the seventh inning of the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, and IU was trailing Penn State 3-2.\nThe Hoosiers got what they wished for.\nIU loaded the bases on a single, an error and a hit batter. With no outs, sophomore third baseman Vasili Spanos entered the batters' box and drilled a fastball 370 feet for a game-winning grand slam.\nThe home run propelled Spanos' teammates from the dugout to home plate for a victory rally.\n"We did whatever we could to get on base," Spanos said. "We did our job to get on base, and they set the table for me. I came through this time."\nBut Spanos' heroics to cap the Hoosiers' 6-3 win in the second game of the Big Ten series were the only IU highlight this weekend.\nIU (15-9-1, 1-2 Big Ten) lost two of three games to Penn State (8-15, 2-1) in IU's Big Ten opening series. The Nittany Lions captured the first game of the series 14-4 and the third game 7-1. Sunday's game was canceled because of freezing temperatures and light snow. \nSpanos provided six of IU's 11 runs during a weekend series plagued with pitching woes, defensive errors and offensive lapses.\nAfter notching a win in Saturday's first game, the Hoosiers weren't able to carry intensity from the dramatic win into the next game.\nIU put runners on first and second bases with no outs in the first inning of the second game. Penn State pitcher Justin Nash was able to retire the next three batters, and IU went scoreless until the fourth inning.\n"I thought we carried intensity over to the second game, but we squelched some opportunities," coach Bob Morgan said. "We had guys on in the first three innings and we didn't do anything."\nFriday Psu win, 14-4\nThe Nittany Lions scored nine earned runs while IU committed four errors in nine innings. Junior Brad Edwards lasted four innings after allowing eight hits and six runs. He picked up the loss and is now 1-4.\nIU scored four runs on three hits to bring the score to 9-4 in the seventh inning. Starter Dan McCall earned his first win for Penn State. The Hoosiers gave up four runs off four hits and a throwing error in the ninth inning.\n"They do not give up a running game," Penn State coach said Joe Hindelang. "On the other side, they have a great running game with stolen bases, but the chips fell our way. We played errorless baseball, got good starting pitching and timely hitting."
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Penn State ripped apart the Hoosiers' fragile pitching staff in two days at Sembower Field.\nThe final tally of the wreckage during the three-game Big Ten series included 24 allowed runs, eight pitchers and a starter lost to an elbow injury.\nTwo losses sandwiched a 6-3 IU win with bright performances from pitchers senior Nick Otte and freshman Adam Pegg, but the overall weekend magnified the Hoosiers' continuing pitching woes.\nStarter Brad Edwards was tagged for six earned runs in Friday's 14-4 loss. He gave up five walks and eight hits in four innings. IU dropped Saturday's second game 7-1 after expending three pitchers.\n"I think my concern right now is that the hitters we're going to face in the conference are going to take advantage of our mistakes," said pitching coach Jeff Calcaterra. "I think Penn State's done a good job of putting the ball in play when we make mistakes pitching-wise."\nStarter Matt Rice, a junior, was pulled early in the second inning of Saturday's second game with inflammation in his left elbow. After allowing a run in the game, Rice's earned-run average ballooned to 6.75 and his record fell to 1-3.\nThe Hoosiers already lost their No. 1 starter, David Ferris, to torn ligaments. Calcaterra said Rice's injury doesn't appear serious, but coach Bob Morgan said he isn't comfortable with more damage to the pitching staff.\n"That's a big blow to us because we're a thin pitching staff also with the loss of our No. 1 pitcher Dave Ferris and now Matt Rice, our No. 3 starter," Morgan said. "An already depleted pitching staff is getting more depleted."\nBesides injury, the Hoosiers were unable to contain Penn State's batters. After Rice exited, reliever Ryan Smith, a sophomore, was pulled in less than two innings after throwing a wild pitch that allowed another Penn State run.\nReliever Joe Kemp, a freshman, allowed five runs -- four earned -- in the remaining four innings of IU's 7-1 loss. The three pitchers combined to strike out only two batters and walked two.\nWhile IU pitchers struggled in the third game of the series, Penn State got its first complete game of the year from pitcher Justin Nash. He allowed a run and struck out six in seven innings.\n"He did what he was supposed to -- he kept us off base," third baseman Vasili Spanos said. "He did a good job, but I think we could have hit him. We had a couple opportunities early and we didn't capitalize on them."\nIU was able to secure its only win of the weekend in the series' second game on two pitchers' steady performances. Otte allowed only three runs in five and a third innings. Pegg picked up the 6-3 win as he gave up only one hit for the remainder of the game.\nMorgan said Otte, the Big Ten pitcher of the week, was a bit rusty, but he pitched well enough to allow the Hoosiers a chance to win.\n"I think Nick Otte competed well on the mound," Morgan said. "I don't think he was as sharp as he has been for us, but he pitched well enough to win the ballgame. And then Adam Pegg, a freshman, did a really good job in relief to hold them down. We had to secure a bit defensively, and then we just executed well"
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Though men's basketball coach Mike Davis has said finding a former Hoosier to fill his staff would be ideal, Davis drew his latest assistant coach from California.\nNew assistant coach Ben McDonald, an Nike basketball camp director, offers NBA experience Davis couldn't pass up.\n"He has NBA experience with us that I want because I want to recruit NBA-type players, so my whole staff has NBA experience, so that's one of the reasons," Davis said. "He's a good guy and a really good individual workout guy."\nMcDonald is the second hire by Davis this summer after his other two assistants left IU. Davis said he chose assistant coach and former Hoosier (1979-1983), Jim Thomas, because of his IU connections.\n"I have no problem hiring former players, hiring high school coaches in Indiana," Davis said. "I have no problem doing that, but they have to be good. That's why I took a long time looking at Ben. I don't care if they coach at UCLA or wherever, the guy has to be really, really good -- and Jim's the same way."\nThe Cleveland Cavaliers drafted McDonald, one of University of California-Irvine's all-time leading scorers, with the 50th pick in 1984.\nMcDonald fills the role of former assistant coach Dan Panaggio, who left the Hoosiers during the summer to take an assistant coaching job with the Portland Trail Blazers. McDonald will be primarily responsible for guiding individual workouts and instructing the forwards and centers. \nMcDonald spent his first practice with the Hoosiers Tuesday afternoon, coaching such players as Kyle Hornsby and Dane Fife on layups and urging Jeffrey Newton to be aggressive to driving to the basket against Jared Jeffries' defense.\nMcDonald, who boasts a 252-pound, 6-foot-8 body thicker and taller than most of Davis' players, could prove to be vital to healing some of the Hoosiers biggest trouble spots -- Newton and George Leach, who struggled last season.\nWhen asked how he would improve a player like Leach, McDonald said, "I would look at a lot of film on him, look at him workout, look at his footwork, look at him reacting in different situations in the game. When I was a player, I had to be real aware of the specifics, the going-ons of the game."\nMcDonald said he spoke to Jeffries at Nike camp during the summer, and likes the sophomore forward's unique quickness for his large size.\n"I probably want to work on his inside game a little more and on balance, because a lot of times he takes shots that he's not really on balance," said McDonald, whose other assistant coaching job was at California State-Dominguez Hill from 1996 to 1997. "He's a great big man who shoots great from the outside too, so we're going to work on that a little more too."\nMcDonald arrived in Bloomington Sunday and was offered the job soon after. Davis spoke to McDonald this summer at the Nike All-America Basketball Camp, where McDonald has served as an assistant director since 2000.\nMcDonald, 39, has played for the Caveliers (1986) and Golden State (1988-89). He also competed in Israel in 1988 and Germany from 1992 to 1994. In the Continental Basketball League, he played for Albany (1990-91), San Jose (1991) and Oklahoma City (1992). He has also taught delinquent children in the Long Beach Unified School District in Long Beach, Calif., since 1996.\n"People have babies all the time, so Ben is a new baby, so he's a part of the family now," Davis said. \nLosing hold of a former Hoosier\nDavis said he talked to former Hoosier (1997-80) and former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Mike Woodson about the coaching job. But Woodson chose to stick with the NBA, though he said coaching at IU would be an ideal collegiate career.\n"He wanted to coach in the NBA, and he made that clear a couple months ago," Davis said. "I told him to take his time and he signed a contract with the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA a week or so ago.\n"Once Ben and I talked at Nike camp, I brought in four other guys to interview them, and he was the best out of the four, and that's what I want." \nWoodson, in a phone interview from his home in Houston, Texas, said he didn't lose interest in the IU slot, nor did Davis lose interest in him. Woodson would only say "things didn't work out."\n"I was able to move on," Woodson said. "I'll still be in the NBA. I can't say where I'll be until everything's ironed out." Woodson was fired from the Cavaliers in April.\nWoodson said he couldn't speculate how his choice would affect recruit Sean May's decision to attend IU. Woodson and Scott May, Sean May's father and another former Hoosier, talk two or three times a week. Woodson said he regards Sean May as a son.\nRecruiting efforts\nAmid the recent hires, Davis has spearheaded recruiting efforts and plans to stay in charge of recruiting. Thomas will also help with recruiting and develop the guards.\n"The young guys want to see the guy they are going to play for and have a relationship with him," Davis said. "I just feel like that a lot of times in recruiting that the recruits get to know the assistant coaches and once they get on campus, they get to know the head coach. ... I want them to know me and once they get on campus, to know the assistant coaches."\nFormer assistant coach Julius Smith, who was hired by Davis in September, had helped with recruiting before he resigned in late June. Smith is taking time off with his family in New Orleans, Davis said.\nCoverdale struggles\nDavis didn't allow junior guard Tom Coverdale to travel to Europe with the Big Ten Tour Team that Davis coached to a 6-0 record in Europe after Coverdale missed an entire practice. Coverdale arrived at the gym after oversleeping.\nCoverdale told Davis he had set his alarm clock to p.m. instead of a.m., Davis said. The incident hasn't strained his relationship with Coverdale, Davis said.\n"He just thought I was upset about that, and I'm not upset about that at all. I'm disappointed, and he's disappointed," Davis said.\n"I'm trying to help him mature. The workout today, he was working hard. He was going 100 miles per hour. I haven't seen him work harder."\nAn additional hire\nThe athletic department also promoted video coordinator Dan Block, 23, to men's basketball administrative assistant. Block graduated from IU in May with a bachelor's degree in history. He was a student manager for the Hoosiers from 1997 to 2000.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
He was supposed to be the one answering questions. Instead, top-20 basketball recruit Bracey Wright asked a reporter about the snowfall, extracurricular activities and nightlife of Bloomington.\nWright had reason to be so curious after seeing the IU campus only briefly during a spring tournament. The 6-4, 186-pound shooting guard from The Colony, Texas, is making his first in-depth visit to IU after arriving in Bloomington late Saturday. \nBloomington North High School standout Sean May is also officially visiting IU Saturday through today, Wright said.\n"Is there a lot to do there?" Wright said Friday in a phone interview from The Colony. "(Southern Methodist University) is 25 minutes away from here. They have a lot of clubs, restaurants and movie theaters. Is Indiana like that?"\nWright averaged 21.6 points and 6.1 rebounds last season for his high school team and ranks among the top three shooting guards in the nation. He was voted most valuable player in the summer's Peach Jam Amateur Athletic Union tournament in Atlanta, which his Texas team won.\nWright saw some apartments and parts of the campus when he played in the Nike Memorial Day Classic at Assembly Hall in May. He expressed concern that the residential area seems distant from the IU campus after noticing May's high school sits far from the school.\nWright said A.J. Moye, George Leach and Jeffrey Newton would lead him around town. He plans to attend classes today with Jared Jeffries, whom Wright chatted with at the Nike All-America Camp in Indianapolis this summer. Seeing the team's new, longer uniforms also marks Wright's agenda during the visit.\nThe Hoosiers head Wright's list of prospective schools, ahead of UCLA, Tennessee and Texas. Wright said if he likes the Bloomington campus enough -- and gains the approval of his mother, who wanted to see the campus before he committed -- he might verbally commit to IU during his visit or soon after he returns home. \nHe hasn't scheduled visits with UCLA and Tennessee yet, and the two schools have slid down his list following NCAA investigation into a recruiting violation at UCLA and Tennessee's lack of interest in him before coach Buzz Peterson's arrival.\nWright said he wasn't interested in playing under former coach Bob Knight's rigid discipline, but coach Mike Davis' success after Knight's firing impressed him.\n"What I liked about Coach Davis was that he had every chance to fail, but with all that pressure he still got the team to a winning season and Jeffries to (Big Ten) freshman of the year," Wright said. "That really says a lot about his coaching ability."\nBesides Davis' triumph last season and the coach's willingness to talk to Wright by phone about 30 minutes a week, Wright said he is enthusiastic about the possibility of playing in a state where basketball rules after thriving in a state where football is king.\nClark Francis, an IU alumnus and publisher and editor of the Louisville-based recruiting publication Hoop Scoop, ranks Wright 16th in the nation's class of 2002 recruits. \nListed as high as 5th previously, May now ranks 35th after playing poorly during the summer.\nFrancis said May, the son of former Hoosier Scott May, needs to improve his quickness, foot speed and fitness. Being overweight caused May to fall to 17th among power forwards in summer camps. May is interested in IU, Louisville, Notre Dame and North Carolina. May could not be reached for comment.\n"He had a horrendous, terrible Nike camp," Francis said about Wright. "He was a great player everywhere else he went. He never got into a flow. Maybe he just had a bad week. There were games he scored only two points."\nWright's high school coach, Tommy Thomas, said Wright boasts quickness, tremendous shooting range and lack of arrogance -- especially after making one of his numerous dunks.\n"He's only 17. He probably hasn't developed all his strength," Thomas said. "He can be a better defender. His greatest task is to be challenged everyday. He's fairly self motivated and works hard."\nMarshall Strickland, a 6-foot-1 point guard from Sykesville, Md., verbally committed to IU in July. Chris Hunter, a 6-foot-11 center from Gary, Ind., said he has been offered a scholarship to play for IU.\nFrancis ranks IU's 2002 recruiting class fourth behind Florida, Duke, Memphis, and ahead of Louisville, Iowa, Syracuse, North Carolina, Iowa State, Xavier and Michigan State.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Former Hoosier basketball great Scott May is hoping a college coach will make a commitment to his son -- Bloomington High School North star Sean May -- similar to the one his mother received from Bob Knight on a recruiting visit nearly 30 years ago.\nKnight promised Scott May's mother that he would advise Scott not only in his four years of playing basketball at IU, but during his entire life -- in everything from the National Basketball Association to business endeavors.\nSuch a commitment ranks higher than Sean May choosing a school based on its closeness to Bloomington, Scott May said. Scott May will listen for an echoing promise from Knight's successor, Mike Davis, North Carolina's Matt Doherty, Notre Dame's Mike Brey or Louisville's Rick Pitino as Sean May visits those schools in September.\n"As a parent, I will look at a commitment from a coach not for his four years, but for the rest of his life," Scott May said. "This will probably be one of the most important decisions of his life."\nSean May averaged 24.7 points and 13.3 rebounds while shooting 60.7 percent from the field for North (23-3) last season. Scott May said no particular school leads his son's list -- even IU, where Scott May was a key player on college basketball's last unbeaten team in 1975-76.\nSean May visited IU this weekend and will visit the other three schools this month. Along with a coach's commitment to Sean May's lifelong well-being, Scott May said his family will critique each school's playing system and academic competence.\nScott May said that although his time at IU was successful, the program differs from when Knight was at the helm. Scott May said he hopes his son plays under a fast-paced system that teaches fundamentals and allows him to shoot from both the perimeter and around the basket. Staying close to home isn't a high priority for Sean May.\n"The best situation could be the situation that's 100 miles away, 1,000 miles away or 5 miles away," said Scott May, whose other son, Scott May Jr., will walk on IU's team as a freshman this year. "We'll sit down and discuss things and then decide what's best for him."\nClark Francis, editor and publisher of the recruiting publication Hoop Scoop, ranks Sean May 35th among class of 2002 recruits based on a poor summer. Francis has listed him as high as fifth. Other recruiting analysts have placed Sean May in the top 10. \nFrancis said Sean May carries extra weight on his 6-foot-7, 269-pound frame and needs to work on his quickness. Still, Francis said Sean May is a legitimate McDonald's High School All-American, comparing him to Marion (Ind.) High School product and the 50th pick in the 2001 NBA draft, Zach Randolph -- a large player with soft hands and nice touch around the basket who wasn't in good shape until the end of his high school career.\n"May's only as good as his last game," Francis said. "He's been out of shape, maybe a little overweight, but seeing he's ranked 35th could make him a better player. By the end of July he was still not in tip-top playing form."\nScott May challenged Francis' analysis by saying his 17-year-old son's body is still developing and that he had to cope with a bruised kidney that he suffered in a collision last season.\n"I'd rather have a player who's still growing then one who has maxed out," Scott May said. "I don't take too much in on analysts and polls. Either you can play or you can't. I don't think he had a bad summer. I just don't think his team, Bloomington Red, was that good."\nScott May added that his son is in no hurry to make a decision before the signing period in November.\n"He wants to concentrate on his grades and get his team back to the state championship," Scott May said. "The way the NCAA is set up, it's really difficult to change your mind, so you better pick right." \nSean May did not return repeated phone calls.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Brotherhood generates this homemade music. It would sound different if one member were missing. That's the point: It's all or nothing.\nSix Alpha Phi Alpha members meet on a dance court almost every night to fine tune stepping, a traditional African American dance staged within black fraternities and sororities.\nStepping features sequences of stomps, claps and sometimes chants, forming a steady rhythm. Alpha Phi Alpha's dedication has won it competition honors, but more importantly, the members' loyalty to the cultural art has allowed stepping to survive for decades in the fraternity. \n"It's not only competitive, but we represent the frat," says junior Ollie Hairston, who has stepped for two years. "We can show off, and it's a good experience because we can promote the brotherhood."\nFive members of IU's chapter of the nation's oldest African American fraternity won a step contest Oct. 6 at the Circle City Classic in Indianapolis in which 10 teams from Indiana fraternities and sororities competed. The champions were sophomore Brandon Williams, junior Jason Lee, senior Alvoy Bryan and graduate students Mike Burton and Jon Bennett. \nAlpha Phi Alpha has nine competitive steppers, but those five were chosen because they are the best, Lee says, the "step master" and inventor of many steps. They performed a 10-minute "Nerds" theme, wearing thick glasses, high pants and cardigans and pausing to pretend to study books.\nThe chapter won $1,500, which will pay for Panhellenic events, such as a scholarship pageant and future step events. The steppers need monetary prizes because they have to generate their own funds, often staying at other chapters and paying from their own pockets for gas. They plan to step Nov. 7 at an exhibition at IU-Kokomo.\n"We really don't ask for any help," Bennett says. "We invite the fraternity to come out and ask for an opinion, but what we're doing is pretty closed. We want to surprise people."\nTime also is sacrificed. Steppers practice their routine almost every night at least a month before a contest. They put in an hour or so a night for a 20-minute competition. Alpha Phi Alpha competes in three or four events a year, including one at IU, which the chapter won last year. \nSteppers also flaunt their moves at parties. They often wear black-and-gold T-shirts displaying their greek letters and black jeans, but sometimes dress up. They begin their numbers with popular hip-hop or rap music, but then let the claps and smacks take over.\nA stepper's experience is prominently displayed at parties. People who don't step dance typically gather in a large crowd in the middle of the room. Rookie steppers perform in a line surrounding the crowd. Each pledge class gets its own line, with the most experienced group stepping on the outside.\nThe dance allows the men to flaunt themselves in front of large crowds -- 700 to 800 in September at the Indiana Memorial Union and 3,000 at the Circle City Classic. Precise steppers often point to the audience and grin. \n"It's kind of like a rush," Bennett says. "My experience in the frat brought me out of my shell. When I first saw a show, I felt a rush being in front of so many people, hearing the crowd applaud and being rewarded for the hard work."\nThe goal of a show is to expose new members and advertise the fraternity. Stepping developed at the turn of the 20th century, as African American fraternities became established, according to a documentary called "Steppin'," which showcases several African American greek houses at IU. \nThe movements have generated from traditional African American dancing and military marches, as many black students entered the Student Army Training Corp. Contemporary hip-hop also has been an influence. Steps intend to express fraternal love, tell a story and introduce a house to campus. Today, steppers share steps with chapters, take steps from videos and create their own.\nAlpha Phi Alpha's steppers stay ahead of the other houses with their quick learning, precision and confidence, Bennett says.\nThe stepping tradition has survived year after year at Alpha Phi Alpha mainly because each new fraternity member must perform a "neophyte" show a year after his initiation. Some members continue to step after the initial show. This year, the veterans are Bryan, Burton and Bennett.\n"The small chapter creates closeness," Bennett says, who has stepped for three years. "It helps bring experience so we don't have to start from scratch. We work with a bond that's already there."\nMembership to the fraternity requires loyalty and trust, so the step team already has friendships to build on. The steppers play basketball together, sometimes before a nightly step practice, and many live together in apartments. \n"I can call up any of them if I need money or a ride," Bryan says, who has stepped for two-and-a-half years. "Sometimes we may not like each other, but we still love each other."\nBesides promoting competition and endorsement for a greek house, stepping provides an opportunity for black students to socialize on a predominantly white campus. \n"People get to see you," Bryan says, who has been nicknamed "Pop-a-Quarter" because he keeps stepping, like a jukebox filled with money constantly plays music. "I'm in the School of Music and there aren't many blacks in my classes. It's a way to branch out socially, educationally and have fun with others"
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The Reebok Lady Stars brought its celebrity-studded lineup Wednesday night to Assembly Hall, much to the dismay of coach Kathi Bennett and the IU women's basketball team. WNBA standouts Katie Douglas and Ukari Figgs scorched the defensively-troubled Hoosiers, as the touring team of former college and professional players outlasted IU 84-83 in an exhibition game.\nBesides showing that Purdue products Douglas and Figgs can still knock-off IU, the night game proved to Bennett that her team needs to improve its transition defense, sloppy passing and ability to put away opponents.\n"They're very experienced," Bennett said about the Stars, who in recent weeks have pasted Butler 112-81 and Valparaiso 68-56. "They've been there, they know it and can play really loose."\nThe Stars kept the Hoosiers' outside shooting quiet during the game with a stifling zone defense. Douglas, who led Reebok with 16 points, pulled her team ahead whenever IU threatened. The Stars appeared fatigued in the second half, but wouldn't allow IU to extend a lead past nine points.\nThe Hoosiers relied on leading scorer senior Jill Chapman to take advantage of Reebok's smaller lineup. But when she didn't dominate the boards, the Hoosiers fell apart. By halftime, Chapman led IU with 13 points and no fouls. \nThe score stayed close during the night. With four seconds remaining and IU losing 84-81, junior point guard Kristen Bodine caught the ball on the perimeter. Rather than trying a three-pointer, she drove to the basket and settled for a short jumper. \nSenior shooting guard Heather Cassady fouled Figgs, who missed her free throws, but the Hoosiers could not come up with another shot.\n"We were up eight or 10 points with seven minutes to go and we made a nice run," Bennett said. "Last year we did the same thing. We don't put teams away. We don't have that killer instinct."\nReebok also opened the game quicker than the Hoosiers, as the Stars burst to an 11-6 lead with 16 minutes remaining in the first half.\nThe Stars commanded the boards early, as former Illinois star Ashley Berggren and Douglas snatched eight rebounds. \nA couple three-pointers by a hustling Cassady kept the Hoosiers in the game. She ended the night with six points in 35 minutes. \n"We have to get Heather more shots," Bennett said. "I think that was the other thing I saw tonight. We have to get her more shots. There's no doubt we have to work on that."\nIn the second half, the Hoosiers led by as many as nine with 10 minutes left as they picked up the slack in rebounding with 56 total rebounds.\nAfter being pulled in the first half with two points, senior power forward Erin McGinnis scored 11 points in the second half. She pulled the Hoosiers ahead with 13 minutes left at 53-52 with a short jumper.\n"I thought she really came around and that's something we talked about -- overcoming, not hanging your head," Bennett said. " She gives me a lot of gray hairs.\n"She passes some great ones, and I'd like her to be tighter with the ball still."\nStill, Reebok didn't let the Hoosiers run away with the lead as the team completed its free throws and remained tough on the inside. \nIn the end, Douglas and her fellow WNBA stars were too much for IU.\n"We've played each other three years now, four years, and I respect her as a player," Cassady said of Douglas. "I think she's tremendous. I've never beaten her"
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Sometimes sloppy equals good.\nIn an exhibition game loaded with turnovers and fouls, the women's basketball team pushed aside the Premier All-Stars 89-72. \nNine of IU's 10 players scored Friday night at Assembly Hall, as the Hoosiers dominated the All-Stars' small, depleted lineup and capitalized on outside shooting. Play often appeared messy with the All-Stars' 26 turnovers and IU's 17 turnovers, but the Hoosiers pulled away early with accurate shooting.\nThe Hoosiers also had to deal with the absence of senior center Jill Chapman, who was first pulled from the game four minutes into the first half with two fouls. She finished with eight points on 2-of-7 shooting in 21 minutes.\n"I felt our communication was better," said coach Kathi Bennett, whose Hoosiers lost their first exhibition game Wednesday 84-83 to the Reebok Lady Stars. "We were really behind each other. It wasn't a pretty win, but it was that. And I thought we fought and played hard."\nIU didn't relinquish the lead after six minutes into the game. Besides three-pointers, IU sustained an often double-digit lead with precise free throw shooting. \nIU shot 79 percent from the line. The All-Stars dressed only eight players, three who earned four fouls and three who tallied three fouls. IU's only player in foul trouble was Chapman with four.\n"They had small guards and we had a little more competition in the post, but I think as far as guards, I think we matched up with them pretty well," said senior guard Tara Jones, who led the team with 27 points. "Our guards are in great shape. They weren't able to rotate as many players in, so we were able to run and run and run and rotate a few players in."\nPremier's biggest lead arrived at the 16:29 mark of the first half at 7-5, but IU soon took control with a 34-25 run to close the first half. The Hoosiers led 41-30 at halftime and increased their lead to as much as 20 in the second half with the aggressive shooting of Jones and senior forward Erin McGinnis.\nPremier never led after the half, thanks in part to IU's frequent three-point shooting. The Hoosiers' were 5-of-23 from behind the arc. Freshman forward Jenny DeMuth led the team in that category, shooting 2-of-6 for six points in 16 minutes.\nThe Hoosiers commanded the boards for the second consecutive exhibition game. After outrebounding the Reebok Lady Stars Wednesday 56-32, IU snatched 48 rebounds to Premier's 38 Friday. McGinnis led the Hoosiers with 11 rebounds.\nDespite the high numbers, Bennett said the Hoosiers need to work on rebounding, along with intensity and transition defense, before they take on No. 9 Stanford Friday in Palo Alto, Calif.\n"We didn't block out as well," Bennett said. "I think we could have done a better job on the glass in blocking out. It was better, but that's something we need to emphasize and address." \n \nInjury report\nSenior Heather Cassady started at point guard while junior Kristen Bodine, who scored 15 points as the starting point guard in Wednesday's game, was benched with a strained hamstring. Bodine dressed and warmed up with the team but did not play. Bennett said she hopes Bodine can practice today.\nJunior Jill Hartman filled in for Cassady at starting shooting guard. Hartman went 1-for-8 with six points and an assist in 25 minutes.\n"I felt comfortable at the point," said Cassady, who tallied 10 points and nine assists. "I've played there for three years. It was nice to distribute the ball and get people open."\nSophomore forward Jamie Gathing hit her head against the floor three minutes into the game and returned with a bandage under her right eye. She was tested for a detached retina after the game, Bennett said. Junior forward Allison Skapin has a knee injury and did not dress for the game.
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Senior point guard Heather Cassady peered over her shoulder at her teammates during a timeout in Saturday's game. She shook her hands and shouted to the Hoosiers, "Settle down, white."\nNorthern Arizona had chopped IU's lead to 28-23, and Cassady didn't want to see her team's morale drop. Her teammates weren't hitting their shots, so the senior captain took matters into her own hands.\nJunior Jill Hartman inbounded the ball to Cassady during the Hoosiers' next possession. Cassady immediately launched a three-pointer. With the field goal Cassady not only rescued her team from relinquishing the lead, but also reached the 1,000-career-point mark.\nAfter tallying 34 points and six assists during the two Holiday Inn/Fazoli's Classic tournament wins, Cassady became the fourth Hoosier to boast more than 1,000 career points (1,006) and more than 300 assists (303). She ranks 15th on IU's all-time scoring list. Her performance earned her recognition as the unanimous most valuable player at the tournament. \n"It has a lot to do with the people you play with -- getting the ball and a lot of hard work," Cassady said, shrugging her shoulders. "To be honest with you, I really didn't know about it. I knew about it maybe a week ago."\nBesides shattering records, Cassady made heroic efforts throughout the Hoosiers' 61-56 win, scoring when the Lumberjacks narrowed IU's lead and hitting her shots when her teammates missed point-blank baskets and lost the ball out of bounds.\nShe led the Hoosiers with 19 points on 5-of-10 shooting and 3-of-5 three pointers. She also had two assists, three rebounds and a steal. In the first half, she tallied 14 of the Hoosiers' 31 points.\nCassady displayed aggressive, accurate shooting and feistiness on ball control. She pursued the Lumberjacks' speedy guards and on one occasion, dived alongside senior center Jill Chapman and came up with the ball after Northern Arizona's Lynsie Blau dropped a pass. \n"Every time we needed a score or a big shot, I felt like she came through for us," coach Kathi Bennett said. "She had to play 40 minutes, and she's the genuine article. Whatever it takes to get done, she'll do it."\nWith six minutes remaining in the first half, Cassady heaved an off-balance jumper while guarded man-to-man to extend the score to 20-15. Less than two minutes later, she hit a three-pointer to make the score 24-17.\nCassady repeated the feat with four minutes left in the second half when she nailed a three-pointer near the IU bench to build the Hoosiers lead to 54-50. To seal the victory, she passed to Chapman under the basket with 13 seconds remaining.\n"That basket's all to Heather," Chapman said. "She drove and dished to me."\nGone for the season\nThe Hoosiers won the two games without junior starting point guard Kristen Bodine, who tore her ACL a week ago and will miss the rest of the season. \n"We have to figure out a way to play without her and keep winning," Bennett said. "That's our challenge. We wish we could get her back, but we can't. We have to figure out a way to keep winning without her."\nCassady has filled in at the point, a position she has played the three previous seasons at IU. Freshman Jenny DeMuth has started at shooting guard. Bodine plans to pursue a medical redshirt.\n"We miss her, but...she's always going to be there," Cassady said. "She's on the sidelines cheering us on. She's a captain and I think she's always going to be a big presence and a leader throughout the season"
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To say the least, Bloomington in the winter doesn't call to mind Aspen. But both outdoor veterans and novices can find something to do al fresco, although ideal spots are few and far between.\n Students, professors and recreational sport instructors voiced reasons why areas in and around Bloomington provide opportunities to avoid cabin fever, exercise dormant muscles and enjoy the outdoors without summer crowds.\n "I wouldn't call it a Mecca of outdoor winter activities," says Greg Martz, program coordinator for Outdoor Adventures. "But we do have two ski hills within easy driving distance that have really good ski instructors. Our terrain is hilly, so we at least have that variety to go sledding on and occasionally go cross-country skiing on. So it's not a total bust, but you do sort of have to seek it out."\n One of the most popular areas, Brown County State Park offers wooded, hilly and watery areas for winter fun. For something more organized, the Outdoor Adventures desk in the Indiana Memorial Union offers weekend trips.\n \nIce climbing\nDespite Bloomington's mild springs, towering ice formations tend to stick around from January to May. \nBut many locations are kept secret so they don't become crowded and so the Department of Natural Resources doesn't kick off the few brave climbers to avoid accidents, especially around the dam on Lake Monroe, Martz says.\nHe discloses Griffey Lake Nature Preserve, cuts in rock along state route 37 and around White River in Shoals, Ind., as a few other locales.\n"Bloomington is a recreational hell," says Tom Stuessy, a doctoral candidate who teaches ice climbing. "It's not a place for a guy who likes to paddle and climb, so when we find a place, we don't talk about them so beginners don't tear them up."\nIce climbing is considered one of the most dangerous winter activities, Martz says, because of falling ice chunks, accidents with ice axes and eroding ice. Rookies should climb with a guide and take more than one lesson. Make sure ice axes are sharp, Stuessy says.\nJust above freezing and just after midday are the best temperature and time to climb, Stuessy says. Warm ice poses less challenge and acts like Styrofoam, absorbing axes and crampons. \nIce colder than freezing often becomes brittle and loses its bond to surfaces, causing chunks to break. Warmer ice freezing is weaker.\nIce for climbing also can be created. Slowly trickle water down chicken wire, cargo netting or cardboard during freezing weather, Stuessy says. Make sure the surface isn't completely vertical, so that water doesn't run straight down.\nHoosier Heights Indoor Climbing Facility at 5100 S. Rogers offers a place to practice for the winter.
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Ocean's 11 - PG-13\nStarring: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts\nDirected by: Steven Soderbergh\nShowing: Showplace West 12\nA remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film starring Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, "Ocean's Eleven" tantalizes the eyes with gorgeous, high-dollar movie stars carrying out a nearly impossible casino heist that boggles the mind. But while both eyes and brain are pleasured, this pretty movie by Steven Soderbergh ("Erin Brockovich," "Traffic") falls flat in true star power.\nGeorge Clooney updates the Sinatra role as Danny Ocean, a high-brow thief finishing up a prison sentence for a dozen different offenses. Once released, Ocean persuades his pal Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) to knock off Las Vegas' three biggest casinos. Ryan isn't so sure it'll work, and as if to parallel his uncertainty, the first 20-some minutes of the film drag on unnecessarily.\nThings pick up as Ocean recruits a motley crew of flawed characters to help him pull it off. They include a tiny, Gumby-like Chinese gymnast, obnoxious Mormon brothers who play with monster trucks (Casey Affleck and Scott Caan) and Soderbegh veteran Don Cheadle ("Out of Sight," "Traffic") butchering a British accent.\nAlthough they stick out in the star-studded cast, the henchmen provide more laughs and excitement than Clooney and company. Overall, it's the obscenely complicated casino heist that truly draws viewers in -- not the smart-talking, nice-dressing pretty boys (and girl). Forget about Brad Pitt, who munches on popcorn and jumbo shrimp. It's all about the benjamins.\nOcean plans to hit Terry Benedict's (Andy Garcia) lavish casino, garnering at least $150 million on a fight night (with brief guest appearances from real-life boxers Lennox Lewis and Wladimir Klitschko). Of course, he and his rat pack have to get past an elevator shaft of motion detectors, fingerprint identification and the thickest vault door anywhere. To see how they do it keeps things fascinating -- because the actors' bland characters sure don't. Ocean practically disappears from the robbery as he tries to win back his ex-wife Tess (an ultra-cold Julia Roberts). Also failing to excite are usual studs like Matt Damon. Garcia and Roberts have to act mature and boring among the glittering lights of Vegas.\nDespite a practically all-male cast that enjoys expensive suits and cigars, and replace the cash they steal with call girl ads, "Ocean's Eleven" doesn't remain true to its masculine appearance. After all, Ocean doesn't really want Benedict's loot, he wants his girl -- ultimately allowing a woman to control what happens.\nToo bad the cavalcade of stars is far less entertaining than the complicated burglary, keeping "Ocean's Eleven" from being a must-see. See it once -- on video, if you're patient and want to save some money -- because this hep cat can wait.\n
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For the second consecutive game, the women's basketball team pushed a formidable Big Ten opponent to the brink. But yet again, the Hoosiers couldn't execute a comeback in a 73-65 loss to Iowa at Assembly Hall.\nIU (8-8, 2-3 Big Ten) pulled to within three with 33 seconds left Sunday in the Hoosiers' only scheduled matchup with the Hawkeyes (11-5, 4-2) this season. But IU was forced to foul the Hawkeyes' best free-throw shooter, Lindsey Meder, who sealed the win with four free throws in the closing seconds.\nInconsistent liveliness and a continuously weak offense doomed the Hoosiers, IU coach Kathi Bennett said.\n"I never really felt good about our energy the whole game," said Bennett, whose team shot 35 percent. "I think we're a team that has to play incredibly hard on the defensive end. Offensively, right now, we're struggling shooting the ball from the perimeter, so you have to have your defense be tremendous. On our home court, I'd hope we'd do a better job of that."\nAlthough Bennett questioned the Hoosiers' energy, IU stormed back from an 11-point deficit with 2:52 left. Aggressive rebounding carried the comeback.\nDown 66-55, IU center Jill Chapman hit two free throws. Point guard Heather Cassady then stole the ball off a careless Iowa inbounds pass. Forward Erin McGinnis' drive was blocked, but guard Jenny DeMuth snagged a rebound and passed to Chapman, who nailed a put-back and was fouled. That made the score 66-59 with 2:14 remaining.\nChapman couldn't convert the three-point play, but DeMuth snatched another rebound, hit a layup and was fouled. The Hoosiers then trailed 66-61 with 2:12 to go. And just like that, Iowa's 11-point lead evaporated to a five-point margin in less than 40 seconds.\nDeMuth missed the free throw, but the Hoosiers got the ball back after an Iowa airball. Cassady was forced to foul Meder, who missed one of two free throws to increase Iowa's lead to 67-61 with 48 seconds left. \nChapman then rebounded in traffic 10 seconds later and passed to DeMuth on the perimeter. Left alone, DeMuth nailed a three pointer, her only one of the afternoon. IU trailed 67-64 with 33 seconds remaining. Meder and Iowa guard Kristi Faulkner made the next six free throws to stretch the lead out of reach.\n"Every game in the Big Ten is going to be a close game," McGinnis said. "We just have to figure out how to come together and win the close ones."\nIowa dominated the paint. The Hawkeyes have played without a true center all season and started 6-foot-1 center Jennie Lillis against IU's 6-5 Chapman. Lillis finished with 15 points and five rebounds to Chapman's team-leading 16 points and seven rebounds.\nIowa outrebounded the Hoosiers 43-34. The trio of Jerica Watson, Beatrice Bullock and Lillis combined for 12-of-26 from the field for 33 points. In comparison, Chapman, McGinnis and guard Khisha Asubuhi went 10-of-28 for 31 points.\n"We don't have (size), so we don't worry about it anymore," Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said. "Now we have to think of ways to score without the size. Actually, Jerica Watson can shoot over anybody. She goes in, the first possession she has, she shoots over Jill Chapman."\nWatson caused much trouble for the Hoosiers. She came off the bench to collect 11 points, six rebounds and four blocks in 22 minutes. She blocked McGinnis on the perimeter late in the first half and then blocked forward Jamie Gathing a minute later on a drive.\n"No. 5, (Watson) she comes off the bench, and she can just jump out of the gym," Chapman said. "They're all very aggressive and very strong at the post. They can all drive to the basket. That's why they play in the middle of the paint"
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Confidence breeds good shooting.\nThat's what women's basketball coach Kathi Bennett has stressed this season, as her "fragile" Hoosiers have averaged a Big Ten-worst 58 points per game.\nBut after her players attacked Tuesday's practice with positive attitudes, Bennett said she feels the Hoosiers (8-8, 2-3 Big Ten) can flaunt intensity and poise Thursday night against No. 11 Purdue (13-3, 4-2 Big Ten) at Assembly Hall.\n"(The guards are) getting to the rim better," Bennett said. "We just have to finish and hit some shots to build confidence. I really believe in this team. We're going to give it everything we've got."\nThe only Big Ten player to average a double-double, center Jill Chapman, has remained IU's most reliable weapon with 16.6 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. But the guards must improve their shooting against the 2001 NCAA runner-up Boilermakers, who have held opponents to 62.8 points a game this season, Bennett said. \nThe Hoosiers, on the other hand, rank last in the conference in five offensive categories -- scoring offense (58 points per game), field goal percentage (35 percent), three-point percentage (18 percent), assists (9.6) and three-pointers made (2.2).\nTwo things need to happen on offense against 2001 Big Ten champion Purdue -- penetration to the basket and free throw shooting, Bennett said. The Hoosiers rank in the Big Ten's upper tier in free throw percentage (73 percent for fifth place).\nWith their scoring troubles in mind, the Hoosiers have focused on defense this week in practice. They lead the Big Ten in scoring defense at 61.6 points, right ahead of Purdue.\n"We're still stressing defense," forward Erin McGinnis said. "Coach Bennett is and will always be a defense-minded coach. Defense makes your offense. You can't force your offense."\nThe offensive slump has taken its toll on point guard Heather Cassady. In non-conference games, the senior averaged 14.5 points. But in conference games, she averages 10.2 points, which ranks below the Big Ten's top 29 scorers. \nFatigue and injury could have helped cause the downfall. Cassady has averaged 38.6 minutes in Big Ten games while nursing a contusion, after forward Jamie Gathing's shin hit her back during practice two weeks ago. But Cassady's role as IU's lone point guard shouldn't require huge offensive output, Bennett said.\n"We can't run her off screens," Bennett said. "We can't set her up as much because she's got to bring the ball up, she has to play 40 minutes a game, she's got to defend the point guard."\nWith Cassady preoccupied, Bennett said she expects other guards, namely starters Tara Jones (5.6 points in Big Ten games) and Jenny DeMuth (7.4) and reserve Jill Hartman (1.6) to perk up.\nCassady said she still plans to act aggressively on offense.\n"I think my role on this team is to handle the ball, and when I'm open, shoot the ball," Cassady said, who contributed 12 points in the loss to Iowa. "I think I tried to look for my shot a little, for penetration in the first half against Iowa, and I think I'm going to continue to do that."\nYet, IU has shot poorly even in close games, Bennett said. The team's shooting percentage has hovered around 34.5 percent in losses to Wisconsin, Penn State and Iowa. The Hoosiers shot 36.9 percent in wins against Ohio State and Michigan State. \n"We have been in every game against Big Ten opponents," Bennett said. "(Against) the top teams, we have been shooting 32 to 35 percent, and we have been close down the stretch. Now that's encouraging to me because now we can break out of our shooting slump"
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IU coach Kathi Bennett held up a laminated white sign with huge, black letters spelling, "IOWA." Her team displayed weak intensity after a feisty first half against the Hawkeyes Sunday.\nShe didn't want it to happen again. Not against No. 11 Purdue. Not for the Barn Burner.\nHer Hoosiers heeded Bennett's reminder -- at least after the first five minutes of the second half. The Boilermakers unleashed an 8-0 run to start the half. \nThen point guard Heather Cassady flaunted her senior leadership. After that senior forward Erin McGinnis unveiled her crazy three-point shooting savvy. The Hoosiers displayed passion in waves at Assembly Hall, but couldn't smother Purdue center Mary Jo Noon (18 points) and forward Laura Meadows' tenacity to seize rebounds.\nCassady and McGinnis raked in 21 combined points in the second half, as IU clawed from a deficit as high as 11 points. IU fell to Purdue, 61-53, for the eighth consecutive time. They listened to Bennett, but couldn't seal a win.\n"I believe we need to learn how to win," Bennett said. "In the second half, we started out so dang flat. That killed us. They got an 8-0 run, and that really hurt us. I don't think we kept the ball out of their lane to stop the penetration as well as we had in the first half." \nIt was Cassady who ignited the IU effort in the second half. She caught the ball on the wing, faked a defender and scored her only three to push the score to 33-29 Purdue at 13:03.\nThree minutes later, forward Jamie Gathing received a pass under the basket and laid in a shot two steps ahead of Noon and was fouled. That decreased the lead to 39-36, but Gathing couldn't complete the three-point play.\nThe game continued to seesaw with Purdue unable to sprint away to a double-digit lead, thanks in part to McGinnis, who finished with 17 points and was 3-of-5 behind the arc. \nMcGinnis landed two free throws with 1:10 left, cutting the Purdue lead to 55-53. Earlier, she aroused the ever-stagnant IU offense with a trey two feet beyond the three-point line with 11 minutes remaining. She repeated the feat seven minutes later to cut Purdue's lead to 51-47. \nHer heroics then came to an abrupt halt. With 27 seconds left and IU trailing 57-53, Purdue guard Kelly Komara blocked another three-point attempt by McGinnis.\nPurdue scored the next four points as the Hoosiers were forced to foul. Meadows carried home the most valuable player award with 16 rebounds and 15 points. But the Boilermaker credited IU for never quitting.\n"They played hard, and they never gave up," Meadows said after finishing 6-of-7 from the free-throw line. "They just kept coming at us, and I have a lot of respect for the team. This is a great atmosphere to play basketball."
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Black Hawk Down - R\nStarring: Josh Hartnett, Tom Sizemore\nDirected by: Ridley Scott\nShowing: Showplace West 12\nBring a sturdy stomach to the latest gory, blood-laced war epic. You'll see squirting blood, detached fingers and a legless torso. Empty bullet shells and mangled corpses outnumber developed, emotionally packed characters, creating more of a big-screen video game than a heart wrenching, smarter "Pearl Harbor." \nBased on Mark Bowden's nonfiction book of the same title, "Black Hawk Down" provides eye-catching, startling action sequences sandwiched between snapshots of macho, sweating Delta troops horsing around at camp or giving orders behind aviator shades. It's a macho film. Still, the movie falls short of yanking on emotions when it could have centralized the story on one or two characters or connected the Somali plight to the fresh wounds of Sept. 11.\n"Black Hawk Down" recalls the true story of United States soldiers' foiled attempt to kidnap personnel of Somali warlord Muhammad Farah Aidid, who during Somali's civil war among rival clans, cut off food supplies killing 300,000 civilians in famine. The Oct. 3, 1993 mission is supposed to last only 30 minutes. But well-armed, bloodthirsty Somalis bring down two Black Hawk helicopters and an 18-hour battle arises, killing 19 American soldiers and more than 100,000 Somalis.\nWith startling stunts and compelling patriotism, "Black Hawk Down" consumes the sight and gives viewers insight into modern warfare. For example, one soldier tries to explain to another that he can't return to the battlefield. But the second soldier reminds him that they're all scared, inspiring the first soldier to put on his best courageous appearance, pump his asthma inhaler and leap into a loaded jeep. Hans Zimmer's poignant score provides the mood, as an enormous American flag hanging from the camp shelter provides a stirring, inspiring backdrop. \nBut it's not all guts and glory. The film shows soldiers periodically questioning their courage and whether the United States should be fighting another country's war. But the film never directly addresses Sept. 11, although the bloodbath in Mogadishu, Somalia, shows a U.S. foreign policy blunder later addressed by Osama bin Laden. The director missed his chance at connecting a less than well known tragedy to a calamity that still rings loudly in every American's ears. The film also could have played with emotions by further developing individual soldiers -- giving them backgrounds, families and hopes for the future. Dying troops call out to their daughters and parents who are safely thousands of miles away, but besides a brief look at a wife missing her soldier-husband's call home, "Black Hawk Down" sticks mainly to action scenes, foolishly failing to make the Somali civil war personal or relevant. But it's still a fine, adrenaline-pumping action film for the big screen…as long as you bring that steel stomach.\n
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
The IU women's basketball team reviewed game video of themselves after practice Tuesday instead of examining the Wisconsin squad on tape.\nCoach Kathi Bennett said she would rather expend her energy worrying about her own team than fretting about the Badgers.\nBennett has plenty of concern for the Hoosiers (8-10, 2-5 Big Ten), who have dropped their last five games and whose supply of confidence continues to hover near empty heading into tonight's rematch with the No. 9 Badgers (16-2, 7-1 Big Ten) at Assembly Hall.\nThe Hoosiers have the Big Ten's worst scoring offense, with 56.9 points per game, and this week, IU has focused on improving rebounding, transition defense and their ever-inconsistent point production. \n"We play good basketball for seven, eight minutes, sometimes even nine- to 10-minute stretches, but we lose our concentration or our way," said Bennett, whose Hoosiers play at 7 p.m. "I feel if we can become more consistent, I think that's going to help us a great deal."\nIU showed little consistency against the Badgers in their last meeting, a 74-54 loss in Madison, Wis. The Hoosiers limited Wisconsin All-American forward Jessie Stomski to two first-half points but didn't remain competitive after halftime. \nThe Badgers led by as many as 30 points after a 29-7 run and shot 51 percent for the game, while holding IU to 35 percent accuracy.\n"The first time we didn't play together," junior Jill Hartman said. "Everyone was trying to do their own thing. We need to work on a defensive plan, and we need to play together."\nBennett's comments reflected Hartman's thoughts after Sunday's 68-55 loss to Michigan. Bennett said her players stopped believing in each other and squandered their toughness. The defeat zapped the Hoosiers of all remaining self-assurance, she said.\nHartman attributed the team's downward slide to the team playing as individuals because players lost hope in each other during the losing streak. \n"When we got down and lost a couple games, we started doubting ourselves and started questioning each other," Hartman said. "We have to look for ways to come together and play together."\nDespite IU's struggles, Wisconsin coach Jane Albright said she expects a challenge.\n"I believe Kathi's team is right on the verge of breaking out of -- I'm not sure if she's figured out what exactly it is," Albright said. "On film, they're doing a lot of nice things. They haven't been able to close out games. They're certainly much better than their record indicates." \nThe Hoosiers have home turf on their side. The Badgers have struggled at Assembly Hall, going 1-20 all-time and losing 12 consecutive games there. IU shocked the then-No. 20 Badgers in overtime in their last encounter in Bloomington. The Hoosiers shot 46 percent, as point guard Heather Cassady contributed 21 points.\nThe Badgers stumbled in their last game, losing 92-85 to No. 23 Minnesota in front of the largest crowd in Big Ten women's basketball history (17,142). Guard Tamara Moore, Stomski and forward Kristi Seeger combined for 52 points, as Wisconsin shot 47 percent and Minnesota notched 59 percent.\n"It shows that they can be beaten," Hartman said. "That can give us some confidence. They'll be hungry, wanting to take a game out on us. We have some confidence after beating them last year at home."\n\nHalftime festivities\nSpecial Olympic athletes will play a basketball game and demonstrate skills during halftime of tonight's game. The 1996 state-champion Cutters will scrimmage at one end of the court, while the Indiana Hoopsters and Bloomington Raptors will participate in a skills competition. \nSpecial Olympics Indiana and Spirit of Sport sponsor the event. Admission is free with a student ID.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
The women's basketball team continues to apply the Big Ten's best defense like troublesome super glue. Believe it or not, the Hoosiers (9-11, 3-6 Big Ten) hold opponents to a league-best 63.9 points per game.\nBut in a 75-60 loss to No. 22 Minnesota Sunday, the ever-steadfast pressure vanished in the final four minutes. The Hoosiers relinquished 49 points in the second half after tying the game 26-26 at halftime.\nIU coach Kathi Bennett said she hopes her team's defensive rebounding and guarding against penetration reappears in time for the Hoosiers' 7 p.m. rematch against Ohio State tonight at Value City Arena.\nIn the last meeting, both teams displayed stifling, tug-of-war defense. Bennett said she expects extreme pressure from the consistently inconsistent Buckeyes (10-10, 5-4), who could launch into a zone if IU's guards heat up.\nThe Hoosiers' 64-52 triumph over Ohio State Dec. 28 marked one of IU's finer games. IU smothered the Buckeyes to 30.5 percent shooting, including 24.1 percent in the second half.\nWith a 4-inch height advantage over Buckeye center Courtney Coleman, IU center Jill Chapman led all scorers with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Coleman finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.\nGuards Jenny DeMuth and Tara Jones picked up 15 and 10 points apiece for IU, and forward Erin McGinnis added 11. As IU fired zero percent for three pointers (0 of 7), guard penetration, foul shooting and passing to Chapman remained vital.\n"I think they're going to come after us again and see how we handle pressure," Bennett said. "They're going to pick up full court and run and jump. I think they're going to zone press us. They're going to trap. They're going to try to keep the ball out of (point guard) Heather (Cassady's) hands."\nBennett said she expects her guards to step up again, especially after all but Chapman failed to score in double figures against Minnesota. IU's offense lags in the bottom tier of the Big Ten, ranking last at 58.7 points per game.\nThe Hoosiers have dropped six of their last seven games, an unsurprising fact to Ohio State coach Beth Burns.\n"I think our league is unbelievable," Burns said. "I was at a high school game last night with a lot of different coaches from a lot of different leagues. Everyone was telling me how they were glad they're not in our league. There's zero margin for error.\n"Look at (IU's) scorers. Every game has been a great game. Three of them came out on the positive, and the others didn't. It goes back to our league is so good. Every one is going to be a knock-down, drag-out."\nOhio State also has had to deal with a bizarre string of injuries. Coleman, naturally a forward, stands as the only original starter in uniform. Guards Tomeka Brown (sprained medial collateral ligament, bone bruise) and Caity Matter (broken left foot) and centers LaToya Turner (six surgeries on left knee) and Brandee Gibbs (broken left foot) remain on the bench. With all of the injuries, Burns has been forced to look to former manager Amber Stokes. \nPoint guard Tanya McClure returned from 15 months of recovering from a broken left foot and reconstructive ankle surgery, providing an emotional boost in Ohio State's 70-66 upset over Minnesota Friday. \nEven Coleman, 6-foot-1, couldn't avoid injury. She suffered a concussion against Northwestern Jan. 6. But she has remained Ohio State's most dependable star, tallying 16 points against the Gophers and averaging 13 points and 7.3 rebounds in Big Ten play.\nChapman said she doesn't plan to change her game to take advantage of Coleman's shortness.\n"You can't go in and say, 'I'm 4 inches taller,' and worry about that," Chapman said. "You have to just play your game, post up and be physical."\nStill, defending Chapman provides a tall task.\n"I don't think Courtney individually could do anything," Burns said. "One thing you can say about Indiana's entire season, short of the one game against Michigan, her numbers have been off the chart. We play without a true center, and Jill's a true center. They're two totally different players"