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Starting the new year off right

(01/01/08 3:43am)

The IU women's basketball team certainly will. Hey everybody, it's about 2 1/2 hours until 2008 here in Atlanta, and I just got back from watching as much as I could stand of the Insight Bowl. The IU women's basketball team, however, spent their day in Evanston, Ill., and they made the most of it, beating Northwestern 84-53 on the road to notch their first Big Ten win in their first conference game this year. The Hoosiers put this one away early, as they used a 15-2 run to stake a 41-24 halftime lead. IU led by as many as 34 points in the second half en route to the 31-point win. The visitors put four players in double figures, led by Jamie Braun, who had 20 points. As usual, Braun also filled other columns in the box score. She had four rebounds, three assists and a career-high six steals. Whitney Thomas added 14 yards and seven boards, Amber Jackson had 12 points and Nikki Smith had 11 in the Hoosiers' victory. This marks IU's fourth straight victory and keeps their momentum high heading into a Jan. 3 home date with Purdue, a team that beat Wisconsin on Dec. 28 and then fell to Minnesota two days later. Not much to say about the Northwestern game. IU did what they had to do, playing with the Wildcats early before breaking out and holding a rather large lead for most of the game. IU shot a very consistent 52 percent from the field, they shot at that clip in both halves. They also hit 81 percent of their free throws, going 21-of-26. As I said in a previous posts, the first thing IU has to do this year to be successful in conference is take care of business against teams they should beat, and they did so in convincing fashion today. This game obviously closes out 2007 for the Hoosiers, a season that has seen them go deep in the postseason NIT and bring six freshman and eight total newcomers into the fold for the 2007-2008 season. They'll carry the momentum of that winning streak and a comfortable opening conference win into the new year with a big test coming in three days when they welcome rival Purdue to Assembly Hall. Check back with ATR for a preview of the Purdue game, and I'll be back on campus by tip off, so I'll have plenty of coverage of that contest up on www.idsnews.com and Above the Rim for continuous coverage of the Hoosiers as we move into 2008. Happy New Year to everyone.

https://www.idsnews.com/blog/hoosierhype/2008/01/starting-the-new-year-off-right

As promised: A few minutes with coach Jack

(12/30/07 6:41pm)

I had the chance to chat with coach Jack a couple of days ago for about 15 minutes on a variety of subjects, and her thoughts are below. I apologize for sitting on it so long, like many of you I've been traveling with and to family all break. Stay with me in the next couple of days, and I'll have a short preview of the Hoosiers' first Big Ten game against Northwestern up for your reading pleasure. So without further ado, here's the interview:

https://www.idsnews.com/blog/hoosierhype/2007/12/as-promised-a-few-minutes-with-coach-jack

A Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays wish from Above the Rim ... and the Top 25

(12/26/07 3:59am)

Hey folks, Happy holidays to all of your out there. Stuffed with good food and tired from a long day of feasting and festing, I thought I'd throw down a quick post, as a quick read of ESPN.com brought to my attention the latest AP and ESPN/USA Today polls. There were no surprises at the top, as Connecticut was No. 1 in both polls. It's been awhile since the Huskies were tops in the country, but they've never been far from the top. Stanford, Tennessee, North Carolina and Maryland rounded out the top 5 respectively in both polls. A few points of interest for Hoosier fans. The only two teams in the top 25 the Hoosiers played this year are still West Virginia (#18 AP/#17 ESPN after their loss to IU last weekend) and Texas A&M (#14 AP/#12 ESPN). But here's the interesting thing if you take a second glance at these two polls: Unanimous preseason conference favorite Ohio State (#17/18) is the only Big Ten team in the Top 25. Michigan State is the fifth-leading vote getter of all unranked teams in both polls, and Penn State got two votes in the AP poll and three in the ESPN/USA Today poll. That's it. That's all. No Purdue, no Wisconsin, nobody but those three. So what does this mean? Well, it could be a topsy-turvy year in the Big Ten because of it. Wisconsin has the conference's leading returning scorer and preseason conference player of the year Jolene Anderson, but they've had an interesting season so far, complete with a 7-3 record and a last-minute cancellation at a tournament out in California due to the wildfires that ravaged the area earlier this year. Purdue, as mentioned in a previous post, has been bitten by the injury bug a bit in the offseason, losing senior forward Lindsay Wisdom-Hilton and junior guard Jodi Howell to knee and shoulder injuries respectively. Now, this is not to say the Hoosiers are guaranteed anything, but it seems like the perfect year for a less-established team to make a run at conference success from obscurity, whether that team is IU or not. So what do you think? Do you think the Hoosiers strong non-conference schedule has them prepared to make a run at consistent success in conference in 2008? Or do you think the Big Ten is too weak for a team to rise this year? Is it too early to tell? Let us know what you think. One more time, happy holidays, and for those of you still in Bloomington, I'll see you in the New Year. Stay tuned to the blog for an interview with Coach Jack and some Northwestern preview in the coming days. I'll be in and out, but if you have any questions, just leave them in the comments section, and I'll answer them as best I can. One last shameless plug: Make sure you stay with Under the Rock and the main Web site, www.idsnews.com, around New Year's, as the football guys Lee, Tom and Matt will have plenty of on-site coverage of the Sugar Bowl out in Tempe. Lucky them, New Year's in a college town can't be bad, and I've been to and enjoyed the sights of Tempe more than once. That's it folks, until next time...

https://www.idsnews.com/blog/hoosierhype/2007/12/a-merry-christmas-and-happy-holidays-wish-from-above-the-rim-and-the-top-25

Where the Hoosiers fit in the Big Ten picture

(12/24/07 8:39pm)

We had a reader comment with the question of where we see the Hoosiers finish in the Big Ten this year. It's tough to tell, because - as does everything else with this season - the Hoosiers success revolves around how quickly they can gel and mature. Their recent wins (see previous posts) would suggest that they are starting to bring everything together as conference play begins, and my humble observations of this team lead me to believe the talent is most definitely there. Coach Jack told me back before the season that she thought the ninth-place finish predicted for the Hoosiers at Big Ten Media Day was fair, and that it was the job of her and her team to change such opinions. I could very easily see the Hoosiers finishing in the top half of the conference or better if their current play continues and improves. But again, only time will tell - consistency will be a catch-word for this team throughout Big Ten play. Obviously the first real test for the Hoosiers comes New Year's Eve, as they kick off conference play at Northwestern. The game I've had circled on my schedule, however, is the next one, when the Hoosiers welcome former coach Sharon Versyp and rival Purdue to Bloomington on Jan. 3. The Boilermakers were predicted to finish fifth in the Big Ten, and the first of two regular season installments of the annual rivalry should be a good proving ground for the Hoosiers. Purdue has been hit by the injury bug, but the Boilers are one of the top teams in the conference perennially, and to be among the best you have to prove yourself among the best. I'll be flying back in from the A-town early make it to this game, hope to see y'all there.

https://www.idsnews.com/blog/hoosierhype/2007/12/where-the-hoosiers-fit-in-the-big-ten-picture

So just how good was the West Virginia win?

(12/24/07 8:15pm)

Well, Felisha Legette-Jack actually picked up a microphone after the game and thanked the crowd for supporting her team, calling West Virginia "a great team," and proclaiming that IU is working "to get where they are." Believe me, if you knew coach Jack, those words and the class of that move would not come as a surprise. But we'll take this a step further. The Hoosiers are now on a three-game roll, knocking off three quality opponents since the break began. Florida State coach Sue Semrau told reporters after her team's hard-fought win over the Hoosiers at Assembly Hall in November that she thought Jack has the Hoosiers pointed in the right direction, and that the schedule laid out for them in November and December would have them ready for conference play, which starts New Year's Eve against Northwestern. But check out these numbers: The Hoosiers have already played three ranked opponents, losing by no more than 12 to any of them (60-48 loss to Texas A&M in the Virgin Islands over Thanksgiving). In fact, that 12-point defeat is the widest margin the Hoosiers have faced all season. The combined record of the teams they've beaten on this three-game run is, to date, 26-7. Bowling Green's only other loss came to the then-No. 16 Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who still occupy that No. 16 slot. West Virginia was picked to finish third in the ever-elite Big East, arguably the toughest conference in the nation with the rise of Rutgers to national prominence. Bowling Green was tabbed to finish second in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference. By the way, the team picked to finish first in the West is Ball State, a team the Hoosiers beat on the road back in November. Jack also took the Hoosiers on an aforementioned trip to the Virgin Islands over Thanksgiving, where they played three games in three days at the Paradise Jam Tournament. All in all, though their record stands at 7-5, the Hoosiers have really been tested this season, and they've been passing that test of late. Coach Jack told me early this season she "needs her freshmen to be sophomores" by the time conference play starts, and this little streak just might indicate that's starting to come to fruition. Time will tell, but for now, the Hoosiers seem to be riding high headed into conference play next week. Check back to the blog in the next few days, I'm going to try to get coach Jack's thoughts on this streak her team is on, as well as Northwestern with conference play coming up. I'll also have a quick preview of Northwestern together for you on Dec. 30. Hope everyone's having a happy holiday season.

https://www.idsnews.com/blog/hoosierhype/2007/12/so-just-how-good-was-the-west-virginia-win

It's getting better all the time

(12/24/07 7:38pm)

Yes, that's right. Though the layoff has been too long, I am making my triumphant return to the blog with a Beatles reference, something my boy Lee Hurwitz over and Under the Rock would approve of. What's getting better today and in the last two weeks? The IU women's basketball team. The Hoosiers are currently riding a three-game winning streak that would seem modest but for who they've beaten. A come-from-behind win at home agaisnt Bowling Green and then a road win at Cincinnati got the Hoosiers out of a little post-Thanksgiving funk they'd been in. But what they did Saturday night trumped just about anything else they've accomplished this year, at least in the win-loss column. IU toppled visiting No. 13 West Virginia 79-66. Though yours truly is currently in Atlanta and could not attend the game, the Hoosiers were rather impressive. The box score was filled with the usual suspects for IU, with Jamie Braun hitting double digits with 17 points an grabbing 13 boards -a career high. But she was hardly alone. Kim Roberson had 17, Amber Jackson dropped 16 and Nikki Smith hit 4-of-6 from behind the arc to score 15 for the home team. West Virginia, by contrast, struggled. A team that averaged about 77 points per game coming into the contest shot a mere 41 percent for the game and 23 percent from behind the arc. The Mountaineers did put four players of their own in double figured, led by Chakhia Cole and Meg Bulger - sister of St. Louis Rams QB Marc - who each had 19. The Mountaineers began the game a horrid 2-of-17 from the floor though, and IU got to the free-throw line plenty, hitting 26-of-29 from the charity stripe. IU took a 35-23 lead into halftime and outscored West Virginia 44-43 in the second frame as well. Not bad against a team whose only other loss this season came to Tennessee back in November.

https://www.idsnews.com/blog/hoosierhype/2007/12/its-getting-better-all-the-time
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