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(02/18/08 5:34am)
The IU women’s basketball team (15-11, 8-6) took on a different look on its way to a 74-65 victory over Michigan (14-10, 7-7) Sunday afternoon at Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers wore pink headbands and pink warm-ups in honor of Think Pink and National Girls and Women in Sports Day. \nFans in attendance Sunday also wore pink to support breast cancer awareness and watched the Hoosiers get back in the win column after a loss to Michigan State Thursday night. \n“Our team played poised and we played focused,” said IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack. “Michigan is a great team as well, but we didn’t think about our opponent at all. It was all about what we came to do. Our challenge to our team today was if someone doesn’t ever see us play again, what kind of response are they going to have after this 40 minutes.” \nSophomore guard Jamie Braun and junior forward Whitney Thomas led the way for the Hoosiers, scoring 22 and 19 points, respectively. For Thomas, the impressive scoring output came after her four point game against Michigan State Thursday. \n“That was an off game that I had, and coach Jack said I need to change,” Thomas said. “So, that’s what I did this game.”\nThe Hoosiers shot 24 free throws and made 15 of them. After the game, Legette-Jack was proud of the way her team got to the line, but said they can still earn more trips to the charity stripe.\n“We attacked the basket,” she said. “We went back to who we were, and that’s attacking the basket. When we attack the basket, great things happen. I don’t know when the last time we shot 24 free throws was. I still think we can go for 30.”\nFreshmen Georgia Follmer and Whitney Lindsay earned spots in the starting lineup Sunday in place of senior guard Nikki Smith and junior forward Amber Jackson. \nLegette-Jack said the starting lineup shuffle was due to matchups more than anything else. \n“Any given day, your number is going to be called and you are going to have to respond to that,” she said. \nLindsay responded well, playing 35 minutes on Sunday, which was also her birthday. \n“It was exciting for me because it was my birthday,” Lindsay said “It’s a different energy coming off the bench compared to as a starter. As a starter, you get the chemistry started instead of coming into it. It gave me more energy.”\nLindsay’s performance also gave her teammates extra excitement, and Legette-Jack was impressed with her play. \n“Whitney definitely responded to great minutes,” Legette-Jack said. “She played with a passion and a lot of poise. She had a lot of contributions to players that like to shoot the ball. She looked up and saw some things. I think Jaime, being a point guard, we lose sight of her being a scorer and this gave us an opportunity to utilize her as a scorer.”\nLegette-Jack said she was pleased with how her team responded after losing 65-54 at Michigan Jan. 24.\n“We were fumbling the ball. We were going left and right instead of front and back,” she said of the first game against Michigan. “I think it’s important for our team to continue to move forward and learn as we did today.”\nAt 8-6 in the Big Ten, IU regained sole possession of fifth place in the conference standings. With four more regular season games remaining in the season, Legette-Jack said she is happy with where her team stands. \n“There’s a lot of room to do some fun things in this conference,” she said.
(02/15/08 5:09am)
Rebounding plagued the IU women’s basketball team throughout its 72-68 loss to Michigan State Thursday night in Assembly Hall. \nMichigan State earned a 45-31 rebounding advantage and scrapped and clawed its way to 16 offensive rebounds, leading to 16 second chance points. \n“That was us coming out of the gates with heart and with energy and a mental focus on hitting the boards,” Michigan State’s Allyssa DeHaan said after the game. “I think we definitely outworked them on the boards.”\nDeHaan, a 6-foot-9 center, led the Spartans’ rebounding efforts grabbing 15 rebounds to go along with her 16 points. Guards Brittney Thomas and Kalisha Keane added 8 and 5 rebounds, respectively. \nAfter the game, IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said she was disappointed in her teams’ rebounding effort.\n“We understand DeHaan getting her 15 rebounds, but we don’t understand their point guard Brittney Thomas coming down with eight rebounds,” she said. “I thought we could have done a better job of getting those guards off the boards.”\nWhile Thomas’ rebounding frustrated Legette-Jack, DeHaan said it came as no surprise. \n“She’s a strong rebounding guard for us and she knows how to get in and out of people and where to go and she grabs it strong and goes,” DeHaan said.\nWhen the two teams met on Jan. 20 in East Lansing, IU outrebounded Michigan State 48-36 on the way to a 70-56 victory. Tonight was a different story, though, and Michigan State coach Suzy Merchant attributed the reversal to the strong rebounding of her big center.\n“I thought (DeHaan) made a huge difference,” Merchant said. “This was probably by far her best rebounding game of the year. She just went up and got rebounds that she didn’t get before. Whether we were in man or zone, she really went up and snatched ones offensively and defensively. I think the more aggressive she can be on the boards the better.”\nJunior forward Whitney Thomas leads IU with 9.4 rebounds per game, which is third in the conference. Junior forward Amber Jackson is tied for 11th in the conference at 6.3 rebounds per game. Thomas sat for much of the first half with foul trouble, and Michigan State held her to only two rebounds, well below her average. The Spartans also held Jackson below her average, limiting her to five rebounds. \n“We knew their two post players were one of the top rebounding combos in the conference,” she said. “We knew that we had to come out and put a body on them and hit the boards strong. I think everyone on our team did that well tonight.”\nWith an undersized team, IU has remained focused on rebounding throughout the season. Legette-Jack often stresses box-out drills in practice. While tonight wasn’t the teams’ best effort on the glass, Legette-Jack said her team will continue to improve in that regard. “We’ll get better with that,” she said.
(02/14/08 6:10am)
The IU women’s basketball team (14-10, 7-5) begins a crucial two-game home stand tonight when it faces Michigan State (14-11, 6-7) at Assembly Hall.\nAt 7-5 in the Big Ten, IU is in fifth place in the conference. The Hoosiers will look for a win against Michigan State and against Michigan on Sunday to boost their conference record and increase their NCAA tournament chances. \nDespite the big weekend coming up, junior guard Kim Roberson said the Hoosiers are not placing too much emphasis on the games. \n“As a player, you just have to take each game the same way,” she said. “If you don’t then you get too high or too low. If you look at every game by itself and prepare the same way for each game then hopefully you’ll come out on top.”\nThe Hoosiers topped Michigan State 70-56 earlier this season in East Lansing on Jan. 20. But with the season winding down and the postseason tournaments approaching, Roberson said she expects a tougher game against the Spartans. \n“It’s a different part of the season,” she said. “It’s later, everyone is getting better and we expect their best game. Everybody is trying to get to the tournament. We expect nothing less than their best.”\nMichigan State is led by 6-foot-9 center Allyssa DeHaan, who averages 14.8 points per game and 7.8 rebounds. DeHaan recorded a double-double in the Jan. 20 game scoring 15 points and adding 11 rebounds. \nIU hopes to rebound from a disappointing 73-62 road loss to Illinois last Sunday. IU’s shooting woes put the team in too poor of a position to make a comeback, even though the Hoosiers forced 18 turnovers, including seven steals.\nThe Hoosiers lead the Big Ten in steals at 9.46 per game and hope their defense will lead them to victory on Thursday.\n“It’s a great category to lead, but we just want to play great defense,” Roberson said. “If we get the ball on a steal it’s just a reward for playing great defense.”\nRoberson has been a force on the defensive end all year and is second in the conference in steals at 2.67 per game. She said the Hoosiers look for their defense to jump start their offense.\n“I take pride in pressuring (the ball-handler) and hopefully raising the intensity so that we can get the ball back and score,” she said. “Scoring is what they keep track of.”\nThe Hoosiers had four players in double figures in the Jan. 20 game against Michigan State, including junior forward Amber Jackson and sophomore guard Jamie Braun, who scored 21 and 18 points respectively. \nFour IU players also average double figure scoring for the season, with Braun leading the way at 15.2 points per game. Junior forward Whitney Thomas averages 12.4 per game and Jackson adds 12.2 per game. Roberson is also averaging 10.8 points per game.\nHeading into the stretch, IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said she is proud of how her team is coming together. On her radio show Monday night, Legette-Jack said her team is starting to reveal its character late in the season.\n“This young team is growing up right before my eyes,” she said.
(02/14/08 5:00am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>With Little 500 Rookie Week underway, icy conditions delayed what would have been the first-year riders’ first time on the track at Bill Armstrong Stadium.On Monday rookie riders watched a video on the history and tradition of the Little 500 and took a written test on the rules. Tuesday was supposed to be the first day on the track, but race officials decided to cancel the day’s events. “Speaking with the head maintenance guys at the track, we just determined that it wasn’t really possible to be out on the track in the freezing rain,” Little 500 Race Director Matt Ewing said. “We tried to roll the track but we couldn’t get it in enough shape to ride on.”Rookie Week is an eight-day training period for first-year riders, designed to educate riders on race rules, racing technique and track safety. Rookie Week started on Monday Feb. 11 and runs through Feb. 20. While Ewing said the cancellation of Tuesday’s events was not ideal, he is still confident that the Little 500 schedule of events will remain the same and all Rookie Week events will be completed by Feb. 21, when the track opens to non-rookie riders. “The forecast is supposed to warm up in the next few days, so if we can get out on the track by Thursday the schedule should be alright,” he said. “If we’re on the track on Thursday and Friday of this week, and then Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week, it will still be a full week for the rookie riders.”The IU Student Foundation Riders Council, a group of experienced riders, coordinate Rookie Week by teaching rookie riders about the fundamentals of the race.Riders Council member and Phi Kappa Psi rider Mike Segal said one benefit of Rookie Week is the ability to mix indoor and outdoor activities. Segal said the Metz Lounge under the track is available to show past race videos to the rookies. However on Tuesday, the weather would not even allow for that.“The parking lot by the track all the way down the stairs to the Metz Lounge was just full of ice,” Segal said. Women’s Riders Council president and Alpha Chi Omega rider Nattie Deinlein also said she is confident they will be able to complete the week’s activities, but she also stressed that the Riders Council will be able to help the rookies throughout the Little 500 season.“The Riders Council maintains our presence on the track throughout the season,” she said. “Our goal is to make sure that the rookies still feel comfortable as the season progresses. We still feel that the rookies will be more than competent.”
(02/08/08 6:26am)
The IU women’s basketball team (14-9, 7-4) let Northwestern (4-19, 0-11) hang around for much of the first half in its 74-58 victory Thursday night at Assembly Hall. \n“No energy!” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack yelled to her team from the sidelines early in the first half. \nAfter Northwestern’s Nadia Bibbs hit a wide open 3-pointer with 4:43 to play in the first half, the Hoosier lead was a tight 21-20. \nAfter Bibbs’ 3-pointer, Legette-Jack turned to the bench and was right in the faces of her players, challenging her team. \n“You have to coach the team as if you’re playing against anybody in the country,” she said after the game. “If you give anyone confidence, they become somebody great.”\nThe Hoosiers heard her message loud and clear. \nIU hit three unanswered 3-pointers to extend the lead to 30-20. In just over one minute of action, the Hoosiers increased their lead from one point to 10 points.\n“We gave up a couple possessions and they came down in transition and hit a couple three’s,” Northwestern coach Beth Combs said. “We just dug ourselves in a big hole. We were just back on our heels at that point. They just made a couple big plays and we just didn’t answer quickly enough.”\nFreshman guard Haylie Linn hit the first 3-pointer, and after a media timeout, sophomore guard Jamie Braun and junior guard Kim Roberson added 3-pointers on consecutive possessions.\n“It was just back-to-back-to-back,” Linn said of the 3-point barrage. “That’s a lot of points real fast. I definitely think that helped to break the game open. It gave us a lot of energy on defense and on offense.”\nFreshman forward Ebony Jackson hit another 3-pointer on the way to a 36-23 halftime advantage, and IU never looked back.\n“It’s frustrating to know that you’re in a game and then you allow a couple baskets,” Combs said. “You have to be able to play through streaks and play through runs, and we’re just not doing that right now.”\nIU continued its energized play in the second half and extended the lead to as many as 26 points before winning by 16.\nThe Hoosiers finished the game 8-19 from beyond the arc after missing their first two attempts. Linn finished with three 3-pointers, and Braun and Jackson added two apiece.\n“I think it all had to with the fact that we started looking for our shot,” Braun said. “We were driving and kicking it out to the open players that were just kind of hesitant about their shots. Then our players started shooting with a lot of confidence.”
(02/07/08 7:24am)
After an 81-65 road loss at Iowa on Sunday, the IU women’s basketball team will look to rebound against Northwestern (4-18, 0-10) Thursday night at Assembly Hall.\nThe Hoosiers won the first meeting between the two teams, cruising to an 84-53 win on Dec. 31 at Northwestern. IU (13-9, 6-4) is in fourth place in the Big Ten conference while Northwestern sits at the bottom of the standings. Despite the Wildcats’ record, IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said Northwestern improved since the teams previously met.\n“They are a tougher team,” she said. “I think (Amy) Jaeschke, her hand is better, she’s shooting the ball better and her cardio is there now.”\nJaeschke broke her left hand in Northwestern’s first game of the season and was still limited by the injury against the Hoosiers on Dec. 31. She scored six points and managed to grab nine rebounds. With her hand finally healed, Jaeshke is hitting her stride lately, scoring in double-figures in five of her last six games.\nAfter Iowa outrebounded IU 44-26 on Sunday, the Hoosiers will try to keep Jaeschke and Northwestern off the glass. \n“Our first focus is boxing out and we didn’t do a good job of that against Iowa,” junior forward Whitney Thomas said. “We’re going to focus on that and make sure we pick that up.”\nLegette-Jack said the Hoosiers have been working on box-out drills in practice and said rebounding success is largely due to effort.\n“It just takes heart,” she said. “It doesn’t matter how big you are if you block somebody out. It’s hard to get the rebound without your legs. We’re going to work on trying to keep that box out important to us.” \nAgainst Iowa, IU struggled defensively, allowing the Hawkeyes to shoot 10-20 from the 3-point line, but Legette-Jack expects IU’s defense to toughen up starting Thursday.\n“I don’t think our defense was nearly as good as it’s going to be moving forward,” she said. “It’s easy to shoot when you have time to look at the rim. We’re not going to give people time to look at the rim.”\nDefense has been a staple of Hoosier basketball all season, and junior guard Kim Roberson said IU is ready to return to its aggressive approach on the defensive end.\n“We’re just trying to play Indiana basketball,” she said. “Pressure the ball, get in people’s shorts and make sure we dictate, not them.”\nSophomore guard Jamie Braun leads the Hoosiers in scoring at 15.3 points per game and has scored in double-figures in eight consecutive games. She scored 20 points in the first meeting between the two teams.\nLegette-Jack urged her team in practice on Wednesday to play with energy. \nAfter practice, she said she expects Northwestern to come out strong and push the tempo.\n“Their guards are better. They are just running the floor real well,” she said. “We’re going to have to match their energy and surpass it.”
(02/01/08 6:40am)
The Hoosiers are back to their winning ways.\nAfter a road loss to Michigan last Thursday snapped a three-game winning streak, the Hoosiers found their way back into the win column with an 86-62 victory over Wisconsin in Assembly Hall Thursday night.\nIU (13-8, 6-3) used a balanced scoring attack and aggressive defense to earn its thirteenth victory of the season. \nJunior forward Whitney Thomas scored 16 points to lead five Hoosiers in double figures and added a career-high seven assists.\n“Coach Jack was on me about reverse pivoting every time I got the ball in the block,” Thomas said of her assists. “That really opened it up and allowed me to see other players and see what was open.”\nFreshman guard Haylie Linn scored 15 points off the bench, including four first-half 3-pointers. Juniors Amber Jackson and Kim Roberson added 15 and 13 points respectively and sophomore Jamie Braun finished with 12 points.\nIU turned up its defensive pressure from the beginning of the game and built a 42-25 halftime lead behind its strong defensive effort. The Hoosiers forced Wisconsin into 23 turnovers, including 15 in the first half. On the other side, the Hoosiers committed only 12 turnovers.\n“Twelve turnovers for any team is great,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “If we can continue to control the turnover category I think we will be very successful.”\nJolene Anderson, the Big Ten’s leading scorer, led the Badgers with 23 points in the game, despite the Hoosiers holding her scoreless in the first half.\n“We didn’t think we could hold her scoreless for a half,” Legette-Jack said. “But we said that if we could pay attention to her, because we thought their offense went through her, then we could be successful.”\nThe Hoosiers played a match-up zone and made sure they always had a defender on Anderson.\n“They were always there with me,” Anderson said. “Whether I was standing there or I was moving, there was always someone following with me.”\nIU’s defense frustrated Anderson in the first half and limited her looks at the basket.\n“She only had two touches in the first half and that isn’t enough for an All-American,” Wisconsin coach Lisa Stone said of Anderson.\nAnderson only attempted two shots in the first half, but Stone challenged her at halftime and she came out more aggressive in the second half.\n“I got called out at halftime,” Anderson said. “I’m a senior captain and I wasn’t leading the team the way I should. I knew coming into the second half that I had to pick it up in every aspect.”\nThe win over Wisconsin is IU’s sixth Big Ten win, which already matches last year’s total. The Hoosiers will travel to Iowa on Sunday in search of their seventh conference win.\n“We have to go after Iowa and get to number seven,” Legette-Jack said. “Seven is my favorite number. It’s going to be fantastic to get to that number.”
(01/24/08 5:02am)
With the 2008 Little 500 season quickly approaching, over 200 men’s and women’s riders packed into the Kelley School of Business last night for a riders’ meeting. \nThis season marks the 58th men’s race and the 21st women’s race. After a thrilling finish in the men’s race and a dominating performance by Kappa Delta last year, this year’s Little 500 is looking to build on last year’s excitement. \n“Last year’s men’s race couldn’t have been more exciting,” Little 500 race director Matt Ewing said. “There were five teams in a sprint to the finish on the final lap. We’re really excited about the women’s field as well. In the past, there were one or two women’s teams with a chance to win. Now there are five or six teams with a legitimate shot. We expect this year to be more of the same.”\nEwing said he expects the rider turnout to be similar to last year.\n“On the men’s side, we’re right about where we were last year,” he said. “We expect about 40 teams to compete in qualifying. We’re expecting about 31 women’s teams. We know there are two teams not returning from last year but there are two or three new teams this year.”\nThis year’s race is on the weekend of April 11, one week earlier than last year’s race. Ewing said the earlier date caused a few changes in the schedule for this year. \n“With the race in the second week of April, it kind of crunches everything together,” he said. “One change we’ll have this year is the Team Pursuit. Normally it has been held mid-week, but this year it will be moved to a Saturday. The Rider’s council has shown support of the decision and they like the idea of having it on a weekend.”\nThis year, Rookie Week, which Ewing described as a sort of mini-camp for rookie riders, begins Feb. 11. \n“You never know with Indiana weather in February,” Ewing said. “It could be 60 degrees, but it also could be freezing. We’re praying for some good weather for that week.”\nFor the riders in attendance, especially the first-time riders, the meeting served as a preview of things to come. \n“Seeing all the people here definitely makes it more real for me,” first year Gamma Phi Beta rider Caitlin Greenwald said. “We’ve been training in our basement for a while now, so it’s nice to see all riders here.”\nProspective Weston Voirol is also a first-time rider who attended the meeting. While Voiral is still looking for a team he can ride for, he is already planning for race day. \n“Looking at all the dates, I’ve already got some changes I have to make in my schedule,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of things going on, but this definitely takes precedent. It looks like my girlfriend may not see too much of me during Valentine’s week.”
(01/24/08 5:00am)
With the 2008 Little 500 season quickly approaching, over 200 men’s and women’s riders packed into the Kelley School of Business last night for a riders’ meeting. This season marks the 58th men’s race and the 21st women’s race. After a thrilling finish in the men’s race and a dominating performance by Kappa Delta last year, this year’s Little 500 is looking to build on last year’s excitement. “Last year’s men’s race couldn’t have been more exciting,” Little 500 race director Matt Ewing said. “There were five teams in a sprint to the finish on the final lap. We’re really excited about the women’s field as well. In the past, there were one or two women’s teams with a chance to win. Now there are five or six teams with a legitimate shot. We expect this year to be more of the same.”Ewing said he expects the rider turnout to be similar to last year.“On the men’s side, we’re right about where we were last year,” he said. “We expect about 40 teams to compete in qualifying. We’re expecting about 31 women’s teams. We know there are two teams not returning from last year but there are two or three new teams this year.”This year’s race is on the weekend of April 11, one week earlier than last year’s race. Ewing said the earlier date caused a few changes in the schedule for this year. “With the race in the second week of April, it kind of crunches everything together,” he said. “One change we’ll have this year is the Team Pursuit. Normally it has been held mid-week, but this year it will be moved to a Saturday. The Rider’s council has shown support of the decision and they like the idea of having it on a weekend.”This year, Rookie Week, which Ewing described as a sort of mini-camp for rookie riders, begins Feb. 11. “You never know with Indiana weather in February,” Ewing said. “It could be 60 degrees, but it also could be freezing. We’re praying for some good weather for that week.”For the riders in attendance, especially the first-time riders, the meeting served as a preview of things to come. “Seeing all the people here definitely makes it more real for me,” first year Gamma Phi Beta rider Caitlin Greenwald said. “We’ve been training in our basement for a while now, so it’s nice to see all riders here.”Prospective Weston Voirol is also a first-time rider who attended the meeting. While Voiral is still looking for a team he can ride for, he is already planning for race day. “Looking at all the dates, I’ve already got some changes I have to make in my schedule,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of things going on, but this definitely takes precedent. It looks like my girlfriend may not see too much of me during Valentine’s week.”
(01/22/08 4:51am)
Four IU players scored in double figures Sunday afternoon as the IU women’s basketball team (12-7, 5-2) earned its third straight win in a 70-56 victory over Michigan State (11-9, 3-5) in East Lansing. \nJunior forward Amber Jackson led the way for the Hoosiers with 21 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore guard Jamie Braun added 18 points and junior guard/forward Kim Roberson scored 14. Junior forward Whitney Thomas posted her third consecutive double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds on her way to Big Ten Player of the Week honors.\nAfter a grueling 80-77 double-overtime win over Minnesota on Thursday night, each of IU’s five starters played at least 36 minutes against Michigan State just three days later. \n“It was just one of those things where the starters were really effective,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “They’re in great shape and they didn’t look tired out there. They just had to stay out there. There will be times when we need the bench to step up but today we didn’t really need to go to the bench.”\nMichigan State led 13-7 with 9:59 to play in the first half, but IU responded with an 8-0 run of its own to take a 15-13 lead with 5:55 remaining in the half. The Hoosiers then held on to a 26-23 advantage at halftime. \nAfter the break, IU scored the first 12 points of the half to lead 38-23. The Spartans cut the lead to eight points, but were never able to get any closer.\nAllyssa DeHaan, a 6-foot-9 center, led the way for Michigan State with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks. Despite DeHaan’s defensive presence, the Hoosier post players had a good day offensively.\n“I knew it would be a challenge going up against someone that tall,” Jackson said. “Coach really emphasized the reverse pivot and the dribble. I knew she would block some shots but I just tried to keep going after it.”\nIU got to the free-throw line early and often, shooting 20-of-31 from the line, while Michigan State shot just 4-of-10. The Hoosiers also committed only 10 turnovers while the Spartans had 19. \n“We did a good job taking care of the ball,” Braun said. “Our passes were nice and crisp and we were finding the open people. We were a lot more focused out there. Less turnovers is going to equal more wins.”\nAt 5-2 in the conference, IU is tied for second place with Purdue and trails Ohio State, at 6-1, by one game. \n“The Big Ten is wide open this year,” Jackson said. “So we have to come out strong in every game. We think we’re a contender in the conference and we want to be one of the 64 teams in the Big Dance at the end of the year.”
(01/18/08 6:09am)
Fresh off a hard-fought road win at Purdue on Monday, the IU women’s basketball team (10-7, 3-2) returns home for another tough test against Minnesota (13-5, 4-2) today at Assembly Hall.\nAfter an emotional win over the rival Boilermakers and a couple days of preparation for the Golden Gophers, the Hoosiers have shifted their focus to the task at hand. \n“We talk about staying in the moment,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “That was a great win for us, but we’ve moved on. We’re going to stay focused on what we need to do to stay competitive against Minnesota. I think we’ve moved on already.”\nSitting in a five-way tie for third place in the Big Ten and looking up at second place Minnesota, Legette-Jack stressed the importance of getting a win at home. \n“You have to take care of your home court,” she said. “Assembly Hall is a tough place to play for our opponents. Our fans are getting louder and our numbers are getting better and it’s getting tougher to be here. Our kids have to continue to do their part and play competitive defense and play with a sense of urgency.”\nDefending the Minnesota offense won’t be easy because the Golden Gophers have two of the top three scorers in Big Ten conference play. Guard Emily Fox and forward Leslie Knight have accounted for 17.7 and 16.3 points per game in Big Ten games,respectively. Despite the impressive numbers, the Hoosiers are confident they can slow down Fox and Knight. \n“I think Kim (Roberson) puts a lot of pressure on the ball, so she’s going to do a really good job on Emily Fox and our post players work so well together,” senior guard Nikki Smith said. “Obviously they are really good, but we play good people every single week, so we’re just going to keep doing what we’re doing and pressure them.”\nLegette-Jack said Minnesota can attack on offense in different ways, but she agreed that keeping Fox and Knight in check is a key to the game. \n“If we can maintain balance and find out where they are and pay attention to those two, then we have a shot to be competitive in this game,” she said.\nIU has four starters averaging double-figure scoring on the season – sophomore guard Jamie Braun, junior forward Whitney Thomas, junior forward Amber Jackson and Roberson – but the Hoosiers have also seen key contributions from their bench.\n“That is huge, because we can’t do it by ourselves, just the starting five,” Jackson said. “We need to have people come off the bench and keep it going. It’s great that some of our freshmen are stepping up and really helping us out.”\nGoing into the contest against Minnesota, the Hoosiers hope to build on the good performance against Purdue, but they know there is plenty of room for improvement.\n“We watched the Purdue film and for how many good things we did, there were also a few bad things.” Smith said. “We just have to learn from those bad things and apply them to the game against Minnesota.”
(01/17/08 5:00am)
What makes a good soundtrack? Should it be a compilation of your favorite songs, like an awesome "movie mixtape"? Or should it be some artists you don't recognize, but enjoyed when you heard their snippets of music during the movie? Or maybe it should be all by one artist, an original score -- like a John Williams-arranged orchestra? \nThere is no correct answer in this situation (other than that it's a bad idea to start a review with a rhetorical question). But movie soundtracks comprise one of the most wide-ranging and overlooked sectors of the music industry. \n"Juno," the Jason Reitman film starring Ellen Page and Michael Cera was released in theaters not long ago, and along with it came its unique and eclectic soundtrack. With its many samplings of popular indie artists, it has garnered comparisons to the Garden State soundtrack, arguably one of the most popular soundtracks in recent history.\nThe Juno soundtrack is slightly less mainstream than Garden State, but it holds up nearly as well. In the film, music plays an important role, both in terms of affect and in the subject matter. Songs on the soundtrack that I immediately remembered from the film were Barry Louis Polisar's "All I Want is You," the Kinks' "A Well Respected Man" (played as a theme for Michael Cera's character Paulie Bleeker) and the Moldy Peaches' "Anyone Else But You," which was both featured as background music and played as a duet by Cera and Page in the end of the film -- both versions are included on the soundtrack.\nFor someone like myself who isn't widely knowledgeable about music outside the mainstream, the Juno soundtrack still made for great listening. It's dominated by Kimya Dawson, who has five tracks as a solo artist and two with her band The Moldy Peaches. Anyone who saw the movie will instantly remember her folksy, acoustic-guitar songs with nearly spoken-word lyrics. After Dawson and the artists mentioned before, there's two songs by Belle & Sebastian, and the rest includes The Velvet Underground, Antsy Pants, Cat Power and Mateo Messina.\nAs a whole the soundtrack has an impressive flow -- no easy task for an album with artists so different from each other. Anyone already familiar with the artists or pleasantly surprised by a Wes Anderson soundtrack should definitely check out Juno. This is one group of songs that are great both as background music for the film and as a CD.
(01/15/08 6:02am)
IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack did something she has never done in her two years as women’s basketball coach. She beat Purdue. \nIt took four tries, but Legette-Jack and the Hoosiers finally bested the Boilermakers, earning a hard-fought 66-54 victory at Mackey Arena Monday night.\nLegette-Jack admitted she wasn’t aware of the intensity of the IU-Purdue rivalry when she became head coach last year, but after three losses to Purdue and now this win, she is well aware.\n“What a great in-state rivalry we’ve created here. I came here and I didn’t recognize what it was all about,” Legette-Jack said after the game. “Whitney (Thomas) and Kim (Roberson) tried to share with me the importance of this game. I saw first-hand last year, and tonight was our first opportunity to go out and be on the positive side.”\nAfter a 55-49 home loss to Purdue on Jan. 3, Legette-Jack questioned her team’s heart. \n“I think we let something slip away. We didn’t match their intensity,” she said. “I wanted to earn their respect by giving them a tough team to play, but we certainly didn’t do that then.”\nToday was a different story. From the start of the game, IU played like a team with revenge on its mind. \n“They came out and they wanted this game,” Purdue coach Sharon Versyp said. “Indiana wanted it for IU, for their coaches and their team.”\nJunior forward Whitney Thomas set the tone early for the Hoosiers by crashing the boards. Thomas had already grabbed seven rebounds before the end of the first half.\nShe continued her relentless work on the glass, finishing with a game-high 18 rebounds to go with her team-high 17 points.\n“Our guards were attacking the basket and that just left it open for the post players,” Thomas said of her rebounding. “If they missed, we were going to be there to follow them.”\nSophomore guard Jamie Braun and junior guard Kim Roberson joined Thomas in double-figures, scoring 14 and 11 points, respectively. Freshman guard Ebony Jackson added eight points off the bench. \nThe formula for success was toughness and teamwork, something Legette-Jack hopes will become a staple of IU women’s basketball.\n“We may not ever have a go-to player, but we have a team that has heart,” she said. “When you sign up for Indiana women’s basketball, you’re signing up for the opportunity that on any given day you can be the star of our team. We have a bunch of role players right now that are saying it’s about the Indiana pride and we all stick together.”
(12/03/07 5:12am)
Missed free-throws will drive any basketball coach crazy. \nAfter the IU women’s basketball team’s 85-78 loss to No. 21 Florida State on Friday night in Assembly Hall, IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said missed foul shots made the difference in the game. \nIU shot 10-of-18 from the foul line while Florida State shot 24-of-39. But of all things that could trouble Legette-Jack, she said free-throw shooting is a minor problem.\n“This is a team that is competing with the Top 20, and the problem is our free throws,” she said. “That just wakes me up every morning, because we can fix that. We can’t fix heart, desire or competitiveness. We can’t do all those things, but we can certainly fix a free throw.”\nThe heart and desire that Legette-Jack spoke of was on display, as the Hoosiers fought a tough Seminole team all the way to the final buzzer. \nIU led the game, part of the inaugural Big Ten/ACC Women’s Basketball Challenge, by as many as nine points in the first half before a Florida State three-pointer at the buzzer cut the halftime lead to 41-37. The Seminoles took the lead for good at 54-53 with 12:02 remaining in the second half.\nFreshman forward Jori Davis made a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left in the game to cut the Florida State lead to 80-78, but Nashville, Ind., native Mara Freshour made two free throws to seal the game for the Seminoles. \n“I think what you witnessed today is the way Indiana women’s basketball is going to be for a very long time,” Legette-Jack said. “We went out, we played hard, we competed, we didn’t back down, we didn’t look at our mistakes and drop our head.”\nFreshman guard Haylie Linn scored a career-high 16 points for IU, and sophomore guard Jamie Braun recorded a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. \n“My teammates and coaches keep encouraging me to shoot the ball,” said Linn, who was 5-of-5 from three-point range. “I had some open looks and was fortunate for them to go in.” \nPlaying in front of friends and family, Freshour scored a game-high 21 points for the Seminoles in her return to the Hoosier state. \n“I just had to shake that nervousness and butterflies out of the way,” Freshour said. “Once we really got going, it helped and I was able to push back the fact that all of my family was here and all the other people.”\nThis young Hoosier squad, now 4-3, hasn’t backed down from any challenges and opposing coaches are taking notice. \n“They’re playing tough teams, and I think that speaks well for what Felisha is doing with the program,” Florida State coach Sue Semrau said. “She wants to play teams that have established themselves. She did that with three games in three days in the Virgin Islands. I think what she’s doing is preparing herself for conference.”\nLegette-Jack agreed that her team should grow as conference play approaches. \n“I think we are going to be good late,” she said. \nBut after a moment’s thought, she corrected herself. \n“No, I think we are going to be better late,” she said. “We’re already pretty darn good.”
(11/26/07 3:21am)
The IU women’s basketball team spent Thanksgiving break in the Virgin Islands for the Paradise Jam Tournament. The Hoosiers lost two out of three games on the trip, bringing their record to 4-2. \nIU opened the tournament Thursday with a 55-53 loss to Wake Forest. After jumping out to a 33-22 halftime lead, the Hoosiers were unable to hold off the Demon Deacons’ second-half charge. Wake Forest used two separate 9-0 runs to take a 38-36 advantage with 13:30 left in the game. \nAfter trailing by two points, a late layup by junior guard Kim Roberson tied the game at 53-53. Wake Forest’s Corinne Groves followed with two free throws, giving the Demon Deacons the lead for good with 17 seconds remaining. \nSophomore guard Jamie Braun led IU with 17 points, including three 3-pointers. Roberson tied an IU single-game record by recording nine steals. \nAfter the close defeat, the Hoosiers bounced back with a 64-54 win over Wichita State on Friday. Three players scored in double figures for IU. Braun led the way again with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field. Senior guard Nikki Smith added 16 points, including four 3-pointers. Junior forward Whitney Thomas stuffed the scoresheet with 10 points, a career-high seven steals, five rebounds and four assists. \nThe score was tied 29-29 at the half, and Wichita State led 38-33 with 14:03 left in the game. IU responded with an 11-3 run, giving the Hoosiers a 44-41 lead with 10:24 remaining. The Hoosiers held the lead for the rest of the game. \nOn Saturday, IU fell to No. 10 Texas A&M 60-48. The Aggies led 25-22 at halftime and fought off a comeback effort by IU in the second half to earn the double-digit victory.\nBraun scored 14 points and earned Paradise Jam All-Star honors. Thomas had another good all-around performance with 12 points, five rebounds, four steals and three blocks. Junior forward Amber Jackson scored 10 points and grabbed six rebounds.\nThe team will return to action Friday at Assembly Hall when it faces Florida State in the Big Ten/ACC challenge.
(11/19/07 4:52am)
The IU women’s basketball team found itself down by as many as 16 points on Nov. 17 at Ball State, but clawed its way back for a 76-71 win.\n“It’s always good to get a road victory,” sophomore guard Jamie Braun said. “It gives us confidence for the future, and any win against a team like this is a good victory.”\nBall State led 33-17 at the 6:35 mark in the first half, but IU responded with a 19-5 run to cut the lead to 38-36 \nat halftime. \n“We were playing offense like they had six players on the court,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “We did a much better job of attacking in the second half.”\nDespite a quick start in the second half by IU, the Cardinals led 49-45 with 12:44 to play. But the Hoosiers responded with a 24-8 run to lead 69-59 with 1:24 left in the game and held on for the 76-71 victory.\n“They made their run in the beginning, but we handled it well,” senior guard Nikki Smith said. “We kept our poise and played our game. \nBraun led IU with 24 points and six assists. \n“I just tried to attack the basket and find my teammates,” Braun said. “I was trying to set the tempo for the team.”\nJunior guard Kim Roberson added 15 points and senior guard Nikki Smith scored 14. \nLegette-Jack said she was pleased with the team’s first road win of the season. \n“It was a lot of firsts for us,” she said. “Sometimes you take it for granted to go on the road, but we have eight newcomers and two new coaches on our staff. The travel is different and you get out of your normal routine. We were able to get a win against a very tough team.”\nThe Hoosiers defended and rebounded well, forcing Ball State into 19 turnovers and out-rebounding the \nCardinals 32-28.\nJulie DeMuth, the sister of former IU player Jenny DeMuth, led Ball State in scoring with 24 points. \nThe Hoosiers, now 3-0, will travel to the Virgin Islands for three games over Thanksgiving, Nov. 22-24. They will take on Wake Forest, Wichita State and Texas A&M. \n“It will be new for everyone,” Smith said. “It’s a chance to play against different teams and some good competition. It will be good to be in the Virgin Islands for Thanksgiving and it should be a really fun experience.”\nLegette-Jack said the competition in the Virgin Islands should be tough.\n“Everybody there is going to be good,” she said. “We’re going to be the underdogs, because we’re the team without the history. But right now, we’ll just enjoy this win against Ball State, and then we’ll prepare for the game against Wake Forest on (Nov. 22).”
(11/15/07 5:00am)
Nothing makes me happier than seeing Jack Thompson fail. The self-righteous litigator who makes his living by making it difficult for game developers to release their M-rated titles intact has rarely crusaded so hard against a game as with "Manhunt 2." Yet despite it still being unavailable in Europe, it's finally on shelves across this country.\nSo what's the big deal? Being the sequel to one of the most violent and controversial games ever made, a pack of watchdogs was bound to pounce on Rockstar's follow-up. The kills this time around are, for the most part, far more prolonged and brutal than in the first game. There's even the addition of gun kills, which push the limits further than what I figured the developers would. Still, it's cathartic stuff after hiding in the shadows and being stealthy for long periods of time. This time out, Rockstar has avoided the dreaded "Adults Only" rating by washing out the color during the kills, but it's still pretty evident what's going on when you're wielding a power saw and tracing it up some poor shmuck's spinal column.\nThe same cannot be said for the Wii version, however, which has its kills blurred to an even further degree. My advice to fans of the first game is to avoid the Wii version (even though the use of the WiiMote during kills is unique) and play the PS2 version, which stays truer to Rockstar's original artistic vision.\nThe only thing worth complaining about here, for those not offended by the gore level or minor control glitches in tight spots, is the game's muddy story line. The first game put its players in the shoes of a prisoner forced to star in a series of snuff films and whose primary motivation was to kill the director of said films. "Manhunt 2" puts you in the shoes of Daniel Lamb, an escaped mental patient who seems to be just as confused as we are about his motivations for murder. The plot really takes a backseat to the game play, and while some will balk at the haplessness of some of the game's A.I., there's no denying the adrenaline rush it gives.\nSo Moral Majority beware: "Manhunt 2" is finally on shelves and your savior Mr. Thompson has once again failed to deliver you from evil.
(11/15/07 12:03am)
The tattoo rests on the upper part of her right arm. The Chinese letters combine to spell out “passion.” \nIf junior Amber Jackson is ever dogging it in practice or lagging a step behind in a game, she need not wait for words of encouragement from her coaches or teammates. A simple look at the tattoo should give her all the motivation she needs. \nAfter transferring from San Jose State, Jackson hopes the tattoo will personify her play on the court for her new team. \n“Passion,” she said. “That’s what I hope to bring to the team.”\nIt won’t just be passion, however, that Jackson adds to this Hoosier team. She has plenty of skill and should be a force underneath the basket. \nIn her sophomore season at San Jose State, Jackson led the Western Athletic Conference in scoring and rebounding, averaging 17.6 points and 9.8 rebounds per game, and was a first team all-WAC performer.\n“She’s a really dangerous player down low,” IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said. “If you double down on her she’ll find the open teammate, but you can’t have one player on her or she’ll beat you with a hook shot or a reverse pivot.”\nOn a team with little depth at the forward position, Jackson is welcoming the role of playing in the paint.\n“I can bring that ability to rebound and post up hard,” she said. “I just give us another big body down low.”\nOther players on the team are already noticing the benefits of Jackson’s presence inside.\n“In high school I didn’t have post players, so it’s really cool that someone is actually catching my passes now,” freshman guard Whitney Lindsay said of Jackson. “I never got to experience that before.”\nAfter deciding to transfer, Jackson said she looked at a few schools, but none of them matched what IU had to offer. \n“I was really impressed with the history and energy,” she said of the IU program. “There is a great outlook on the future. The girls were all great and it was the right fit academically.”\nThe transition to the Big Ten could be tough on Jackson, but Legette-Jack said she believes Jackson will be ready. \n“She comes from a mid-major conference where she was second in the nation in shooting percentage,” Legette-Jack said. “It won’t be easy, but I don’t think she’ll be nervous about it. I think she can take that next step.”
(11/15/07 12:00am)
On a young and relatively inexperienced IU women’s basketball team, senior guard Nikki Smith stands out in more ways than one. \nNot only is she the team’s leading returning scorer at 12 points per game, but she is also the lone senior. \nAs IU’s most experienced player, Smith is in a natural leadership position and is ready to embrace her new role.\n“I think I’ve really learned from watching the seniors in the past years,” she said. “I know that every practice could be my last. I don’t have another go around. I’m just trying to help out our freshmen as much as I can.”\nWith eight newcomers, including seven freshmen on this year’s team, Smith is the grizzled veteran. Playing for three different coaches over the course of her IU career, she has been through a lot, and she hopes the freshmen can lean on her experience. \n“I hope I can be someone who my teammates respect,” she said. “I’ve been through the drill before and I want the freshmen to be able to count on me for advice.”\nSmith knows how tough adjusting to the college game can be for a freshman. \n“I’ve always been the lone ranger in my class,” she said. “As a freshman, that made it really tough for me at times.”\nWith so many new faces, this year figures to be very different for Smith and the Hoosiers.\n“It’s so different so far,” she said. “Last year we only had seven players at times. This year we have so many different options and new people. Sometimes practices have been slow and deliberate, but it’s been really competitive.”\nWhile Smith has been busy adjusting to the new team, IU coach Felisha Legette-Jack has noticed a change in Smith’s demeanor on the court. \n“She is definitely a leader, and I think she is having fun with it,” Legette-Jack said. “She is just having a good time out there, and like most seniors, she is showing a real sense of urgency.”\nSmith said she hopes to continue to develop her individual game this season, but her past play on the court has already made an impression on her coaches.\n“She is a really hard-nosed player, and she is willing to do whatever it takes to win,” said Sharon Versyp, Smith’s former coach at IU and current Purdue coach. “She works very hard to be the best shooter she can be. She is just a great kid.” \nAfter the dedication Smith has shown the IU program, Legette-Jack said she hopes Smith is rewarded in her final season.\n“We really need to get her into the NCAA tournament,” Legette-Jack said. “She stuck around for three coaches and really stayed committed. I really want her to be a part of the big dance.”
(11/13/07 5:17am)
After a comeback win against Albany on Friday, the IU women’s basketball team will take on Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 7 p.m. today in Assembly Hall. \nDespite trailing by nine points at halftime, the Hoosiers fought back to win the home opener against Albany 67-59. \nIU coach Felisha Legette-Jack said the young team will benefit from watching film of the first game and learning from its mistakes. \n“It’s good to play games so that you can assess it and keep getting better,” she said. “This is a team that is going to be OK early, but is just going to get better down the stretch, because there is so much basketball that we have to learn.”\nOne item of concern for Legette-Jack is boxing out on defense. Going back to the final exhibition game against the Showtime Skins, IU has been out-rebounded by two smaller opponents. \n“We can rebound the basketball and get a false sense that we are pretty good, but if we don’t box out we’re going to really be in trouble,” Legette-Jack said. “Our defense is pretty darn good, but because we don’t box out, everyone is getting second and third chances on us.”\nIU is a relatively small team and will have to rely on boxing out to finish defensive possessions. \n“I think that since we haven’t played against tall teams so far, we think that we can out-jump people,” senior guard Nikki Smith said. “It is definitely going to be a struggle for us to make sure we box out because there is no way that a small team should out-rebound us.”\nAgainst Albany, IU struggled shooting from the field, going 22-59, including 0-14 from the 3-point line. Despite the struggles, the Hoosiers are confident that there won’t be a repeat performance against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.\n“Our shooting will improve,” junior forward Amber Jackson said. “All our shooters are in the gym early every day shooting and getting better.”\nLegette-Jack said IU needs to continue to take the open shots and not worry about the poor shooting performance against Albany. \n“We have to just go out there and shoot the ball,” she said. “I care that we shoot it. I can’t promise you we’re going to make it, but I care if we shoot it.”\nAlbany used an aggressive full court press and quick guards to fluster IU on the offensive and defensive end. Legette-Jack said she expects more of the same from Arkansas-Pine Bluff today.\n“They are a feisty, small team that goes 112 miles an hour the entire game,” she said. “If we take them for granted, that speed is going to hurt us.”