184 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(11/16/09 2:22am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Freshman forward Derek Elston’s game didn’t hinge on his performance Friday. It began well before the big heads, crimson fleeces or screaming fans worked their way into Assembly Hall. “The 3-point shooting actually began this morning when Coach Crean asked me to hit about five in a row,” he said. “He told me I needed to get more into the offense, and he had me hit five in a row.”That early practice would come in handy. Elston stood outside the arc at 6 feet, 9 inches as the defense looked at him and dared him to take the shot. He buried the open look and began a night he would end with 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting in 14 minutes. His 3-pointer posed as a spark in a 20-5 run IU used to separate from Howard and gain an 83-60 win. Elston was one in a line of players performing in their first regular season game at Assembly Hall who helped lift IU to a comfortable win.Just before the freshman reacted, the team had reached a point where its youth began to show. The initial adrenaline had worn off and the game became more of a half-court grind before miscues and turnovers began to weigh down IU’s first half against Howard.The Hoosiers committed 16 turnovers and forced Howard into 19 turnovers as the game became a display of hot potato. Freshmen Maurice Creek, Elston and Christian Watford helped change that with the help of their point guards. The three led IU in scoring and provided buckets in key moments. Their play added an energy that changed the pace of an IU contest that had points where the Hoosiers were mundane and mistake-prone. “Coach always talks about playing a fast-paced game,” Creek said. “And, as you see, we got a lot of transition points, we got back on defense really well tonight and the team brought the energy tonight as well.”Driving the IU offense was freshman guard Jordan Hulls, who had two points and five assists. Junior guard Jeremiah Rivers furiously pushed the ball as well and ended with four assists of his own. Their run-and-gun style helped Creek score 17 points from the wing and led Watford to a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds.IU coach Tom Crean said IU ran a crisp offense with 20 assists and 61 shots. The Hoosiers hit 55 percent of their field goals, 50 percent of their 3-pointers and went 8-of-13 at the free-throw line. The versatility of IU’s offense was fueled from play from Elston and his freshman counterparts.Elston wouldn’t stay on the outside. He took his game into the paint and rebounded for layups. He said that his height has always been something that worked to his advantage. “Hopefully a lot of teams do that,” he said. “They think because I’m big I can’t do anything. That’s what really helped me out in high school, too. They just thought I was big and couldn’t do anything. But once I get to playing my game, I’m as good as anyone out there.” Although they ran the score up on Howard, a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference team, the Hoosiers lost the battle on free throws and offensive rebounds. The Hoosiers have a quick turnaround and will play another contest against USC Upstate today, marking their second regular-season game. Crean said the team has a lot of changes to make in its coming games. “There’s just a ton of things for us to improve upon,” Crean said. “And we know that, and all of you know it, and I think our fans know it.”
(11/14/09 6:28am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>There was a different feel from the beginning.Assembly Hall shone a little brighter, the fans cheered a little louder and the players had a little more energy in their steps in IU’s first regular season game.Tom Pritchard could barely convert layups in the preseason, but he gave IU its initial score in an 83-60 home win Friday with his signature two-handed dunk. Rivers followed with an easy layup.Howard had more size than IU’s preseason opponents and hung around until late in the first half. The Hoosiers struggled offensively in the early moments, but broke opened a 38-11 run they rode to a win in the first regular season game.“There was some deer in the headlights type of action early in the first half,” Crean said, “because it’s not practice, it’s not an exhibition game and all of sudden you’re out there and this is real.”It didn’t seem like IU would come that realization in the opening moments of Friday’s game.Pritchard began the game well but was bench-ridden after two early fouls. After an early spurt, there was a lull where IU played zone defense to calm Howard’s speed. But the slower pace also hurt the Hoosiers, who committed eight first-half turnovers and finished the game with 16.IU began to turn up the pace when it made defensive plays. Howard turned the ball over 19 times and charted only eight field goals in the first half.“They were tentative, so that changed the tempo quite a bit,” Howard coach Gil Jackson. “You have got to shoot the ball and you have got to make shots.”The Bison continued to struggle for the game’s entirety. Although IU had a 20-point lead, it also had its share of problems. Whenever a play seemed to be heading in the right direction for IU, it turned quickly.Jeremiah Rivers seemed to have a layup or pass-off in a fast-break situation, but that turned into foul shots. Maurice Creek got a steal with quick hands in the passing lane and that abruptly went back to Howard, as he lost the ball and it sailed out of bounds.Freshman forward Derek Elston was what got IU going, along with a constantly running Rivers. Elston provided a lift for the stagnant IU team with a lay-in from a Rivers pass and a 3-pointer of his own.Elston finished with 14 points, but Crean said it was his enthusiasm that helped turn the game in IU’s favor.“Finding high motor guys is something you need to turn this program around,” Crean said. “And Derek has a really high motor.”IU was led in scoring by freshman guard Maurice Creek with 17 points and freshman forward Christian Watford wasn’t far behind with 14 points of his own. Pritchard also had 10 points.IU won’t have much time to rest from its Friday contest. The Hoosiers will face USC-Upstate on Monday at 8:30 p.m.
(11/13/09 5:00am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Few things were certain when IU stepped on Branch McCracken Court for last season’s first official contest.IU coach Tom Crean said afterward that “his stomach knew it was a real game” as he watched 14 players who had never scored a regular season basket in Assembly Hall warm up before an 83-65 win against Northwestern State.A year later, eight of those same Hoosiers are still in Bloomington, and they will play Howard at 8 p.m. Friday at Assembly Hall in their first regular season contest of the season. Although there will still be a degree of ambiguity as to what to expect from the 2009-10 season, more is set in stone going into the first game.“It’s a lot different,” sophomore guard Verdell Jones said. “We’re expecting more from our team on every play this year, than last year where it was a little unexpected what we were going to do.”IU returns four players who averaged at least 20 minutes per game for the season and three who started 25 or more games. Based on sheer numbers, the Hoosiers are better off going into their first contest than they were a year ago.The previous season’s opener featured 14 green players and a walk-on on the floor.The weight of that 2008-09 contest could have been unbearable, but Crean extended several streaks for first-year coaches.He became the ninth IU coach to win in his first appearance, prolonged the home opener record to 24 consecutive wins and continued the Hoosiers’ stint of 11 successive victories when unveiling a new team.All of the streaks for IU men’s basketball stayed intact – initially. Six wins for the season and one conference victory followed, as IU struggled to gain wins with a young team.The record of the 2009-10 team is currently blank, but much more will be expected than the six wins of a year ago. The difference in tone could be heard when Crean talked about IU’s preparation for Howard.“I don’t want to look at it and say, ‘This team’s really fast, let’s slow it down,’” Crean said. “That’s what we had to do last year. I just want us to play.”Crean isn’t necessarily making a conscious effort to create separation from last season. He recognized the changes stemming from the preceding season but said he is more interested in moving on and focusing on the present.“It’s so much different,” Crean said. “There’s an old Bill Parcells saying. ‘You go by what you see, not what you remember.’”In order to fend off last season, Crean has pushed his team in a way that he hadn’t before. Jones said practice “ain’t no joke” this season, but conceded that the set lineup of last year allowed the frontrunners to settle in.“Now you’re playing for playing time,” he said. “Last year, you knew certain players had to play, so I think we were a little more relaxed. This year, if you want to get on the floor, you have to compete every day.”Part of the increased intensity comes from the coaches, but it also comes from those eight who returned for the 2008-09 season.In turn, the freshmen preparing for the first regular season game of their careers are more briefed on what to anticipate. Freshman forward Christian Watford said the importance of game day was emphasized by older players from the beginning.“They stressed that since day one,” Watford said. “Here it is. Now it’s just time to go out there and perform and do what we do.”Jones said Crean’s amplified pressure for his team is warranted.“Now we have a little experience. Last year, no one had any experience,” Jones said. “And I think he knew that. But now he’s pushing us because he knows the potential our team has.”
(11/12/09 7:04pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>They walked off the court, their jerseys drenched as the wear on their faces faded the youth with which the season had begun.After 25 losses, it was finally done. A year filled with adversity had ended.IU’s 66-51 loss to Penn State in the Big Ten tournament signaled the culmination of last season, but it allowed for the start of a second attempt from a more experienced team.IU is still unproven but has added guards, recruited wing players and retained last year’s 3-point shooters. Each group will bring IU closer to playing the brand of basketball that IU coach Tom Crean said he’d like to see.More passes than dribbles and a freer style with fewer set plays will highlight the approach used by the 2009-10 version of these Hoosiers, who start their season Friday against Howard.“It’s going to be much more exciting to watch,” sophomore guard Verdell Jones said. “Last year, we only scored, like, 50 points a game. This year, we’ll score in the high ’70s or ’80s. We’re really getting out and pushing it.”Leading the change of pace will be the same troop of guards, with a few additions, who sullenly left the court March 12. One of the additions was in a suit for the contest, and the others had yet to graduate high school.IU has eight guards on its roster. Four of them saw significant time last year, and many of them are challenging to start on this season’s team.With so many guards competing for the same jobs, IU will need variation among the players to get them all on the floor. Crean has said each does something well, but they have room to improve. Step by stepIU did a lot of growing last season, but Jones improved from game to game more than any other. Then-junior guard Devan Dumes was out with a knee injury for the second consecutive game in the Hoosiers’ season ending loss to Penn State, and Jones tried mightily to take on Dumes’ portion within the offense. He had 23 points in the final game of his freshman season, and the next-highest total for an IU player in the game was five points.The contest was a mirror of the season, as Jones continued to show improvement. No matter how hard a screen hit him or how bad his ankles hurt, he went on to average 11 points per game and led the team in assists with 100 on the year.Two-a-day practices with his father and summer workouts have teammates and coaches raving about Jones’ development.When Jones hit campus in 2008, he was frail and lacked a consistent outside shot.Crean called him one of the most improved players on the team, and junior guard Jeremiah Rivers said he has grown by bounds during the past year.“He might not appearance-wise, look like he put on 30, 40 pounds like we wanted him to, but when he’s got you on the post you’re going to feel it,” Rivers said.The addition of new players to the lineup will allow for Jones to spend more time on the wing.“We have two other great point guards in Jeremiah Rivers and Jordan Hulls,” Jones said. “I can play the one to the three. That’s the advantage of being a 6-foot-5 guard.”Jones was one of the players leading the Hoosiers’ scrappy identity, and he said he’ll continue that this season.“Wherever I need to be is where I’ll be,” he said. The smart guyCoaches always talk about a basketball IQ and having someone as an extension of the staff on the floor.As IU lost its final game last season, Rivers, the team’s most knowledgeable player, sat fully dressed on the bench because of an NCAA rule regarding transfers.Crean said Rivers has practiced and played a lot better because he now has a season to look forward to.“The biggest thing is the body’s different, and that allowed him to do so many different things,” Crean said. “We want him to explode through defenses and try to make it hard for them to set up.”Although he didn’t play last season, Rivers said he played a leadership role for his younger teammates when they went through the throes of their 6-25 season.He had a different view of IU’s ability than his teammates because he spent a lot of time on the sidelines last season. Rivers said the addition in talent from a year ago is noticeable.“We’re that much faster on defense, that much sharper on offense,” Rivers said. “Obviously, we’re still young and we’re learning, but I think we’re a much better team.”The team is still feeling each other out, and Crean said no one has stepped up as an unquestioned leader yet.“The leadership comes out down four two minutes to go,” Crean said. “That’s when you really know who they are. Right now, it’s not there yet. It’s far too much from the coaches.”However, there was one stat Crean is sure will change with Rivers in the lineup and as the other guards progress.“We don’t want to lead the country in turnovers again,” Crean said. “I promise you that.” The shootersThere is a picture of sophomore guard Matt Roth sitting in the locker room after his team’s loss to Penn State.He sits with one hand on his head, his jersey still intact and his face covered.Had he been more open in the game, IU’s fortunes may have been different.Roth was a sure shot from outside for IU last season. He hit 37 percent of his shots from 3-point range and was 80 percent from the free-throw line.But there is a caveat: He only attempted 25 free throws.He spent more time at the 3-point line than anywhere else on the court, and he said he has worked on improving other parts of his game for the upcoming season.“It’s going to keep coming every day,” Roth said. “It’s something we addressed and I worked on all summer. It’s something I’m much more confident in.”His partner outside the arc doesn’t lack confidence.Dumes took 155 3-point shots, a team high, and completed 38 percent of them. He spent some time in the paint, but he said he has tried to become more of a slasher to better fit Crean’s free-flowing offense.“The 3-point shot has been a big portion of my game, but that’s really what I worked on in the offseason; to make my driving ability more complete so people can’t key on me as just a 3-point shooter,” Dumes said.While both are adding to their skill sets, don’t expect Roth or Dumes to hold off on an open shot. The increase of threats in IU’s offense will make for open shots, Dumes said.“A lot of defenders play aggressively to their actions where they would toward me last year,” he said. “So now I can just play my game and take what they give to me.” New editionThis year’s freshmen vary in many ways from last season’s batch.Guard Maurice Creek and forward Christian Watford came to Bloomington with as much, or more, clout as any recent IU recruits. Home-state guys Derek Elston and Jordan Hulls decided to stay on when things weren’t so stable in the recruiting process.Despite the cloudy circumstances they faced when coming to IU, each has excelled thus far, Jones said.“The freshmen came in with a lot of hype and potential, and so far they’re living up to it,” Jones said. “They’re playing great in practice and they’re playing great in the games.”They also offer a variance in size, something IU hasn’t had. Only Hulls stands shorter than 6-foot-5, and each of the taller players can also run the wing and help facilitate in IU’s full-speed approach.But new faces with higher profiles doesn’t mean Crean wants to change the identity developed by last year’s group of freshmen and first-year players.“We’re better than what we were a year ago,” Crean said. “There’s better talent, there’s more of it, but we’re still a very young team that does not know the value of how hard you have to play and work and compete everyday yet.”
(11/12/09 5:39pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Two Big Ten coaches made history last season, though it was not the kind of fame either set out for.IU coach Tom Crean led his team to Hoosier records with only one win in the Big Ten and six victories total. Illinois coach Bruce Weber and his men’s basketball team played to a 38-33 loss to Penn State, where they shot 15-of-50 for a dismal 30 percent from the field.Illinois scored 36 points in a previous loss to Minnesota and thought that contest would represent its lowest output of the 2008-09 season. Things changed.The circumstances in which the two coached last season were seen as reflections on the Big Ten and had many questioning its talent level.That shouldn’t be the case this year. The Big Ten brings back the NCAA championship runner-up, a Sweet 16 participant and four more NCAA tournament teams.Weber said followers of the Big Ten were too critical last season and used his team’s Penn State loss as an example.“I think it was exaggerated, to be honest, and gave a little bit of a tough light on our league,” Weber said.Fueled by a staple of veteran players and enthusiastic coaches, the Big Ten has six teams ranked in the preseason AP poll. Each of those teams was in the NCAA tournament last season.“I think it’s going to be tough for the obvious reasons when you look at a stat sheet, when you look at rosters, you look at what’s coming back,” Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan said. “People did not lose.”Style of playThis season has been forecasted as one of the best for the Big Ten in years, partly because the conference’s style better suits a fast-paced game.Last year’s high scorer in the Big Ten conference, Michigan State, averaged 72 points per game.Every team within the top-five scorer’s lists in the Big East and Big 12 scored at least six points more than any Big Ten team, although the most efficient team in each conference shot more than 48 percent from the field.The averages imply that the Big Ten was as efficient as other conferences but played a slow-down style, which led to gritty and, in some instances, downright unsightly games. The Big Ten was characterized as unproductive based primarily on preference. But its makeup has changed, and so have perceptions.This year’s preseason first team has all guards with the exception of Purdue forward Robbie Hummel. Michigan State point guard Kalin Lucas has been chosen to repeat as the conference’s Player of the Year. Every player is also in the junior class.With so many slashers and 3-point shooters lacing up for the Big Ten season, the issue shouldn’t be whether the Big Ten plays an exciting game and scores points, but how quickly the numbers compile, Ohio State coach Thad Matta said.“As you look down the rosters, and you’re looking at the guys that have the ability to make plays,” he said, “there’s a lot of them.”Returning PlayersMichigan State coach Tom Izzo said he likes being picked at the top because that’s exactly where he’d like to finish.Only a year ago, his team nearly did that. After topping the Big Ten’s regular season standings, the Spartans fought their way to the national championship and a matchup with North Carolina.Though they came up short in a landslide 89-72 Tar Heel win, the Spartans are this year’s favorite to defend their Big Ten regular-season championship.They return the Big Ten Player of the Year in point guard Kalin Lucas and boast a lineup that is made up of nine upperclassmen.While his team was picked to win the conference, Izzo said anyone could have easily taken the slot.“I could see somebody being picked one or five and not be much different,” he said.Izzo isn’t the only one whose team will bring back key players.The decision of players to stay in school has resulted in name recognition the conference lacked when it was filled with freshmen.Michigan brings back Manny Harris, Penn State returns Talor Battle and Ohio State has swingman Evan Turner.The Boilermakers, Buckeyes and Gophers will both bring back all five starters. Painter said the pack of returning players has created equality in the Big Ten.“When we have some guys that had opportunities ... to go in the draft that stayed, I think that really strengthened our league,” he said. “And I think we’ll have the opportunity to grow and be one of the premier leagues, if not the premier league.”CoachingBob Knight, Gene Keady and Clem Haskins were once on the sidelines for Big Ten games, sporting sweaters and throwing chairs.They have since been replaced by Izzo and Weber as the conference’s tenured coaches, but a host of new faces have changed the tone of the Big Ten.The addition of names like Minnesota coach Tubby Smith, Michigan coach John Beilein and Painter have brought new expectations to the Big Ten.The coaches have weaved their way to contention in the conference and earned NCAA tournament berths alongside Ryan and Matta.But just as there are coaches vying for a realistic shot at the Big Ten, there are others trying to stay afloat in a tough year.Crean, Penn State coach Ed DeChellis and Iowa coach Todd Lickliter are all in rebuilding stages. Likewise, Northwestern coach Bill Carmody will try to take Northwestern to its first ever NCAA tournament.The Big Ten might get seven teams in the NCAA tournament this season, and Crean knows the competition will not be any easier in his second year.“There’s no question that it’s going to be hard to move,” Crean said. “But that’s not our focus right now. Our focus is how much better we can improve. ... Let’s see where that takes us.”
(11/10/09 5:31am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>It was just a preseason scrimmage, but freshman guard Maurice Creek was pressing.You could see him trying a little too hard. He took shots that weren’t really open and forced passes that weren’t really there.As a player who waited for academic clearance until Aug. 31, he was trying to make up for lost time on every play. It contributed to his showing in IU’s early intrasquad games and extended into his first exhibition game as a Hoosier.“I came out in the first game, and it really wasn’t what I expected it to be,” Creek said. “I had a real long talk with Coach. He said, ‘You’ll make it through. You’re going to play better even though you’re just getting used to it so far.’”In the second game of his college career, everything seemed to come more easily for Creek. He began IU’s 95-67 win against St. Joseph’s on the inside and stayed there. He made layups on broken plays before he took his game to the fast break and took only two shots from beyond the arc.“I thought he looked comfortable,” Crean said. “I thought he’s really buying into the defensive energy setting the tone for his game. He’s picking up what we’re trying to do better.”The freshman showed what people expected from his four-star recruitment rating. He gave IU fans a glimpse into facets of his game that his inexperience hadn’t allowed him to showcase beforehand.Creek scored 16 points despite being only 4-of-5 shooting. He changed his approach in the game. He took eight free throws because of it, and buried seven of them.He said the improvement in his game came from the energy of his team, which jumped out early on St. Joseph’s and had a 20-11 lead halfway through the first half.“Rhythm just comes by the energy and effect from the teammates,” Creek said. “Teammates bring the energy and that’s what brings the motivation.”A large part of his improved performance came directly from his ability to block out distractions and enjoy the game he came to IU to play.Creek ran the floor with enthusiasm, and treated every play as if it mattered. The past few weeks gave him the foresight to realize that his coach rewarded effort and looked at the ability to score to be an added benefit.Crean said the time in the summer and preparation for fall workouts might have stinted Creek’s ability to physically prepare for the season.“He missed the entire summer of being up here with us and getting his body beat on, getting in that weight room with the other guys,” Crean said. “You gotta come in and you gotta get your body ready every day, and it’s a while for his body to start to feel any sense of normalcy.”Another portion of the game Creek excelled in was rebounding. IU missed half of its 2-point shots in their last preseason game, the majority of which were layups.Freshman forward Christian Watford and sophomore forward Tom Pritchard missed close shots, and there wasn’t anyone there to clean up the mess.Creek had seven rebounds Monday, and two of them were offensive. Crean said after the game he was “really impressed with how aggressive he was on the backboards.”His rebounding led to easy shots, and an easy shot is said to loosen up the most nervous of players. That was true of Creek on Monday.“For Creek, it’s just a better comfort level for him,” junior guard Jeremiah Rivers said. “He wasn’t as anxious, nervous the second time around. He knew what he didn’t do well last Wednesday, and he really applied what he’s learned over the last few practices and had a pretty good game.”
(11/09/09 8:30pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>As opening act Skyzoo performed, a large bus pulled up next to the Bluebird Nightclub.There would be a lull before Ghostface Killah, a man of many names, performed, but it wouldn’t take long for him to begin questioning the crowd.Without his usual robe-and-gold chained attire, the "Ironman" stepped onto the stage of the Bluebird wearing an oversized hooded Champion sweatshirt and jogging pants that were equally as large."How many of y’all into real hip hop," he said in a slurred New York accent. "Not that sucka shit that be going on right now – vintage hip hop.""Pretty Toney" used the line to break into a profanity-laced set, equipped with every basic element of gangster rap. There were drugs, car chases and combative police. Many of the songs in his set subscribed to the darker sound of Wu-Tang Clan as he asked the question, "How many of y’all bought the first Wu-Tang album?"Unlike the harder sound, though, Ghostface played tracks from his solo career that both shone vulnerability and personality, as many of them were filled with quirky lyrics that placed smiles on the fans faces and they slowly swayed to his rhythm-&-blues centered beats.There was " Ice Cream" in which Wu-Tang talked about different women, "Back Like That" where he addressed the vengeful actions of a scorned lover and "Whip You with a Strap," an ode to his mother who used to put him across her knee.The variety and blatantly random song choice was what fans said they expected beforehand.Senior Corey Williams said there is never a dull moment with Ghostface Killah on the stage."You can’t explain it," he said in reference to a Ghostface show. "He always puts on a good show and does what he comes to do. When you leave, you’re satisfied – point blank."John Carter, a junior at IU-Purdue University Indianapolis, drove down to Bluebird for the night.There was no question that he had come there to see Ghostface. He stood on the outside railing with the word "Cream" tattooed on the inner portion of his wrist, with his hair spiked toward the night and a drunken smirk on his face.Carter saw Ghostface perform in Chicago as well and said there has to be a personal connection with an artist in order to get an homage to them tattooed on your arm."You have to appreciate the deeper meaning to the music," he said. "You have to be able to see how ‘Cash Rules Everything Around Me’ applies to your life. It’s like an unfortunate truth. No matter if you like it or not cash rules everything around, you gotta live life like that."Ghostface was back on stage, talking about the good ole’ days of hip hop before a riled crowd; they cheered the mentioning of every past track, whether it was his or not.He listed off a number of artists from the mid to early ‘90s, the era where he came into prominence with the Wu-Tang Clan. The group, was made up of New York rappers from Staten Island, although many members originate from Brooklyn and the Bronx.Used to performing with a large group, Ghostface had hypemen share performing duties, while more loitered around the stage area, rocking and spouting of the lyrics.But they had to stop rapping and start singing, as Ghostface started a string of songs honoring the late Michael Jackson, from which he matriculated to a number of songs by the fallen Ol’ Dirty Bastard, an original member of Wu-Tang.It wasn’t long before he got into some of his more recent work, shouting "Ghostface" over the track entitled "Cherzez LaGhost," whichi means "Look for the Ghost" in Spanish.He began the song with the lyric, "No girl could freak me, I’m just too nasty," as his hypemen pulled women on stage to dance.Before he could finish out his "catalog" of songs, though, Ghostface was shut down by the bar’s early closure on Sundays."They said we gotta leave and shit," he said dejectedly. "Y’all been a real crowd."He had one more plea.Bringing everyone in the crowd to raise two fingers to the ceiling, Ghostface Killah closed the show with a countdown."One-two-three, Peace," said everyone in unison.
(11/09/09 4:08am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>With just a week left before its first regular-season contest, the IU men’s basketball team has work to do. The Hoosiers will play today against St. Joseph’s, a small Indiana school that will play its biggest game of the season against IU. Crean said his team will be presented with an opportunity to tighten some of the less polished portions of its game, but expects St. Joseph’s to present the team with some problems on Monday. “St. Joseph’s is coming off a loss yesterday to IUPUI,” he said. “They’ve got some key returners back. I think they shoot the ball really well, and they’ve got a good mix of inside-outside.”As was seen in IU’s first contest against NAIA Grace College, when jitters and kinks are present, talent isn’t as much of a factor. Just for good measure, though, Crean said, “They play in as good a D-II league as there is in the country.”The Pumas were 15-13 last season, and ended their season against Northern Kentucky in the Great Lakes Valley Conference first round.Like IU, St. Joseph’s has a young team and a relatively new coach. The Pumas’ roster has six freshmen and a coach, Richard Davis, who is in only his fourth year at the helm. While facing a team that is also rebounding, IU will continue to work on the finer points of its game. Grace College was limited by its size when facing IU, which resulted in 63 2-point shots from the Hoosiers.However, many of those were missed – from point-blank range. IU sophomore forward Tom Pritchard said IU will correct the misses against St. Joseph’s. “Our offense has been really good,” he said. “But the one thing Coach really stressed was finishing those layups. I know we missed a lot of layups last game, and that’s something we’re going to try to work on in this next game.”In order to overcome the problems that come with being a new team, which are mainly chemistry and unforced mishaps on offense, Crean has put his team through tougher practices leading up to St. Joseph’s.“Guys are starting to really awaken to the fact that there’s real competition for minutes, for spots,” he said. “It’s been chippy this week – there’s been some good battles.” All have reacted, but the different groups of the team have responded differently leading their last contest of the preseason. Crean said the younger guys on the team have been challenged daily in practice more than they ever have been in the past.“We’re looking forward to seeing guys compete against the daily rigors of what it takes to compete in and bring it out in a game,” he said. Those who remember last season would rather forget it, and Crean said they’ve tried to dispel any thought that the coming season will result in the same outcome as the 2008-09 season. “For the returners, it’s a new day,” Crean said. “There’s nothing about last year that wants to be remembered in here, other than how hard it is to win and how hard you have to practice every day.”Crean said he expects the same intensity from St. Joseph’s that Grace College brought to Assembly Hall, and he anticipates his team’s reaction to be the way it was in the closing moments of its first contest.“It’ll be a good test for us,” he said. “I’m sure they’ll come, they’ll be excited just like Grace was, and we’re looking forward to the same thing.”
(11/06/09 5:28am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>After months of waiting by IU coach Tom Crean and the IU compliance office, freshman center Bawa Muniru was cleared to play in the 2009-10 season Thursday.He had practiced with the IU men’s basketball team and spent time with his teammates since the beginning of the school year, but he needed academic approval from the NCAA Clearinghouse in order to become eligible to play.His authorization came a day after IU had played in its first exhibition game against Grace College. Muniru watched his team’s 96-73 win while he sat near the coaches, his broad body dressed in a suit.“It’s a big burden lifted off my shoulders,” Muniru said. “I’m glad that this thing is over, and it’s been a pleasure to be here and I’m ready to play basketball.”Whether Muniru will play this season is yet to be seen. There have been other questions regarding Muniru and his ability to be an immediate asset to IU. The 6-foot-11 center is less polished than the other players in his top-10 freshman class, and he has been characterized as a “raw” talent on many occasions.Part of his experience might have come from the fact that the center has played for several high schools before reaching IU. He averaged 16.6 points and 8.9 rebounds at Madison Academy in Alabama and spent a year at Mount Zion Academy thereafter.He wasn’t the only one in the class to face a delay in his academic clearance from the NCAA eligibility center. Freshman guard Maurice Creek found out he was cleared to play Aug. 31, but questions lingered longer for Muniru.Despite some doubts about whether he would be cleared this late in the season, Muniru said his only anxiety came regarding when he would be allowed to play.“I wasn’t concerned at all,” he said. “I wasn’t worried. The only thing was time. Time was a factor. And I always say time will tell, and time has told.”His coach had taken a similar approach. When asked about Muniru’s status, Crean consistently said it was a compliance matter.Crean credited the compliance office in a statement and said he was thrilled for Muniru and his future as a Hoosier.“We are excited for Bawa, as he can now move forward with his energies completely focused on his academic and athletic career at Indiana,” Crean said in a statement. “We know the NCAA had to take their time and we appreciate them seeing this process through. At Indiana, we have so many outstanding individuals in our compliance, eligibility and academic support areas who worked so hard and diligently on his behalf.”Although he hasn’t seen NCAA sanctioned action, Muniru has touched Branch McCracken Court in many instances. He participated in Hoosier Hysteria and has practiced with IU throughout the young season. He said Thursday that he is ready to begin his career with IU.“I’ve been looking forward to the season since I signed with Indiana,” he said, “and I can’t wait to get it started.”
(11/05/09 5:39am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Nearly everyone has talked to junior guard Jeremiah Rivers about the dances he did while sitting out last season.For 30 minutes Wednesday, he couldn’t find a rhythm. The timing was off. With about eight minutes left in the second half, Rivers found sophomore forward Tom Pritchard before putting in two dunks of his own in the open court.His play set off a run for IU that ended with a 20-point lead and an eventual 96-73 victory for IU. The Hoosiers continued to add separation in the second half, though the game had been close throughout as Grace College buried 3-point shots and challenged IU’s transition defense for easy layups.The first half saw a team still growing as it was stunned in the opening minutes and couldn’t pull away from an NAIA team projected to finish sixth in its conference. It took them nearly 30 minutes before they could capture a lead of eight points.“We knew that we were going to be pushed because of how well Grace runs their offense,” IU coach Tom Crean said. “Our players might have been a little surprised.”It seemed that Grace College would be the victor for a moment.The Lancers challenged IU in every respect and overpowered the young Hoosiers on many occasions. But where Grace really seemed to control the game was with its shooting – until late in the first half.As the game wore on, the shots that fell for Grace in the first half slowly began to roll out of the rim. IU started to pick up its pace, and made the touch layups its more physically imposing players missed in the first half.Grace coach Jim Kessler said the outside shot can be the equalizer no matter whom the opponent is on the opposite side of the court.“We shot the ball well early,” he said. “If you shoot the ball you can be with anybody.”The IU team had been hampered with injury during the week leading up to its first exhibition game. The players struggled to find chemistry on the court because of it. It didn’t help that five new freshman were playing their first collegiate game.“I thought they were unselfish, I thought they really moved the ball well, and I didn’t think we took any arrogant shots,” Crean said. “I thought they really tried to understand how to get into the bonus and how to play once we were in the bonus.”But it wasn’t always pretty. There were flashes from the freshmen and elder players.Freshman forward Derek Elston made a spin-move before putting in a layup, freshman guard Jordan Hulls threw a no-look pass halfway down the court and freshman forward Christian Watford scored from multiple spots on the floor.But it finally broke through with key defensive plays by Rivers and sophomore guard Verdell Jones that led to a double-digit lead against the less-talented Grace College.“We did a great job at getting stops and got some key turnovers that pushed us over the edge,” Watford said.The 6-foot-9 forward had just finished scoring 19 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. He was followed by Hulls with 14 points, and Rivers and Pritchard with 12. Jones also scored 10 points.The road to those points wasn’t always easy, though it wasn’t for a lack of opportunity. The Hoosiers had many clear shots at the basket but many players seemed to still be working out kinks on the court during the game.Kessler sat on the opposite bench, but said from his view the Hoosiers were “as young as you can be.”“Youth has to mature and has to grow,” he said. “You don’t grow until you get on the court. You can talk all you want about practice and show video tape until you’re blue in the face, but you have to be on the court and play, and learn together.”
(11/04/09 4:55am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>With a stronger Big Ten, IU men’s basketball coach Tom Crean figured a breather was necessary in the out-of-conference contests for a young team still trying to find itself.Crean was hesitant to place the Hoosiers against some of the tougher opponents available when he sat down to plan out his team’s 2009-10 schedule. On one specific occasion, he considered leaving a team off the list completely.“We overscheduled,” he said. “The Pitt game was a reach, and that’s why I didn’t want to do it for so long.”Crean’s predicament was the same one every Big Ten coach was faced with when preparing for the 2009-10 season. Regardless of the level of program, scheduling can sway a season toward the NCAA tournament, NIT or out of the postseason completely. The heads of programs try to balance tough schedules, ranking and rating percentage indexes.Three Big Ten coaches’ schedules ended in each of those various scenarios last season.Northwestern coach Bill Carmody’s team prolonged its streak of missing the NCAA Tournament. Penn State coach Ed DeChellis ended up in the NIT with a team that was 21-10 in the regular season but secured a bid for this year’s NCAA Tournament by winning the tournament.And then there is Michigan State coach Tom Izzo, who loads his schedule with top competition every year. He will face seven top-25 teams this season.Each coach commented on the difference scheduling had made in their own careers and their team’s seasons.Carmody is facing the first real possibility of making the postseason for his school since the NCAA tournament’s inception.Last year, the Wildcats surprised the Big Ten with a 17-12 finish and nearly made the postseason.“I think we lost a couple games that we sort of gave away, and that was the difference,” Carmody said. “Every program is at a different stage. So you’re trying to balance that out with wins and tough schedules and RPI.”DeChellis had a blue-chip recruit in guard Talor Battle and veteran leadership in forward Jamelle Cornley.They handed losses to many teams within the Big Ten conference, including IU’s final game of the season in a 66-51 win.The coach said he thought last year’s schedule was configured to make the postseason.“We tried to upgrade,” DeChellis said. “But I know the year before we didn’t make the schedule not to make the tournament. We thought some teams were going to be better. They just weren’t.”Dechillis experienced firsthand the effect minor ripples can have on a season.One coach in the Big Ten simply takes on whoever wants to play his team. Michigan State plays Gonzaga and defending champion North Carolina – whom they lost to in the NCAA championship game – this season, and the Big Ten isn’t looking shabby, either.Despite having a team picked to win the conference this year, Izzo said he is worried about what his team has lost from last season. “We lost more than I think people give us credit for,” he said. “When you lose Travis Walton, who was your best leader since maybe Mateen Cleaves, that’s a big loss.”Scheduling can make or break a season, which can lead to the deterioration of a program. Crean said IU is one of few schools with a special history, and that he doesn’t want to jeopardize it.“There’s five or six programs in America that decade after decade have been in the same breath,” he said, “and Indiana has always been one of those programs. We don’t want to do anything to lose that.”
(11/02/09 4:59am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Superman, Optimus Prime and Hannah Montana came to Assembly Hall on Saturday. At the Haunted Hall of Hoops, children trick-or-treated with the IU men’s basketball team. Dressed in costumes, children came with their parents to meet the team and watch a scrimmage afterward. Junior guards Jeremiah Rivers and Brett Finkelmeier sat at one table together signing autographs, handing out candy and talking to children. One father asked his little girl who Rivers was, but she didn’t know. “It’s a religion in our house,” he said. “You should know all their names.” Snow White, Harry Potter and Peyton Manning also came on Saturday. Most of the children were hesitant to approach the players, so their parents encouraged them. A medieval knight no more than eight years old came up to Rivers sucking his thumb. Rivers asked him, “You all right? You want some candy?” The former redshirt player answered many parents who asked him if he is ready to start the season this Wednesday. “It’s been a long time,” one fan said. “Too long,” Rivers replied. Rivers said he enjoyed interacting with the children, a different group of fans than the team usually sees. “It brings back the days when I was a little kid,” he said. Rivers and Finklemeier were the last ones to sign autographs, down to the last fairy princess with butterfly clips.The Halloween atmosphere continued on Branch McCracken court, where holiday music played during timeouts. There were also shooting contests between ninjas, jokers and little devils who later took the court for a parade.Outside of the Halloween antics, IU played a fast-paced scrimmage with dressed referees and a crowd of scattered Hoosiers on hand. Missing from the contest between the red and white teams were a number of IU guards who were all out with injury. Rivers was hurt in practice for a second time, senior Devan Dumes rested a sore knee and sophomore Matt Roth had his nose patched up on the sideline. He was recovering from surgery, Crean said. On the court, sophomore guard Verdell Jones and freshman Jordan Hulls shone alongside one another. The tandem ran the team by finding open players and hitting layups and 3-point shots of their own. Crean said Hulls was one of the more steady players in practice and performed well on Saturday. “He did a nice job,” he said. “He made shots and he ran his club. And I think he’s definitely been a big part of practice already, but with injuries to four guards it’s even turned the microscope up on all the other guards in practice, including Jordan.”The teams traded buckets for the entire intrasquad scrimmage, but a late surge by freshman guard Maurice Creek changed that.He scored layups, made passes and converted pull-up 3-point shots while leading the white team to a 46-40 win in the 20-minute scrimmage.Freshman forward Bobby Capobianco was one of the players running the floor with Creek. He scored outside shots and paced in front of the crowd to score in fast-break situations.While the game wasn’t an official contest, the IU men’s basketball players played as if their season record was on the line. Capobianco was one of the players leading that effort, and he said any time spent on the court is important to his young team. “Every time you walk out of the locker room, it’s an audition,” he said. “You’re fighting for a spot.”Crean said the day was another step for an IU team still trying to find its way.“It’s just another day in the process of this program getting built back up,” he said.
(10/26/09 3:12am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Pacers center Roy Hibbert clapped his hands and cheered when a simple out-of-bounds call went the Pacers’ way.Forward Danny Granger raised his hands in confusion after he’d missed another open jump shot on Friday night as he went 10-for-29 shooting.Whether through signs of frustration or contentment, the Pacers showed emotion that isn’t usually associated with an NBA preseason game. At Assembly Hall, a college arena where basketball is supposed to be at its purest, the Pacers and Spurs played as if it were already the postseason in Indiana’s 114-112 win.The Pacers, a middling team, had players with many reasons for doing so. A rookie attempted to find his place in the NBA, a journeyman tried to find a home and a big man tried to find out where he stood against one of the league’s best power forwards.A.J. Price, Dahntay Jones and Hibbert each played as if their last preseason game meant something, and they all said it did. A.J. PriceBefore Price was selected by the Pacers in the second round, he was a blue-chip recruit being courted by every college in America.He chose Connecticut, but wouldn’t touch the floor for two seasons. Price had a life-threatening ailment as a freshman in the 2004-05 season that caused bleeding in his brain.After going through a year of radiosurgery treatment, Price recovered and received medical clearance. Just when it seemed like he was going to have a comeback, he was cited for a violation of school conduct and sat out another season.He spent his sophomore and junior seasons as the Huskies’ starting point guard with a new appreciation for basketball and led Connecticut deep into the 2008-09 NCAA tournament.Price found himself last season, but he was in search of proper footing within the NBA against All-Star point guard Tony Parker in his final test before the regular season.“Every game means something for me,” he said. “Especially for me, being a rookie. You’re going to play a good guard every night, so coming out and seeing how they play the game definitely benefits me.” Dahntay JonesOnly a year ago, Jones was playing with the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals against Kobe Bryant and the NBA’s defending champion Lakers.He checked Bryant, who many believe to be the world’s best player – and challenged him. As has become customary for Jones, though, he was with a different team when training camp opened in late September.The Pacers will be Jones’ third team in three years, yet he seemed comfortable on the court with his new teammates.“This is a good situation,” Jones said. “I’m enjoying it. I complement these guys well, and we’re a work in progress right now.”He had 13 points and 6 assists Friday, and led the team along with Granger, who scored 29 points and had 14 rebounds.Roy HibbertHibbert stood with the ball in his hands and Spurs power forward Tim Duncan on his back.He made a move for the baseline, swung around the rim and slammed the ball through the hoop with his right hand as Duncan stood beneath him.The second-year center did as many eager players do when faced with a Hall of Fame talent. He decided to go at him without hesitation.“Ever since I was a kid, I remember watching him,” he said. “I love his post game, and he’s the ‘Big Fundamental.’ I really appreciated the fact that I was able to go against somebody who’s a seasoned veteran.”The stoic Hibbert drew the most excitement from the crowd in a third-quarter stretch where he and Duncan scored on back-to-back possessions.He finished the game with 16 points in only 18 minutes of play, which was good for the third highest finish on the team.In Hibbert’s first season, the Pacers went 36-46 and missed the playoffs by only three games. With such a small margin deciding their postseason fate, the big man said any edge can make a difference.“I take this absolutely serious,” Hibbert said. “I’m trying to take some momentum from this and go into the regular season and try to work on my game as best as possible.”
(10/24/09 3:48am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Midway through the fourth quarter came the time to listen to the frantically paced “Our Indiana.”Cheerleaders came out with the usual banners spelling out “Indiana.” But instead of the customary “Hoosiers” accompanying it, there were blue and gold letters laced with the word “Pacers.”The Indiana Pacers came to Bloomington as a way to gain an IU student fan base, and performed in Assembly Hall for the first time since 1972. They won 114-112 against the San Antonio Spurs in the two teams’ last game before the regular season.IU athletes, coaches and fans looked on during the game, screaming school chants and “L-a-r-r-y B-i-r-d” throughout.A former coach at Dayton, Jim O’Brien said he enjoyed playing within a college atmosphere.“It’s a great history to this arena,” O’Brien said. “I really appreciate the student body coming out and making it really exciting with the band. We were very pleased to have the opportunity to play down here in Bloomington.”Like O’Brien, San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said he appreciated the chance to veer off the NBA’s regular arena scene.“In preseason, we always enjoy playing in a college atmosphere,” Popovich said. “We doubly enjoy if we win, but we didn’t do that tonight.”While the atmosphere was different for each team, the style of play was certainly a switch for the 8, 025 fans who came to see the game.A third set of lines were added to the court, designating the NBA regulation 3-point shot and lane width in blue tape. The players, most standing near 6-foot-5 or taller, also played higher above the rim as they glided in for layups and shuddering dunks.Attendees made sounds of awe. They watched a game that didn’t mirror the usual one seen within Assembly Hall very much.Both teams got off to a slow start while playing on the visibly smaller Branch McCracken Court. Each hoisted quick shots in a style that seemed to consistently be in transition.The Spurs had an early lead with its “Big Three” of power forward Tim Duncan and guards Manu Ginobli and Tony Parker all in attendance.The Pacers’ lineup was much shorter. Only seven players were available in the second half, last year’s college basketball Player of the Year Tyler Hansborough, forward Mike Dunleavy and guard T.J. Ford all wore suit jackets as they were confined to the bench.“We didn’t have any choice but to play the guys we played because they were the only guys we had,” O’Brien said. “With I prefer to play Danny Granger 40 minutes – no. But we had no choice.”The Pacers performed well with what they had.Six of the nine who touched the floor for them scored in double figures. Forward Danny Granger led that group with 29 points and 17 rebounds.Center Roy Hibbert shone brightest of the bunch. He challenged Duncan on the post with an array of hook shots and two-handed dunks on his way to 16 points.He said the chance to play against Duncan was one he relished.“Ever since I was a kid, I remember watching him,” he said. “I love his post game, and he’s the “Big Fundamental.” I really appreciated the fact that I was able to go against somebody who’s a seasoned veteran.”Hibbert and his team played in a close fourth quarter that came down to only 2 points. They led 114-112 when guard Dahntay Jones got a kicked ball violation called against him on the in-bound. The play gave possession to the Spurs with 8 seconds left.Spurs guard Keith Bogans had one last shot on an off-balanced 3-pointer that air balled.When it was all over, the ball was in Granger’s hands.He grabbed the ball and threw it down court as the games’ final buzzer sounded. It landed in the stands and into the hands of a member of “Big Red Band,” and the fans cheered one more time.
(10/23/09 4:19am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Fans showed up early to see forward Darnell Hillman honor his nickname of “Dr. Dunk.”He put on a show before each contest, and the American Basketball Association had scheduled three playoff games for Hillman and his Pacers’ teammates at Assembly Hall. They would go on to win the league’s 1972-73 championship, but this night was all about Hillman, who jumped so high his afro was on par with the rim.Hillman was one of a group of high flyers in a league that embraced the outlandish.From dress to hairstyle, they embodied nearly everything the more-established National Basketball Association didn’t.“The difference in the ABA was that we had a lot more relaxed approach in terms of being out in the public,” Hillman said. “But we also knew that we had to do something that would gain the public’s trust to where they would want, and drive up the urge, to see us.” The ABA’s divergence from the norm was best shown on the basketball court. Without players rivaling the NBA’s dominant centers, the ABA birthed a free-flowing style of play seen in today’s game. It created the 3-point shot and used the fast break to bring down rims with jarring dunks.Bullish guards twirled the league’s red, white and blue ball, reminiscent of the one used by the Harlem Globetrotters. They made plays through cross-over moves, fancy passes and finger roll layups – all staples of basketball’s current state. Hillman embraced the flair and excitement around the startup.Only a year before, he had spurned the NBA for the ABA after he was chosen in the first round of both drafts. The ABA had only been created in 1967, but players gravitated toward the freedom it offered.“It made for excitement,” he said. “If you had a player that had a lot of individual ability and talent, he was definitely going to get the change to showcase his skills in the ABA. We had the exciting ball players.”NBA stars like Julius Erving, George Gervin and Connie Hawkins got their start in the ABA, which allowed them to play an up-and-down style.Fun came with the ABA’s flair.There were monikers outside of “Dr. Dunk” at the time, including “The Ice Man,” “Slick” and “Dr. J,” the name given to Ervin.The flashy epithets matched the dress before and after games. Players in the ABA were not required in suit and tie at all times, like their counterparts in the older league. As a result, they wore flashy clothing and hairstyles associated with the ’70s.“We were a little bit more liberal, a little bit freer to express our own individuality,” Hillman said. “Hence is where I came from with the afro.”The development of distinct personalities within the ABA set forth a trend that hit its peak with recent NBA players Michael Jordan and LeBron James. Making a player a brand proved good for the league and brought fans in to see a specific person. This was apparent from Hillman’s pregame exhibitions.Though the NBA didn’t subscribe to similar thought at the time, the idea wasn’t lost on all sports leagues.The American Football Association challenged the National Football League in the ’60s with characters like former Jets quarterback Joe Namath. It shelled out money on characters to build personas and bank accounts.The two jockeyed for fans and money for nine years until the larger NFL consumed the AFL in a 1970 merger.The ABA would last one season less than the AFL in its own bout with a historically superior league, and merged with the NBA after its ninth season.The NBA took on four of the ABA’s nine teams – Indiana, New York, Denver and San Antonio – for $3.2 million per club.“It was disappointing that the entire league didn’t go in,” Hillman said. “I thought it would be great for basketball to see the ABA, which was a much more wide open, run-and-gun game.”As a player who preferred the ABA from the start of his career, Hillman said it was sad to see the league go. He knows, though, that in the short time of its existence, the ABA brought a street style of basketball to mainstream America and beyond.“After the leagues merged, there was a great deal of evidence that we were more fun to watch,” he said. “Our players had a lot of skills, but we had the flash.”
(10/22/09 1:56am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Sophomore guard Verdell Jones emerged from the hallway sporting a bright red scratch on his neck.While talking to the media, sophomore forward Tom Pritchard said he leaves practice with a battle wound daily.As was evident from the scars worn by players, the IU men’s basketball team hasn’t deviated much from the staple of last season in its first week of practices. The Hoosiers began 2008 without an identity and ended with a reputation as a still learning, but hard-working, team.“Every day I come home with a new bruise, a new scratch, a new something,” Pritchard said. “It’s tough out there, guys have been really fighting. And that’s something that’s really going to help us in the games.” It was thought that Pritchard either became passive or wore down from hitting a freshman wall a year ago. He said Tuesday that he is more confident after a preseason workout that put him on pace to gain better position when seeking rebounds or setting up in the post.Pritchard wasn’t the only player to face challenges last season.IU fell by a small margin in many games, and seemed to come out on the bottom of even the closest contests. Applause still came for the team after losses. Thus far, IU coach Tom Crean and his team have done everything they can to see that they continue to receive the same applause – and to ensure more wins.“If we hit people first, they’re going to back down, and we can finally get some teams on the back of their heels and finish them,” Pritchard said.Jones, the slimmest player on the team, was another freshman who led IU. He was hurt on more than one occasion after the physical Big Ten season began. In the summer he gained more than 10 pounds, and said his days on the court have been filled with competition. “It’s like a war field out there – tackling each other, scratching, biting,” Jones said. “We get hurt every day, but we’re working hard trying to build that mental toughness.”IU has progressed from a season ago, with players to take the reins who were learning not long ago. Crean said his team is more intense than ever.“We’ve had some great battles,” he said. “They are working extremely hard and we are working in a competitive mode right now.”
(10/19/09 4:06am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU coach Tom Crean decided to have some fun.With 13,321 fans in attendance Friday, Crean broke away from the drill-centered Hoosier Hysteria of last year. He opened the floor to Straight No Chaser for a scrimmage, welcomed IU alumnus Jared Fogle of Subway commercial fame to the floor for a sandwich toss and invited fans down to coach during the red-and-white game. Crean livened an already light-hearted atmosphere by taking the microphone to drop one-liners, saying, “We lost 25 games last season, we’ll take any win we can get,” just before his team played against Straight No Chaser. The lightened mood was the sign of a program becoming more comfortable with itself, while also referencing its history through appearances by former IU basketball player Brian Evans and the famous whistling “Mop Lady,” from the classic Farm Bureau Insurance commercial.With more certainty than there was in the transitional season of 2008-09, players gushed and joked during the event.“I didn’t coach,” Crean said. “We snuck in the Straight No Chaser deal after talking to them last night. We got Jared to do this after he got back from South America last night. We were just trying to have fun with it.”The team performed in 3-point and dunk contests prior to the yearly scrimmage, which gave followers their first glimpse at the team that will play in Assembly Hall. One of the players that fans wanted to get a look at was freshman guard Maurice Creek. The former four-star recruit participated in the dunk contest and played an aggressive style of basketball in the scrimmage.“This is something I’ve been waiting for all my life,” he said. “Getting here and playing in front of the crowd on this floor really meant something.”The IU men’s basketball team began its portion of Hoosier Hysteria with a spirited layup line, where fancy dunks became the norm. Freshman forward Christian Watford and seniors Tijan Jobe and Steven Gambles kept fans gasping in the opening moments with creative slams.The IU 3-point contest had a long list of capable shooters, but sophomore guard Matt Roth was the clear favorite. The all-time 3-point leader in the state of Illinois squared off with freshman guard Jordan Hulls, one of Indiana’s most prolific shooters.Although Roth won the first contest of the finals, Crean gave Hulls another shot during his first Hoosier Hysteria. The Bloomington South guard performed for his hometown, easily taking the second shoot-off. Crean decided to call it a tie.While not presented in a practical form, Roth said the competition showcased a group that will benefit from a fast-paced offense.“I think it’s going to do great things, especially for people who can shoot the ball,” he said. “The more we keep running, the more the break develops – it’s going to open up a lot of shots.”The smooth-sailing dunks of Watford were pitted against the smaller but still athletic Gambles in a later competition.Both were resourceful. Watford had a teammate bounce the ball off the side of the backboard before he landed a two-handed dunk. Gambles proved to be the most innovative when he had a team manager sit in a chair and toss the ball up as he hurdled him for a gliding slam.He won the dunk contest through text-message votes sent to IU Athletics.Gambles also was ahead on the scorecards of a list of judges that included IU coaches Felisha Legette-Jack and Tracy Smith. Also on the bill were Evans; current Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Eric Arnett; writer of the movie “Hoosiers,” Angelo Pizzo; and the IU Gorilla.The red-and-white scrimmage was the last attraction in IU’s rendition of Midnight Madness.Players didn’t take the game lightly.They shot well from outside the arc, but also fought for rebounds and loose balls. More talent was on the floor, yet IU still seemed to have the scrappy play that kept them close in many contests.They would play more physical basketball the next day. Crean said Hoosier Hysteria was a great lead-in for IU’s weekend practice and the start of a new season.“We’ll work Saturday to get going,” he said. “This was a great way to kick it off.”
(10/16/09 4:31pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A small card in IU’s reference library was imprinted with a brief definition of the word “Hoosier.”Jeffrey Graf, a reference associate at the Herman B Wells library, thought its explanation was too brief. He produced a large file of information and started a struggle that has been on IU’s campus for quite some time.“I didn’t think the definition could have been considered definitive in any kind of way,” Graf said. “So I decided to try to work up something a little more substantial. Judging by the number of pages I have today, I’d say things have gotten a little out of hand.”In the past 20 years, IU Athletics has fielded suggestions that IU should adopt buffalo, bison and the bats as its mascot. IU employees, students and Bloomington residents have all taken cracks at defining the seemingly indefinable term. No matter how tame or outlandish the idea, no name has stuck.In fact, attempts to define “Hoosier” date back as far as 1831, when its first known usage came in a letter written by Cincinnati’s G.S. Murdock, according to the Indiana Magazine of History. The word was meant to be a derogatory term referencing an uncivilized farmer or mountain man.In the late 1970s, that notion came to life.“I didn’t like the big goofy Hoosier Pete who was here in the late 70s and early 80s when I was at Indiana,” IU Athletics Director Fred Glass said. “He didn’t last very long and sort of disappeared – probably, because my view was widely held.”Would you rather be a puke?The root of the confusion concerning IU’s mascot comes with the cloudy definition of the word “Hoosier.”Graf said much of what came forth as an explanation for the meaning of “Hoosier” was simply rumors.“Mostly, it’s speculation, frankly,” Graf said. “Although in usage it almost always refers to a countrymen, a rustic, a mountaineer or someone not for the city.”It has been thrown around by historians that the Midwestern state received its name from a man screaming, “Who’s yere?” It was common to believe IU gained its name from an Indian word for corn, “hoosa.” And there was also thought given to the derivation from tough Indiana rivermen who “hushed” their adversaries and became named as such.Glass said he even has a favorite.“There are a lot of stories about where ‘Hoosier’ came from,” Glass said. “My favorite is about the boatman Sam Hoosier. He only got the toughest, strongest workers on his boat. They became Hoosier’s men and the ‘men’ portion was eventually dropped and they became ‘Hoosiers.’”He isn’t the only one who has tried to put the many theories into perspective. Clippings from a 1965 issue of the Indiana Historical Bureau Bulletin question the word “Hoosier.”The Bulletin asked the age-old question by naming off colloquialisms associated with other states.“True, there are Buckeyes in Ohio, the Suckers of Illinois and the Tarheels of North Carolina – but none of these has had the popular usage accorded to Hoosier,” the Bulletin reads.Another term that caught on long ago, but didn’t have as much staying power as the pert name of Indiana residents, was the Missouri Pukes. Graf jokingly said Indiana got off easy.“In the 1830s there was big craze to giving nicknames to states,” Graf said, laughing at the “Show Me State’s” former name. “I couldn’t resist that, frankly.”Gearing upWith all of the rumors running about, it’s no wonder IU has a checkered past when it comes to finding the figurehead for “Hoosiers.”Many ideas of what the face of IU athletics is have been thrown around throughout the years.The height of the mascot craze came in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In that short span, fans thought IU should become the bison, buffalo and bats. “At one time they tried a Buffalo,” Graf said. “What connection it had with Hoosier I’m not sure.”From 1997 to 2003, numerous mascots were thrown out as suggestions for IU. Jelly fish named Big Red and dogs channeling 1997’s “Air Bud”, where a dog would learn tip drills, were all possibilities derived from IU fans.The grapple with finding a mascot was so unsuccessful that current students have taken it upon themselves to represent their “Hoosier” name.This has been most successfully done by the “IU Gorilla.”He has been seen on ESPN telecast at the IU-Duke contest, in the stands at IU coach Tom Crean’s speeches or sporting a Hoosier jersey while riding his moped through the streets of Bloomington.The IU Gorilla has vowed to stay anonymous, but is not mute in any way. He spoke with the Indiana Daily Student at Crean’s 2009 preseason speech, predicting that the team would be much improved.His remarks didn’t do much to solve the mascot problem.What all of the theories, mascots and gorilla suits couldn’t do, a former IU athlete did when she put IU’s name in perspective. Glass recalled the former athlete’s remarks.“She said, ‘A Hoosier isn’t a person or thing, it’s a way of life,’” he said. “And she went on and talked about being hardworking and honest, all those things we want to be associated with being a Hoosier.”Although they were touching, the student-athlete’s sentiments didn’t settle the question everyone has been asking for centuries: “What is a Hoosier?”Holding a tiny piece of paper similar to the one he found before nearly 75 pages of research, Graf joked about the ambiguous expression.“I thought it was interesting that they were speculating in 1833, and that’s what everybody’s still doing,” he said. “Some things haven’t changed.”
(10/16/09 3:33am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Sentenced to sit on the bench for all of IU’s 2008-09 season, junior Jeremiah Rivers seemed destined to be reduced to a cheerleader.In response, the transfer point guard did the only thing there was left to do – dance.Rivers performed in the middle of the team’s preseason circle before every game, surrounded by swaying players who cheered him on. “It kind of helped them forget some of the bad things and some of the negatives that they had been facing all year,” he said.Whether it came through comic relief or taking a guy under his arm, Rivers silently attempted to lead a 6-25 team from the bench last year.A totally revamped group with a new coach and eight freshmen in tow took to the seasoned guard.He was the only player on the team with a college basketball resume, having played two seasons for Georgetown. He also made an appearance in the 2006 NCAA Final Four. When 2008’s Hoosier Hysteria rolled around, Rivers was so much a part of the team’s identity that he forgot he wouldn’t touch the floor for the season’s entirety, due to an NCAA rule regarding transfer students.“I really felt like I was playing until that first game and I was sitting on the sideline in a suit,” he said. “It was all too familiar. It was just something you don’t like as a player.”From the first game on, Rivers had to make his mark on the team from outside the lines. He could practice during the week, but counseling would become his primary role.“It was tough,” he said. “Especially, as the year went on, and the losing streak continued to mount – and I just wanted to help the team.”He stayed composed and advised players from the sidelines, picking up mannerisms to decide when he was needed. As one could guess, there were plenty of occasions where Rivers was required to help with the team struggling through 25 losses. He had seen success, but Rivers never separated himself from the team while they faced tough times. He said they experienced the novel circumstances of last year together. “They were real down and under pressure being a young team,” he said. “I understood what they were going through, even though at Georgetown I hadn’t lost more than eight games my whole career when I was on the court.“I’d never gone through that as well, so I kind of went through it with them.”The effect of his guidance remains a year later.In interviews he called sophomore guard Verdell Jones his little brother, and he treated several players the same way.“He’s a seasoned vet that we didn’t have last year,” Jones said. “Jeremiah’s played in Final Fours, won championships and he’s a lock-down defender. So he was great for me to go against every day because if I can score or go by him, I can go by anybody.”A season with IU has given Rivers footing but he hasn’t totally established himself as a college player or leader just yet.“As a coach, you want the leadership to be formed right now,” IU coach Tom Crean said. “It isn’t like that. He hasn’t played in a year.”In two seasons with Georgetown, Rivers never averaged more than 2.5 points and 2.4 rebounds per game and served mostly as a defensive specialist.Part of that, Rivers said, is because of the pass-heavy style utilized by Georgetown and coach John Thompson III.“Georgetown was more of a slow it down, Princeton style, which didn’t really fit my game at all,” he said.Transitioning from defensive stopper to offensive threat, Rivers received a clean slate with IU and Crean.“The system is completely different,” he said.The IU offensive mirrors an NBA system, full of pick-and-rolls and unrestricted sets geared more toward opening the floor for players to operate, a facet Rivers said he looks forward to exploiting.Crean said there is no unquestioned leader because Rivers is new to Bloomington and cannot pass down the principles of IU basketball.“He’s won at every level,” Crean said. “Outside of high school, I’m not sure he’s necessarily been responsible for winning. He’s going to have a huge responsibility in how we play and win.” Rivers’ attempt to mature into what his coach expects will begin tonight at Hoosier Hysteria.
(10/12/09 6:56pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Hip-hop, birthed in the Bronx, was meant to be a form of expression that “moved the crowd,” providing joy for fans through clever yet insightful commentary on issues within that community. That era of the genre is what Rakim called the “essence” on Sunday night as he performed for a crowd of hip-hop heads, lightly spotting the Bluebird’s concrete floor.“Preserve the essence,” he said. “Remember the roots, so people won’t be saying hip-hop is dead.”Dropping his first record more than two decades ago, Rakim lent a bridge from “yes, yallin’” to the fluid, punch-line filled lyrics of today with eight albums between 1987 and 2008. The same smooth delivery he laced tracks with to the beats of Eric B. in the mid ‘80s were on display for fans who filled in every gap left by DJ the Technician as Rakim thrust his microphone toward the reciting crowd. Performing tracks now considered the standard of hip-hop, Rakim had his DJ dig into the crates for classic records like “Paid in Full,” “Move the Crowd” and “Mahogany.”But what most captivated those on hand was an a capella rendition of “Follow the Leader.” Rakim bent down to the crowd, spouting off mystical lines and invoking images of the stars and moon to equate what he saw as the equivalent of his way with rhymes. “Let’s travel at magnificent speeds around the Universe,” he rhymed. “What could ya say as the Earth gets further and further away? Planets are small as balls of clay. Astray into the Milky Way – world’s out of sight – far as the eye can see, not even a satellite.” Lyrics like those had a small group of fans awaiting Rakim through DJ sets and two earlier acts. The smooth rhythms of A Tribe Called Quest, The Pharcyde and Nas kept them occupied. Despite the blaring sounds of class tracks, some were unsettled by the weak showing for who they thought was one of the pioneers of present-day hip-hop.“We wouldn’t have been able to get in here in '85,” said Darin Hubbard, who came to see the show from Indianapolis. “Hip-hop went to a place where it lost its way and lost its meaning. So now you have a lot of people who can’t rap, but have the music behind them and the girls dancing, and everybody’s cool with it.”On stage, Rakim talked about mastering the craft of rhyme, speaking of the simplicity it takes to create when done correctly.“After you start practicing and you master your craft, it’s nothing after a while,” he said. “Whatever you do in life, you want to get it to a point where it’s like: ‘It’s nothing.’”Rakim breezed through his set, which was full of complex rhymes delivered in a nonchalant manner. As the lighting flickered and hands swayed, he broke into “Paid in Full,” the signature song from his first album. The track introduced the world to Rakim, and senior Menelik Adisa said he remembers that song being the first he heard from Rakim. Since then, he said he has seen the lyricists’ style duplicated by newer artists.“What attracted me to him was that he called himself the ‘God MC’” he said. “A lot of rappers emulate themselves after him, like ‘Hova.’ That’s all some form of God.” When leaving the stage Rakim placed his microphone to the stage floor, spun it and circled the crowd to congregate with fans clamoring for handshakes.“Thanks for the love,” he said. “ From ‘86 ‘til now.”