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(07/25/02 8:23pm)
A limited number of single-session tickets for the 2002 Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament will go on sale at 10 a.m. today, the Big Ten announced Monday. \nThe tournament, which will take place at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, will begin at 2 p.m. Thursday and conclude with the championship game Sunday at 3:30 p.m.\nSingle-session tickets are $45 per session and include at least two games per session. Tickets are available at the Conseco Fieldhouse box office, Ticketmaster charge-by-phone, Ticketmaster outlets and www.ticketmaster.com.\nTicket purchases are limited to 20 tickets per session per person. \nFourth-seeded IU plays No. 5 Michigan State at 11:30 Friday morning. Tickets for that session include IU's game and the following game featuring top-seeded Wisconsin versus the winner of No. 8 Purdue and No. 9 Iowa. \nThursday's session includes all three first-round games. Friday is broken into an afternoon and evening session. Saturday includes one session with both semifinal contests, and Sunday's session is the championship game. \nThe Ticketmaster charge-by-phone number in Bloomington is (812) 333-9955.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
At Big Ten Media Day in October, Wisconsin men's coach Bo Ryan feared he would begin the season with more track and field athletes than basketball players. \nIn his first season in Madison, Ryan had to fend off the departure of five seniors, the return of one starter, a career-ending injury to one player, a season-ending injury to another and two transfers. \nAll before the Badgers played their first game. \nWhen they tipped off at UNLV Nov. 17, the Badgers began the game with eight scholarship players, five of whom had never played more than 13 minutes in a college game.\nSo, Ryan went to work. \nLess than four months later, Wisconsin has its first Big Ten championship since 1947 and Ryan received the Big Ten Coach of the Year award Tuesday. \n"I was hoping we could do pretty well in the league, get up in the top four or five, but little did I know that 11-5 would win the conference championship," Ryan said. "That's a surprise. I like the way our players kept buying into the system and kept their egos in check."\nNot hard when only two of your players have averaged more than five minutes a game. \nWisconsin became the best blue-collar team in the blue-collar Big Ten, earning the No. 1 seed for the Big Ten Tournament, which begins Thursday in Indianapolis, and rattling off wins at Michigan State, IU and Minnesota. The Badgers finished the regular season on a six-game winning streak. \n"Wisconsin is the story," Northwestern coach Bill Carmody said. "They managed to blend those guys together."\nWisconsin was the only Big Ten team to defeat every other conference team this season. Six Badgers averaged at least eight points per game, but Ryan had the depth to use only seven players consistently. \nBut from Day No. 1 at UNLV, Ryan penciled in the exact same starting lineup every time out. That helped ignite confidence, a routine and victories. And surprises.\n"Bo's done a great job," Penn State coach Jerry Dunn said. "Wisconsin, it's mildly surprising, but not overly surprising."\nThat's because wherever Ryan has coached, wins have followed. The all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division III history, Ryan racked up a 353-76 record and four national titles in 15 seasons at UW-Platteville. \nHe won 30 games in two seasons at UW-Milwaukee before moving to Madison. His 401-114 career record is fourth-best among active Division I coaches, and his 266-26 record in the 1990s was the best among all college coaches, no matter what level. \nHe made a smooth adjustment to the Big Ten, guiding the Badgers to their best conference record since 1962; it is just the second time since 1941 Wisconsin has won at least 11 Big Ten games, and Ryan's 18 victories are the most by any first-year Badger coach. \nRyan said he's worked his magic by starting over, not comparing current Badgers to past heroes who led Wisconsin to the Final Four in 1998 or to the NCAA Tournament four of the past five seasons. \n"Anybody that drops a bead of sweat, they have to buy into our family," Ryan said. "That's all I ever ask. I've never criticized players in the media or publicly. You'll get players to play hard for you when you do that."\nPlayers like fifth-year senior Charlie Wills and junior Kirk Penney, who are playing for their third coach in three years after watching Dick Bennett retire and Ryan replace Bennett's replacement, Brad Soderberg. \nWills scores 9.7 points per game and anchors the Badger frontcourt. Penney does the same in the backcourt, averaging a team-high 15 points per game. They've had help from freshman Devin Harris, who scores 12.4 points per game and has drained 54 three pointers. \nThat trio will bring its show to Indianapolis in a meeting with either No. 8-seed Purdue or No. 9-seed Iowa Friday. The Badgers are 4-4 in the Big Ten Tournament since it began in 1998 but were bounced by IU in their first game last season. \nA run at the Big Ten Tournament title is something that likely seems unlikely to most, but so did the Badgers' dash to a Big Ten crown. Already this season, Wisconsin has snapped Michigan State's 53-game home-winning streak and snapped a 22-game losing streak at IU. Sunday should reveal an NCAA Tournament berth. Monday, Ryan congratulated the three teams that shared the Big Ten title with his Badgers, then began outlining the plans for another unlikely run. \n"I never mentioned where we'd finish," Ryan said. \nFirst place, that's where.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Never mind the ankle injury. That's healing.\nNow, Mike Davis can finally stop campaigning. It paid off. \nJared Jeffries' tender ankle should be sturdy enough for Friday's Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament game against Michigan State, and it should be strong enough for the 2001 Big Ten Freshman of the Year to carry his new hardware. \nTuesday -- after a season of boasting from Davis -- Jeffries was named the unanimous choice for the 2002 Big Ten Player of the Year, chosen by both the league coaches and the media. The last Hoosier to unanimously win the honor was Brian Evans in 1996. \n"It means a whole lot," Jeffries said. "It's like a culmination of what I've done as far as my first two years in college."\nJeffries, who was also the only unanimous first team All-Big Ten pick, had Hoosier company among Big Ten award winners. Senior guard Dane Fife was named Co-Defensive Player of the Year (selected by the coaches only), sharing the honor with Minnesota's Travarus Bennett. Junior guard Tom Coverdale was selected second team All-Big Ten for both the coaches and media.\nMinnesota's Rick Rickert was the Freshman of the Year, and Wisconsin's Bo Ryan was Coach of the Year.\nJeffries ended the Big Ten season ranked first in blocked shots, second in rebounds, sixth in steals and seventh in scoring. He was the only Big Ten player to appear in the top 10 of each of those categories. \nAll that coming after Jeffries played through both a thigh injury and his current ankle sprain. Jeffries missed only one game -- an IU loss to Wisconsin -- but his numbers dipped after the injury. \nHe averaged only 8.6 points per game in the five games and shot just 17 of 46 (37 percent) from the field. Before the injury, he averaged 18.1 points and shot better than 50 percent from the field. His final numbers were 15.5 points and 7.7 rebounds per game while shooting 46 percent from the field. \nJeffries practiced Tuesday, working in about half of a team scrimmage, and said his ankle feels as good as it has in a while. He received an MRI Monday and will have the results today, but both he and Davis expect the Hoosiers' top scorer to be in action Friday. \nEarly in the season, it appeared Jeffries had the Player of the Year award well in his grasp, but the injury and his late-season statistical collapse were thought to have taken that edge away. \nWith Jeffries hobbled, IU lost three games. Jeffries rebounded with 15 points in IU's win over Northwestern Saturday, a victory that claimed the Hoosiers a share of the conference crown. \nFor Davis, there was no question. \n"No one thought we'd be in first place, and he was the reason," Davis said. "It was hands down, no doubt that he was Player of the Year."\nJeffries was a third-team All-Big Ten pick last season and is the fifth Hoosier to win the Player of the Year award, joining A.J. Guyton (media in 2000), Evans (both in 1996), Calbert Cheaney (both in 1993) and Jay Edwards (media in 1989). The Bloomington North graduate is just the third player in Big Ten history to win Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons, joining Edwards and Ohio State's Jim Jackson. \nJeffries fought off late-season charges from Michigan State's Marcus Taylor and Illinois' Frank Williams, whom Jeffries said was unfairly criticized during the Fighting Illini's struggles, to win the award. Taylor, Williams, Jeffries, Ohio State's Brian Brown and Wisconsin's Kirk Penney were named first-team by both the media and coaches. \nCoverdale, Illinois' Brian Cook, Iowa's Reggie Evans and Minnesota's Rick Rickert were all named second team by both the media and coaches. Ohio State's Brent Darby was a second-team choice by the coaches, and Purdue's Willie Deane was selected second team by the media. \n"It's a big honor to be picked as one of the 10 best players," Coverdale said. \nDavis said he was disappointed Coverdale, who averaged more than 12 points per game and finished second in the league in assists, wasn't a first-team selection. \n"He's been one of the best guards in the Big Ten," Davis said. "He's been outstanding."\nDavis has given Fife the same billing he gave Jeffries and Coverdale all season, as well. Fife, who has been the Hoosiers' defensive stopper since he arrived in Bloomington, finished seventh in the league in steals and is only nine behind IU all-time steals leader Steve Alford. \nIt's business as usual for Fife, who joins Greg Graham (1993) as the only Hoosiers to win the award.\n"I've always been 'Mr. Defense,'" Fife said. "It's an honor, but that's not what we're here for. We're here to win the Big Ten Tournament and go on to the NCAAs and do damage there"
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
The Big Ten Tournament has never gone true to form. \nNo. 11 seed Illinois made a run to the championship game in 1999, the No. 1 seed has won only once in four seasons and last season sixth-seeded Iowa won four games in four days to earn the crown. \nBut, if there is any stability in the bracket, it comes in the first day of competition. Higher seeded teams are 8-4 in first-round games, and of the 16 teams that have earned semifinal berths in the tournament's four years, six of those teams have been seeded No. 6 or lower. \nThis afternoon, the first-round madness begins at Conesco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Three games are scheduled, beginning at 2 p.m., when No. 8 seed Purdue meets No. 9 seed Iowa. At 4:30 p.m., No. 7 seed Northwestern battles No. 10 seed Michigan, and at 7:10 p.m., No. 6 seed Minnesota clashes with No. 11 seed Penn State. \n"Anybody can win it," Purdue coach Gene Keady said. "All 11 schools have a shot at doing it. It's going to be fun, interesting and challenging."
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
Coach Mike Davis is happy he had to endure just a 45-minute bus ride for the Big Ten Tournament. \nSenior Dane Fife and Tom Coverdale hope for high Hoosier fan turnout, and Jared Jeffries' family won't have to fly, something the sophomore fears. \nFor IU, there are plenty of positives regarding the Big Ten Tournament moving to Indianapolis for the first time in its five-year history. \nBut is playing in Indianapolis, where IU has racked up a 60-9 record since playing its first game there in 1940, that much of an advantage? \nDavis, his players and other Big Ten coaches can't settle on a definitive answer. \n"We lost to Butler there," Davis said, referring to IU's Dec. 29 Hoosier Classic loss to the Bulldogs in Conseco Fieldhouse, where the Hoosiers will meet Michigan State 11:30 this morning. "It's all about playing. It doesn't matter where you play."\nIU has played in Conseco, the home of the NBA's Indiana Pacers, four times, winning three. But IU is just 1-2 in Indianapolis this season, with a win over Eastern Washington and losses to Butler and Kentucky (in the RCA Dome, where IU is 7-7 all-time). \nFife said IU has a feel for the atmosphere, rims and the floor, but he doesn't consider that IU's biggest asset. Instead, it's the large Hoosier fan base that is expected to fill Conseco. \nEstimated attendance for the four-day tournament is expected to be near 100,000, according to the Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association, and most fans began arriving Thursday, when the tournament kicked off with three first-round games. \nOnly Thursday's session and the championship session Sunday were yet to sell out as of Thursday. Today's first session, with No. 4 IU and No. 5 Michigan State at 11:30 a.m. and No. 1 Wisconsin and No. 9 Iowa at 2 p.m., is sold out. \n"We fully expect our crowd to come in as the days move on," Fife said. "Hopefully our fans will come in and fill those empty seats so we can have a nice crowd."\nAttendance at IU's four games in Conseco has averaged nearly 12,000 per game. But the venue, which holds 18,500, will be split 11 ways for the tournament. And IU isn't the only team with Hoosier ties. \nThe Hoosiers have six players on the roster from Indiana, and Purdue leads the Big Ten with 10. Michigan State's Chris Hill and Adam Ballinger both played high school basketball in Indiana, as did Iowa's Luke Recker and Brody Boyd, Wisconsin's Charlie Wills and Michigan's Gavin Groninger. \nIllinois and Northwestern had a similar home-state advantage in the first four years of the tournament, which was played in Chicago's United Center. But the Fighting Illini never won the tournament, and Northwestern never won more than one game. \n"If you talk about it a lot to your team, it might become an advantage," Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan said. "I don't ever get into that. If the team that's playing from that area wants to mention it, it might help them."\nOhio State coach Jim O'Brien, who coached at Boston College before moving to OSU, worked a similar scenario while in the Big East Tournament, which is played at Madison Square Garden in New York. St. John's plays many regular season games at Madison Square Garden, but O'Brien said he never felt the Red Storm had a blatant advantage. \n"Might there be more fans for those teams?" O'Brien said. "Maybe, but I think it might be overrated."\nCoverdale, who played high school basketball at Noblesville, about 20 miles from Indianapolis up I-69, isn't so sure.\n"There better be a lot of IU fans there," Coverdale said. "I'm sure there will be."\nRise and Shine\nToday's morning tip-off will be the third time in five years that IU has played its first Big Ten Tournament game before noon. The game between the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds is the only game during the four-day tournament that begins in the morning. \n"I like playing early," Fife said. "The normal human body needs a nap during the middle of the day. By the time we get done playing our game, it should be about nap time."\nIU's earliest game of the season, a loss at Michigan State, began at noon. The Hoosiers have started every other game at 1 p.m. or later and played at 11:30 p.m. in a win over Alaska-Anchorage in the Great Alaska Shootout Nov. 21. \nHome-bar advantage\nSelect bars and restaurants in downtown Indianapolis have been paired with fans of the 11 Big Ten teams and will serve as meeting places for fans of those teams. \nIU fans are paired with Rock Bottom Brewery, which is located at 10 West Washington St., between Meridian and Illinois Streets. \nIndianapolis has also renamed 11 downtown streets for each of the 11 teams. "Hoosier Place" will be Pennsylvania Street between Ohio and Georgia Streets.\nIn addition, pre-game previews featuring radio, TV and basketball personalities will take place before each of the first three rounds of the tournament. Ober Parking Lot of Conseco Fieldhouse will be the headquarters.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
INDIANAPOLIS - The ankle survived, and the back held up.\nJared Jeffries and Tom Coverdale, who both spent practice time on the sidelines this week with injuries, each played at least 32 minutes and paced No. 21 and fourth-seeded IU in its 67-56 win over fifth-seeded Michigan State in the quarterfinal round of the Big Ten Tournament at Conseco Fieldhouse.\nJeffries, who has endured an ankle sprain over the last six games, scored 14 points and grabbed five rebounds. Coverdale, who began suffering from back spasms late last month, scored 11 points, had seven assists and four steals.\n"My back got kind of sore, but it's nothing that's going to keep me out of any games," Coverdale said.\nCoverdale wore a back brace during practice this week, but didn't use it Friday. Jeffries played on a heavily taped ankle, then wrapped it in ice immediately after the game.\n"It feels a lot better than it did the first time we played," Jeffries said. "They key is for me to keep ice on it and keep going for this three-day stretch."\nBoth Coverdale and Jeffries are expected to play tomorrow, but Coverdale indicated he might have injured his left hand during the first half.\nThe junior guard said he planned to get X-rays, but those came back negative.\n20 more wins\nWith the win Friday, IU recorded its sixth consecutive 20-win season and coach Mike Davis' second in his first two seasons in Bloomington.\nIU went 21-12 last season and moved to 20-10 Friday. Davis is pleased, has some regard for history and is cautious.\n"This is a great basketball program," Davis said. "There is nothing that we're going to do that hasn't been done before. I think the future is bright. It's my job that we keep going to another level. I know I have to stay well prepared."\nRandom numbers\nMichigan State sported the Big Ten's top field-goal-percentage defense this season and eighth-best in the nation, holding opponents to 39 percent. IU shot 52 percent Friday and 55 percent in the second half. IU missed all four of its three-point tries in the second half Friday. The Hoosiers missed all seven of their three-point attempts in the second half during the last regular-season meeting between IU and MSU.
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
INDIANAPOLIS - Senior Dane Fife submitted his request to guard Michigan State's Marcus Taylor early this week. Friday in the quarterfinal round of the Big Ten Tournament in Conseco Fieldhouse, he got his wish. Then split the duties three ways.\nFife, with help from junior Tom Coverdale and freshman Donald Perry, hounded Taylor, the Big Ten's leading scorer and top assist man, all\nafternoon as No. 21 and fourth-seeded IU (20-10) won 67-56 over the fifth-seeded Spartans (19-11). Taylor scored a game-high 20 points but was just 8 of 18 from the field and committed six turnovers with only two assists.\n"I was expecting to guard him this whole time," said Fife, who played against Taylor when the two played high school basketball in Michigan. "I was happy they finally stuck me on him."\nTaylor's sloppy box score indicates the success the Spartans have had against the Hoosiers all season. In IU's 83-65 win in Bloomington Jan. 8, Taylor had two assists and four turnovers. In MSU's 57-54 win in East Lansing Feb. 24, Taylor finished with eight assists and didn't commit any turnovers.\nIn both of those games, Coverdale defended Taylor, but Friday was different. Fife and Coverdale split the duties early in the game, holding Taylor to five first-half points.\nCome the second half, Fife and Coverdale had unexpected help.\nPerry, a freshman guard, guarded Taylor for most of the 12 minutes he played in the second half. Perry entered near the 17-minute mark and didn't come out until 4:37 remained with the Hoosiers leading 58-48.\nIn that time, Perry scored four points, grabbed a rebound and an assist. In the same time-span, Taylor scored seven points, but couldn't get the Spartans out from as much as a 14-point hole.\n"I don't think we reacted well to (IU's defense)," Taylor said. "I think we got a little frustrated getting into our sets, so that kind of frustrated the perimeter."\nIU consistently pushed the MSU offense to start from near mid-court, forcing MSU to shoot 3 of 13 from the three-point line. Taylor was 1 of 7 and missed all five of his tries in the second half.\nTaylor, the first Big Ten player to lead the league in both scoring and assists since Iowa's Andre Woolridge in 1997, scored eight points down the stretch in the last meeting between the two schools.\nFriday, he scored nine of the Spartans' final 13 points, but IU responded to each bucket and never let its lead shrink to less than six.\nA pair of Taylor turnovers in the final minutes helped IU maintain its lead and spoiled MSU's bid to win its third Big Ten Tournament.\nFife, Coverdale and Perry took some of the credit and spread the rest around.\n"I just tried to stay in front of him, and when he shot, just contest it," Perry said. "They run him off a lot of ball screens and you have to fight through them. I did a good job today."\nIU coach Mike Davis agreed, and said a deeper bench and intense defensive approach ignited the Hoosiers' victory.\n"Coverdale, his intensity dropped off, and I put Perry in. Perry did a good job," Davis said. "Taylor is playing better than anyone in the Big Ten. We came out tonight defensively and really established ourselves"
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
INDIANAPOLIS - For those IU fans who aren't fond of Luke Recker, this one wasn't easy to swallow. And it won't be for a long, long time.\nHe did it all - hit a three-pointer to tie the game, got a rebound and timeout to set up his Hoosier heartbreaking lay and drained a jumper as time expired.\nRecker took his lumps during two losses to his former team this season.\nSaturday, he closed the final chapter with the last laugh, a bang and a shot that hit nothing but net with nothing but zeros on the clock.\nRecker, the former IU standout, buried a 13-footer on the baseline, lifting ninth-seeded and defending Big Ten tournament champion Iowa to a 62-60 victory over fourth-seeded IU in the semifinal round of the Big Ten Tournament in Conseco Fieldhouse.\n"Luckily, I got (IU) the last time," said Recker, who sank a similar shot to beat top-seeded Wisconsin 58-56 Friday. "This feels pretty good."\nRecker led Iowa (19-14) with 17 points. Sophomore guard A.J. Moye, who charged up IU with 11 first-half points and a load of emotion, led IU with 14, Tom Coverdale scored 11 and Jared Jeffries dropped in 10.\nRecker tied the game at 60 with a deep three-pointer on the right wing over senior guard Dane Fife with 58 seconds left. IU (20-11) then worked the clock until Jeffries missed a jumper from the right baseline. Jeffries and junior Jeff Newton had at least three chances for tip-ins, but all rolled off the rim. After the final put-back try, Recker darted past Jeffries and grabbed the ball as both he and the ball fell out of bounds. Recker called a timeout and set up the final play.\n"If you look back, there were many instances where you could have turned the ball back out and go, but I felt like we had them scrambling and could get a quick put-back," Jeffries said. IU didn't, and Iowa milked the clock until about five seconds remained. Recker took a pass from Pierre Pierce and began his move with about two seconds remaining and the score tied at 60. Fife began the sequence guarding Recker, but in a planned switch, Jeffries moved in front of Recker.\nWith the 6-foot-10 Jeffries in front of him, Recker stuttered near the three-point line and dribbled to the bucket and tossed up a rainbow jumper over Jeffries. It left his hand with 0.2 seconds left and sunk through the next as time expired.\n"I think it came down to me making plays on Recker," said Fife of his former roommate. "The baseline shot is hit shot. It takes a special person to make that." IU coach Mike Davis questioned whether time expired before Recker shot the ball, but the officials confirmed the ball left Recker's hand before the clock hit all zeros.\nSeveral television media members discovered that the clock sputtered at 2.2 seconds and froze for about one-half second.\n"I knew the shot was good," Recker said. "I didn't have to look at the scorer's table. I saw the clock out of the corner of my eye. It was a euphoric feeling. I didn't know what to do." IU didn't either. The Hoosier looked drained and despondent at the post-game press conference after being handed their third loss in five games. It was Iowa that upset IU 63-61 in the Big Ten Tournament championship game last season. This time it was Recker, and while he admitted beating IU made the win that much more meaningful, the Hoosiers weren't so sure.\n"It doesn't matter who made it, we still lost," Coverdale said. "I wouldn't say that made it any worse." IU had an eight-point lead with 5:13 remaining on a pair of Coverdale free throws, but the Hoosiers scored only five more points the rest of the way. Recker ignited the charge with a three-pointer and kick-started a 15-5 Iowa run. IU's final points came on two more Coverdale free throws with 1:53 left.\nIowa's defense manhandled the Hoosier offense and forced IU to shoot 5 of 17 from the three-point line. IU's three starting guards - Coverdale, Fife and junior Kyle Hornsby - finished a combined 3 of 14 from the three-point arc.\nIU shot 39 percent from the field, marking the third time in three Big Ten Tournament games that Iowa has held its opponent to less than 40 percent.\n"We just wanted to stay home with the guards," Iowa coach Steve Alford said. "We just tried to keep them off-balance and do some different things to disrupt them. When Indiana starts bombing threes, it's hard to stop." Iowa never led by more than five - at 9-4 in the first half - but never allowed IU to run away. The Hoosiers led by as many as eight in the second half and six in the first half. Iowa trimmed that lead to one before a Moye put-back gave IU a 33-30 halftime edge.\nRecker, who scored 26 and 28 points in Iowa's first two Big Ten Tournament games, began his second-half binge with a pair of buckets that gave Iowa the lead with 10:36 remaining. Recker didn't score again until 4:51 was left, but he scored 10 of his 17 from that point on.\n"There is no defense for that," Davis said. "A guy drives hard baseline, you try to cut him off and all the sudden he pulls up on a dime and makes a big-time shot."\nThere isn't any defense for a last laugh, either. And now IU, an NCAA Tournament lock, waits for Sunday's Selection Show, when it will find out where it will play its first-round game. Until then, it has to deal with Recker's heroics.\n"As far as playing Indiana, yes, it's kind of a closure," Recker said. "I'll look back on this with fond memories. My emotions overcame me"
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
INDIANAPOLIS - For those IU fans who aren't fond of Luke Recker, this one wasn't easy to swallow. And it won't be for a long, long time.\nHe did it all -- hit a three-pointer to tie the game, got a rebound and timeout to set up his Hoosier heartbreaking lay and drained a jumper as time expired.\nRecker took his lumps during two losses to his former team this season.\nIn the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament on March 9, he closed the final chapter with the last laugh, a bang and a shot that hit nothing but net with nothing but zeros on the clock.\nRecker, the former IU standout, buried a 13-footer on the baseline, lifting ninth-seeded and defending Big Ten tournament champion Iowa to a 62-60 victory over fourth-seeded IU in Conseco Fieldhouse. The Hoosiers beat fifth-seeded Michigan State 67-56 March 8 to advance.\n"Luckily, I got (IU) the last time," said Recker, who sank a similar shot to beat top-seeded Wisconsin 58-56 in the opening round of the tournament. "This feels pretty good."\nRecker led Iowa (19-14) with 17 points. Sophomore guard A.J. Moye, who charged up IU with 11 first-half points and a load of emotion, led IU with 14, Tom Coverdale scored 11 and Jared Jeffries dropped in 10.\nRecker tied the game at 60 with a deep three-pointer on the right wing over senior guard Dane Fife with 58 seconds left. IU (20-11) then worked the clock until Jeffries missed a jumper from the right baseline. Jeffries and junior Jeff Newton had at least three chances for tip-ins, but all rolled off the rim. After the final put-back try, Recker darted past Jeffries and grabbed the ball as both he and the ball fell out of bounds. Recker called a timeout and set up the final play.\n"If you look back, there were many instances where you could have turned the ball back out and go, but I felt like we had them scrambling and could get a quick put-back," Jeffries said. IU didn't, and Iowa milked the clock until about five seconds remained. Recker took a pass from Pierre Pierce and began his move with about two seconds remaining and the score tied at 60. Fife began the sequence guarding Recker, but in a planned switch, Jeffries moved in front of Recker.\nWith the 6-foot-10 Jeffries in front of him, Recker stuttered near the three-point line and dribbled to the bucket and tossed up a rainbow jumper over Jeffries. It left his hand with 0.2 seconds left and sunk through the net as time expired.\n"I think it came down to me making plays on Recker," said Fife of his former roommate. "The baseline shot is his shot. It takes a special person to make that." \nIU coach Mike Davis questioned whether time expired before Recker shot the ball, but the officials confirmed the ball left Recker's hand before the clock hit all zeros.\n"I knew the shot was good," Recker said. "I didn't have to look at the scorer's table. I saw the clock out of the corner of my eye. It was a euphoric feeling. I didn't know what to do." \nIU didn't either. The Hoosiers looked drained and despondent at the post-game press conference after being handed their third loss in five games. It was Iowa that upset IU 63-61 in the Big Ten Tournament championship game last season. \nIU shot 39 percent from the field, marking the third time in three Big Ten Tournament games that Iowa has held its opponent to less than 40 percent.\n"We just wanted to stay home with the guards," Iowa coach Steve Alford said. "We just tried to keep them off balance and do some different things to disrupt them. When Indiana starts bombing threes, it's hard to stop." \nIowa never led by more than five -- at 9-4 in the first half -- but never allowed IU to run away. The Hoosiers led by as many as eight in the second half and six in the first half. Iowa trimmed that lead to one before a Moye put-back gave IU a 33-30 halftime edge.\nRecker, who scored 26 and 28 points in Iowa's first two Big Ten Tournament games, began his second-half binge with a pair of buckets that gave Iowa the lead with 10:36 remaining. Recker didn't score again until 4:51 was left, but he scored 10 of his 17 from that point on.\n"There is no defense for that," Davis said. "A guy drives hard baseline, you try to cut him off and all the sudden he pulls up on a dime and makes a big-time shot"
(07/25/02 8:23pm)
A day before the biggest IU game -- arguably -- since 1993, the Hoosiers are playing "Who's Guarding Who?" \nDane Fife on Mike Dunleavy or Fife on Chris Duhon?. Tom Coverdale on Jason Williams? Jarrad Odle on Carlos Boozer? Jared Jeffries on ...?\nIU will meet Duke -- and its matchup problems -- Thursday at 7:30 p.m in the NCAA South Regional semifinal in Lexington, Ky., but its strategy isn't quite tweaked just yet. \nMonday, the 6-foot-4 Fife submitted his bid to guard Dunleavy, the 6-foot-9 forward who averages 17.4 points per game. Dunleavy is one of three Blue Devils who averages more than 17 points per game -- IU has no one who averages more than 15 points per game. \nAlso Monday, IU coach Mike Davis revealed junior guard Tom Coverdale will cover Naismith Award winner Williams, who leads Duke in scoring at 21.6 points per game. Coverdale is battling an injured ankle but said Monday he would "like to guard" Williams. Already this season, Coverdale has held All-Big Ten guards Frank Williams and Marcus Taylor in check.\nSenior forward Jarrad Odle will likely match up with the bruised Boozer, who chips in with 18.1 points per contest. \n"Any time you have five pros on your team, you create tough matchups," Davis said. \nFife will either guard Dunleavy or 6-foot-1 guard Duhon, who averages 9.2 points per game. Dunleavy plays primarily on the wing, where he shoots 38 percent from the three-point line, but with a five-inch advantage over Fife, he could move to the post. \nJunior Kyle Hornsby could match up with Duhon or 6-foot-6 forward Dahntay Jones, who scored 11.8 points per game. That puts Jeffries on Dunleavy or Jones. \nInjury updates\nCoverdale sat out Monday's practice but said he would likely practice Wednesday in Rupp Arena. He said his injury, which was sustained in IU's opening-round win over Utah, might be either a strain or a slight tear on the top of his left ankle. \nAn X-ray Monday revealed no further damage and confirmed no bone chipping. \n"Icing non-stop for the last day and a half has really helped," Coverdale said. "There's basically no swelling in it at all. By Thursday, it'll be fine."\nSophomore guard A.J. Moye, who has battled an injured shoulder all season, has shoved the pain aside in the post-season. In IU's last three games, Moye is 9 of 11 from the field, including 4 of 4 from the three-point line. Moye has hit all eight of his free throws in the post-season and scored 32 points. All on the injured shoulder, which he said Monday is ready for surgery after the season. \n"It hurts more every day," Moye said "I guess I need to keep hurting it so I can shoot better. When I'm out there on the floor, I don't feel anything."\nBig Red backing \nThe Hoosiers are expecting a large fan base in Lexington Thursday after playing the first two rounds in Sacramento, Calif., where it was difficult for IU fans to travel. Not only will the closer location add to IU's support, but the role of underdog should help, too. \n"There'll probably be a handful of Duke fans there, but everybody else will be either neutral or Indiana, and the neutral people will probably be rooting for us," Fife said. \nIU left Tuesday afternoon and will practice from noon to 1p.m. today; the practice is open to the public. Duke practices from 1 to 2 p.m.\nMoving on up\nFife is within two steals of tying IU all-time steals leader Steve Alford for the record. Fife has 176 steals. Alford finished with 178 steals during his career from 1983 to 1987. \nFife collected two steals against Utah, but couldn't get any against North Carolina-Wilmington. In the post-season, Fife has seven steals. \nJunior forward Jeff Newton is creeping closer to IU's all-time blocks record. Newton has 168 career blocks, good for fourth all-time, behind Dean Garrett, who is third all-time with 192. Newton is on pace for 224 blocks, which would put him ahead of all-time leader Alan Henderson, who finished in 1995 with 213.
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Since Mike Krzyzewski took over in Durham, N.C., in 1980, Duke has been nearly untouchable. \nIn the last five seasons, Duke has lost 18 games and has never lost more than five games in one season. Only twice since 1984 has Duke finished the season unranked. \nThree national titles, nine Final Fours under Krzyzewski and 75 NCAA Tournament all-time wins.\nBut, as fifth-seeded IU prepares to play top-seeded Duke Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in the NCAA South Regional semifinal in Lexington, Ky., the Hoosiers have figured out a weakness. \n"They're human," sophomore guard A.J. Moye said. "And a human has flaws. Everything created in the flesh has imperfections; it's in the Bible.\n"It's not the University of Jesus Christ and you have 12 Disciples playing." \nSo, it's not Heaven's all-stars, but it is a squad that has racked up a 31-3 record and last season's national championship. Monday, Blue Devil point guard Jason Williams captured the Naismith Award, given to the nation's top player. In June, at least a couple Blue Devils are expected to be lottery picks in the NBA Draft. \n"They have five guys that start for them that are going to be in the NBA some day," IU coach Mike Davis said. "It's going to be very difficult for us to match up."\nIU used to create the same problems for foes. From 1973 to 1987, IU appeared in four Final Fours and won three national championships. But since the last Final Four run in 1992, IU has appeared in the Sweet Sixteen only twice, the last time (before the current run) in 1994. \nDuring the same five-year span that has seen Duke go 164-18, IU has a record of 106-56. And this isn't the first time Duke has strung together five consecutive mind-boggling seasons. From 1988 to 1992, Duke appeared in five straight Final Fours and won two national crowns. \nIt was the Blue Devils who beat IU 81-78 in the Final Four semifinal in 1992. But the two programs -- with 20 Final Fours and eight national championships between them -- have met only four times, with each school winning twice. \n"You want to play Duke," said Moye, who said he received hand-written recruiting letters from Duke during his junior year at Atlanta's Westlake High School. "When you were little, you used to watch them win all those games and be like 'Wow, I wonder what it would be like to play for Duke.'\n"Then, you're like 'Wow, It would be even better to beat them.'"\nIU and Duke last met in the 1996 Preseason NIT, when IU upended the Blue Devils by 16. Duke beat IU by six in the 1995 Great Alaska Shootout, and the other two meetings have come in the NCAA Tournament; Duke edged IU by three during its NCAA title run in 1992, five years after IU knocked out Duke by six during the Hoosiers' dash for the 1987 NCAA crown. The combined score of the four meetings: IU 315, Duke 302. \nThursday, basketball history and pride meets basketball history and pride.\n"It's always special to play Duke," Davis said. "The last 10 years, they've been unbelievable. Indiana hasn't been there in a while, but we're getting there."\nAnd to get over the hump and back in the forefront of college basketball's national-title scene, IU will need to make the Blue Devils blue. In their path stands trophy after trophy and accolade after accolade, but the Hoosiers aren't backing down. \n"I don't expect our team to come out and be scared," senior guard Dane Fife said. "These guys are human"
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LEXINGTON, Ky. - Mike Davis has nay-sayers and he knows it. \nHis enemies flooded from the woodwork after IU stumbled to a 7-5 record in its pre-Big Ten schedule. They still haven't stopped harassing him as fifth-seeded IU prepares to battle top-seeded Duke in the NCAA South Regional semifinal tonight.\nBut to Davis and his Hoosiers, the 7-5 start -- which seemed to clear the Hoosier bandwagon and drain the high hopes from the team -- ignited IU's brash mentality, contributed to IU's deepest NCAA Tournament run since 1994 and seasoned the second-year Hoosier coach.\n"I wasn't disappointed in our record," Davis said. "The ones who were down were the ones who didn't believe in me as a coach and didn't want me as a coach."\nDuring the bumpy start, Davis lamented about IU's schedule-makers and the near-crazy travel schedule that had IU playing more games in Alaska than in Bloomington before January. Since then, Davis has praised the schedule and the results it's produced. \nThe nation's third-toughest schedule -- according to collegerpi.com -- helped IU win a share of the Big Ten championship and advance to tonight's Sweet Sixteen. Of the five early losses, four came to NCAA Tournament teams -- Marquette, Miami (Fla.), Southern Illinois and Kentucky, the latter two of which are still playing -- and Butler, which earned an NIT berth.\nStill, Davis is fending off the ghost of former IU coach Bob Knight and his fans. \n"Here we are Big Ten champs, and they're not happy about that," Davis said. "Here we are in the Sweet Sixteen, and they're not happy about that. Here we are back-to-back 20-win seasons, and they're not happy about that. I try to put those people out of my mind…"\nJust like IU has nearly forgotten about sputtering out of the gate. Since the 7-5 start, IU has complied a 15-6 record, including seven road victories and five neutral triumphs. That all started after IU dropped its first-ever Hoosier Classic game, a 64-66 heartbreaker to in-state counterpart Butler. \nFollowing the loss, Davis criticized the officials and was fined $10,000 by the Big Ten. But his post-game discussion with his team created a larger impact. Davis talked to each player, explained what he wanted and what he expected. \nIU responded immediately by winning seven of its first eight Big Ten games and setting up its first Big Ten title run since 1993. \n"We were down on ourselves," senior guard Dane Fife said. "After the Butler game, coach Davis got us all in our locker room and singled us out."\nThe 7-5 start was Davis' second in as many years in Bloomington. He tried a similar approach a season ago, when he publicly commented that he might not belong as the coach at IU. \nThat method led to a 10-6 Big Ten finish and a first-round NCAA Tournament loss to Kent State, which will play Pittsburgh in the second game in Lexington tonight. At that time, Davis wasn't sure he'd even be around for this season. \nSeveral weeks later, he was hired as the full-time Hoosier coach. A position he's used to promote strong defense, something that IU didn't use much of during its pre-conference games and a factor that has been front and center since. \n"It was an approach issue," junior guard Kyle Hornsby said of the losing skid. "Sometimes, we weren't very good at executing what they wanted us to do, especially on defense." \nIU is allowing just 62 points per game this season, the lowest total by a Hoosier squad since 1983-1984 and seventh-best mark in school history. IU has limited its opponents to fewer than 10 field goals in a half 19 times this season. \nBig Ten coaches have praised Davis' defense-first approach all season. The efforts haven't gone unnoticed on a national level, either. \n"There's a tenacity about their defense that's there for 40 minutes every game," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "Watching the Indiana program, it's easy to see that their hard work has paid off. They're an outstanding team. We really respect what Mike and his staff and kids have done thus far."\nEven if -- as Davis said -- some people don't. \n"I know this summer, coaches were recruiting against me saying I didn't have any experience and I couldn't develop players," Davis said. "A lot of those guys are sitting at home right now"
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LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Mike Krzyzweski figured he didn't have much of a shot at convincing Jared Jeffries to play basketball at Duke. \nAfter all, Jeffries grew up and played high school basketball within a stone's throw of Assembly Hall and the IU campus. \nKrzyzewski had more of a chance than he thought. \nJeffries, a sophomore forward at IU and the Hoosiers' leading scorer, visited Duke during Midnight Madness during his senior year at Bloomington North and nearly took the bait. \n"When I did come back from Duke, I was leaning toward going there," Jeffries said Wednesday. "It took me a week to make that decision."\nTonight in the NCAA South Regional semifinal, Jeffries will wear the cream and crimson and try to knock off the defending national champions from Duke, a team he nearly was a part of. \nHe isn't a Blue Devil thanks to Hoosier coach Mike Davis, who had developed a friendship with the 2000 McDonald's All-American and Indiana Mr. Basketball. That relationship ended up saving Davis and robbing the Blue Devil program. \n"I didn't think he wanted to come home in Bloomington and see my face and know that I would be disappointed he went to Duke," Davis said. "It was close. He came to Indiana because of me; that's what he told me."\nDuring his visit, Jeffries spoke with current Blue Devil standout Mike Dunleavy, who plays a similar style and has a build and soft-spoken demeanor similar to Jeffries'. Jeffries also made an impression on Krzyzewski, who said he is fond of players of the Jeffries-Dunleavy body-type. \n"He's a great kid with an unbelievable family," Krzyzewski said. "We knew it was a stretch trying to recruit him; when you drive to his home, you go past Assembly Hall. I thought it was worth a shot and it was. He's had an unbelievable two years at Indiana, which is not surprising."\nREADY TO ROLL\nIU arrived in Lexington Tuesday night and practiced for the first time in Rupp Arena for 50 minutes Wednesday afternoon. \nIU went through basic drills, shooting and running the floor before giving way to Kent State, Duke and Pittsburgh, which all held 50-minute practice sessions that were open to the media and public.\nThe Hoosiers were scheduled for a closed practice at Transylvania University in Lexington Wednesday night and have the option of a shoot-around in Rupp Arena today. \nUK FOR IU? \nBefore IU played Kentucky in Indianapolis Dec. 29, Davis expressed his hatred of Kentucky, which stemmed from his playing days at Alabama, a Southeastern Conference rival of the Wildcats. \nBut Wednesday, he retracted those statements, in hopes that neutral Kentucky fans in attendance tonight will pull for the underdog Hoosiers. \n"I love Kentucky. I love Kentucky. They're my favorite team other than Indiana," Davis said. "I apologize if I ever said anything to offend any Kentucky fan."\nSeveral hundred fans, most of them supporting IU, watched Wednesday's open practice. \nBRUISED AND BATTERED\nJunior guard Tom Coverdale, who inured his left ankle in IU's first-round victory over Utah, practiced Wednesday and didn't show a noticeable limp. His ankle, which was heavily taped and might have a slight tendon tear, kept him out of practice earlier this week. \n"He's probably about 65, 70 percent," Davis said. "He's not the quickest guy in the world, but I tell you what, there's not a tougher guy in basketball than Tom Coverdale."\nJeffries showed no limp on his tender right ankle, and sophomore guard A.J. Moye, who continues to nurse a sore shoulder and a thigh contusion, showed no signs of slowing down his fast-paced style. \n"That's just something you have to play through," senior forward Jarrad Odle said. "Coverdale and Jeffries have been doing that."\nMike Roberts, who is redshirting this season after injuring his lower leg before the season, has practiced at home this season, and began practicing on the road during IU's trip to Sacramento, Calif., for the first and second rounds. He did the same Wednesday and appeared not to be bothered by the injury. \nSLIM BENCH\nFoul trouble could plague both teams tonight, thanks to benches that rarely go more than eight deep. \nDuke has only six players who average more than 17 minutes per game and only six players who have played in every game. After the top six scorers, Duke's remaining eight players have combined for just 188 points (9.2 per game) this season.\nIU has eight players who average 14 or more minutes per contest. Injuries have limited IU to six players who have played in every game, but Jeffries has missed just one game and Odle has played in all but two. \nHOOSIER CONNECTION\nBesides Krzyzweski's ties with former IU coach Bob Knight, whom he played under while at Army and served as a graduate assistant during one season at IU, the Blue Devils have two more representatives with Hoosier roots.\nAndy Mears, who played high school basketball at Lawrence North High School near Indianapolis, joined Duke's team as a walk-on in September. Mears has played in 10 games and scored 11 points this season. \nDuke Academic and Recruiting Coordinator Mike Schrage graduated from IU in 1998.
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LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Chances are, you didn't think this could happen.\nIU beat defending national champion and top-ranked Duke? No way. \nYou were correct until less than a minute remained in Thursday night's South Regional semifinal in Rupp Arena. \nBut, all those brackets with Duke marching straight to the Final Four took a big hit, thanks to an inspirational comeback that took the Hoosiers the entire second half to complete. \nIt was the comeback that wouldn't quit. On a team that wouldn't fold, either. \nHow did the Hoosiers start and finish their 74-73 stunner? Their staple, and IU coach Mike Davis' favorite basketball element. \n"Our guys did a great job of believing we could win the whole time," junior guard Tom Coverdale said. "Our defense is what got us there, and that flustered them a little."\nIU allowed Duke 31 second-half points and forced the Blue Devils to shoot just 33 percent and 4 of 14 from the three-point line. Meanwhile, IU slowly -- very slowly -- chipped away at a Duke lead that ballooned to as much as 15 early in the second half. \nEach time IU cut the Duke edge, the Blue Devils responded like clockwork. Either a driving lay-up or a three-point bomb from the wing deflated IU and a Rupp Arena crowd that consisted of about 80 percent Hoosier fans.\nDuring the first 14 minutes of the first half, IU never scored more than four consecutive points. \nBut, momentum finally shone on the Hoosiers after Duke's Jason Williams missed a breakaway lay-up that could have pushed the Blue Devil lead to 14. The Hoosiers went to work.\nA Jared Jeffries putback and two A.J. Moye free throws trimmed the Duke lead to eight with 9:46 to go, but IU could draw no closer than eight until three minutes later when Jeffries scored again to cut the lead to six. \nIU eventually cut the gap to one on another Jeffries putback, but a 7-2 Duke run pushed the lead to six with just more than three minutes remaining. \nThe comeback looked dead. \nBut from that point, IU outscored Duke 10-3 to close the game, finally tying the contest at 70 with 1:54 left on two free throws from Coverdale. The Hoosiers hit 6 of 7 free throws and used sticky defense to force two turnovers and hold Duke to shoot 2 of 6 in the final three minutes. \nFinally, the comeback was complete. \n"About the middle of the second half, I was thinking 'If we don't make a move soon, it's just not going to happen,'" Davis said. "Sure enough, we started making a move."\nTo even get to that point, Davis knew he would have to rely on his trademark defense, one that finished first in Big Ten in points allowed per game last season and second this season. IU held Duke, which averages more than 90 points per game, to just 73.\nWilliams, the Naismith Award winner, finished the night 6 of 19 from the field. Forward Mike Dunleavy was 5 of 16 and guard Daniel Ewing was 2 of 8. \n"(IU) did what they have done defensively all year, so that wasn't a surprise," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "They just hung in there the whole time. I never felt comfortable."\nTo cook up a plan that could potentially make the Blue Devils blue, Davis spoke with members of the coaching staff at Maryland, which was one of just four teams to beat Duke this season and is a fierce Blue Devil rival. He implemented a game plan similar to the one used by the Terrapins from the tip-off. \n"I wanted to talk to someone who had beaten Duke," Davis said. "I called…and got a great game plan." \nIt turned out to be the game plan that helped ignite a sense of shock in Rupp Arena. The Hoosiers have said since winning a share of the Big Ten regular season title that a trip to the Final Four in Atlanta was their goal -- and one they could achieve. \nThursday, it didn't bother them that nearly everyone else had written them off long before the Sweet 16. Or that it took a comeback that seemed like it would never materialize. \n"No one thought we could win this game except for us and the coaching staff," Coverdale said. "We knew we could bother them with our defense, and that's exactly what we did"
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LEXINGTON, Ky. -- IU's trip to the Elite Eight almost never got off the ground. \nThrough the first 20 minutes against Duke in the South Regional semi-final Thursday, IU committed 16 turnovers -- more miscues than IU totaled in 24 different games this season. \nJunior Jeff Newton had four. Sophomore Jared Jeffries had three. Four different Hoosiers had two, and junior Tom Coverdale chipped in with one. \nIU looked flustered and intimidated, and Duke looked like its usual self, hitting five of 10 three-pointers and building a 13-point IU lead, the biggest Hoosier deficit at the half all season. \n"The first half, we struggled," Coverdale said. "But we kept fighting."\nFighting didn't pan out in the first half. Near the 15-minute mark, IU had five turnovers and five attempted field goals. It took the Hoosiers until early in the second half to amass more made shots than turnovers. During two different time spans, IU committed four consecutive turnovers. \nThrough the first 10 minutes, IU had 10 turnovers and 12 points. \nWhen IU did get a shot off, it hit 52 percent of them and stayed within striking distance of Duke. Dribble penetration and the return of an offensive rhythm fixed the problem in the second half, during which IU turned the ball over seven times. The 23 total turnovers were more than IU committed in 24 games this season. \n"Their pressure on the perimeter was pretty tough," junior guard Kyle Hornsby said. "But after the first 10 minutes, it wasn't nearly as bad."\nBIG RED BACKING\nAbout 80 percent of the 22,348 fans in Rupp Arena were pulling for an IU upset and each time the Hoosiers closed the Duke lead to 10 or less in the second half, a standing ovation erupted. \nFans of Kent State and Pittsburgh, which played in the second game, were cheering for the Hoosiers most of the night. \nSince the South Regional is being hosted by the University of Kentucky -- a bitter rival of both Duke and IU -- IU coach Mike Davis spent some time Wednesday jokingly begging UK fans to root for the Hoosiers. \nThe plea seemed to have worked.\n"I appreciate our fans," Davis said. "Our fans are great. And again, I do love Kentucky."\nDavis said before IU and UK met in December that he "hated" Kentucky. \nREBOUNDING EDGE\nDuke doesn't have many weaknesses, but IU figured it could exploit the Blue Devils' lack of interior size. \nThe Hoosiers did just that, by collecting 19 offensive rebounds -- 13 in the second half. The Hoosiers scored 21 second-chance points and out-rebounded Duke 47-32 for the night. \nJeffries finished with a game-high 15 rebounds (nine offensive) and Newton had 10 (six offensive). Five other Hoosiers grabbed at least three rebounds. \nRECORD SETTERS\nWith three blocks Thursday, IU set a new school record for blocks in a season, breaking the one set just last year. IU now has 180 blocks, two better than last season's 178. \nSenior Dane Fife snatched two steals Thursday, moving into a tie with former All-American Steve Alford for the top spot on IU's all-time steals list. Both Alford and Fife have 178. Fife has nine steals in the post-season. \nSEED TALK\nIU is now 5-1 against top-seeded teams in the NCAA Tournament, with the only loss coming to Duke in the Final Four in 1992. IU is also 4-0 against teams from the state of North Carolina this season, beating Duke, UNC-Wilmington, North Carolina and Charlotte. \nSORE LOSER? \nMinutes after Carlos Boozer's potential game-winning shot rolled off the rim, game officials revealed that Duke senior Matt Christensen shoved official Bruce Benedict, a Big 12 referee.\nChristensen wanted a foul whistled on IU during the play. \n"We're aware that something happened at the end of the game," Big 12 committee member Kevin Weiberg said in a press release. "Our procedure is to gather as much information as we can."\nNo other details were available at press time.
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LEXINGTON, Ky. - The injury looked eerie. \nTom Coverdale drove to the bucket with 9:35 remaining in the South Regional Final Saturday, got tangled up with Kent State's Eric Thomas and stepped on Thomas' foot. Coverdale's left ankle -- the same one he injured in IU's first-round NCAA Tournament win over Utah -- rolled over, sending the Hoosier junior point guard to the floor. \nHe spent the rest of IU's 81-69 victory either hobbling toward the locker room or plopped in a folding chair near the IU bench, foot propped on another chair and ankle wrapped in ice. \nX-rays returned negative, revealing a severe sprain. Coverdale is wearing an aircast and is on crutches. IU's second-leading scorer and top assist man is listed as questionable for Saturday's Final Four game against Oklahoma.\n"I think we have a shot to get him ready," IU team doctor Larry Rink said. "Coverdale wants to play. He's a tough kid. We're going to give it the best we have and hope he's ready."\nThe injury is on the same left ankle, but on the opposite side of the original sprain and a little higher on the ankle, Rink said. \nCoverdale scored 14 points, including 10 in a row in a first-half IU spurt, and handed out seven assists before the injury confined him to the sidelines. Coverdale assisted on four of IU's first seven buckets, helping the Hoosiers to a 19-6 lead out of the gate. \n"He's tough, he's gritty," sophomore guard A.J. Moye said of Coverdale. "He gets a week to recover. Cov could recover from a mugging in a week."\nCoverdale has not missed a game this season and averages nearly 32 minutes per game. He played all 34 games last season, netting more than 34 minutes per game. \nBack spasms and the ankle injury have limited his play in recent games, but his play hasn't suffered. He hit the shot to give IU its first lead against Duke Thursday and carried IU early Saturday. \nHis reward, once he was relegated to a wheelchair after the injury, was a victory lap from teammate Jared Jeffries and being the first Hoosier to slice up the Rupp Arena nets. \n"Tom has an old man's body," Jeffries joked. "Every week something is wrong -- his back, his eyelid, his ankle. I gave him a little victory lap and it was important to get him up there."\nRED SEA\nOf the 22,435 in Rupp Arena Saturday, an estimated 18,000 were Hoosier fans. The streets of Lexington were cluttered with cream and crimson three hours before tip-off. \nIU fans continued their new tradition of the wave, booing Kent State fans who wouldn't participate, then cheering wildly as IU marched to its first Final Four since 1992. \n"I just don't see a following anywhere else that is as loyal as the Indiana faithful," sophomore AJ Moye said. "I wish I could have threw every piece of the net in the crowd."\nThe NCAA's new pod-system, which attempts to keep teams playing tournament games within their region, backfired in IU's first two tournament games in Sacremento, but worked to perfection from there. \n"You looked out there, and you tried to figure out how they got so many tickets," Kent State coach Stan Heath said. "Whoever does the ticket job for Indiana should get some credit, because it was a sea of red."\nNUMBER NOTES\nSenior guard Dane Fife didn't record a steal against Kent State, leaving him one game to move past Steve Alford for IU's all-time steals mark. Both have 178 … IU's bench scored 19 points Saturday, marking the sixth consecutive game the bench has scored at least 18 points…IU is 16-1 when Jeffries hits a three-pointer…Kent State out-rebounded IU 28-25 Saturday, the first time the Golden Flashes out-rebounded anyone in the tournament this season…IU is now 8-3 all-time when a trip to the Final Four is on the line…IU's 24 wins is the most by any IU team since 1993, when IU won 31 games.
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LEXINGTON, Ky. -- After watching sophomore Jared Jeffries spoil Duke's run to a second consecutive national championship with 24 points and 15 rebounds Thursday, Kent State coach Stan Heath figured he would do his best to clamp down on Jeffries, the Big Ten Player of the Year and second team All-American. \nIU made him pay -- 15 times. \nWith the Golden Flashes fronting, grabbing and nearly gnawing at Jeffries in the paint, the Hoosiers started flinging up three-pointers. \nThey didn't miss. \nIU shot 15 of 19 from the three-point line -- setting a new school record for threes in the NCAA Tournament -- on its way to an 81-69 victory in the South Regional Final in front of 22,435 fans in Rupp Arena.\n"They just shot the lights out," Kent State guard Andrew Mitchell said. "If we would had have 10 people out there, I don't think we could have stopped them from shooting tonight."\nThe win sends fifth-seeded IU (24-11) to the Final Four, where it will meet West Regional champion Oklahoma Saturday in Atlanta, for the eighth time in school history and first time since 1992. Tenth-seeded Kent State (30-6) saw its school-record 21-game winning streak come to a close. \nSenior guard Dane Fife, who scored a total of 30 points in his first nine NCAA Tournament games, led IU with 17 points, junior Kyle Hornsby scored 16 and junior Tom Coverdale finished with 14. Antonio Gates led Kent State with 22. \nIU's 15 threes tally is the fifth-most in NCAA Tournament history and the most ever in the South Regional. The Hoosiers solved Kent State's man-to-man defense and their occasional use of a 2-3 zone. \nIU hit its first eight three-pointers and missed more than twice as many free throws (nine) as it did threes (four). No Hoosier missed more than three shots all night. \n"One thing our guards are ready to do is hit shots," Hornsby said. "If they take away our inside game, that's the only thing that's going to open it back up again -- if we hit shots."\nDespite an original game plan to dump the ball into the post to Jeffries and senior Jarrad Odle -- the duo combined for just 15 points after scoring 39 against Duke -- the Hoosiers rode nine first-half three pointers to an early 20-point lead and a 12-point halftime edge, but the biggest long-range bomb came with time winding down. \nWith Coverdale sitting in a folding chair near the IU bench resting his severely sprained ankle and Kent State in the midst of a 13-0 run that chopped a 20-point IU lead to seven, Fife sank a three-pointer from the left wing that pushed the lead to ten. \nKent State never got closer than eight the rest of the way. \n"He sent a dagger right at us with that three-pointer," Heath said. "That took a lot of nerve and guts. He has it and that might have been the play of the game."\nIU had several plays of the game. Like any of the seven three-pointers in the first 13 possessions. Or the five threes in the first 13 possessions of the second half. Or any of the defensive stops that held Kent State's leading scorer Trevor Huffman to eight points on seven shots, only the fifth time this season he failed to score double figures and a season-low of shot attempts. \nCoverdale spent most of the night glued to Huffman before re-injuring his ankle on a drive to the bucket with 9:35 left in the game. Fife then switched to Huffman, holding him to just two free throws the rest of the way. \nMitchell scored 13 of the Golden Flashes' final 17 points, but IU fended off the pesky Golden Flashes, who bounced IU from the tournament last season by making defensive stops and hitting nine of 17 free throws over the final 2:42. \nIU held Kent State to two of 14 from the three-point line and 40.6 percent from the field on the night. \n"People kept saying all season that we live and die by the three," IU coach Mike Davis said. "But we don't. We live and die by our defense."\nDefense has been there for IU, but it's torrid outside shooting has been the story. The Hoosiers are shooting 56 percent from the field in the tournament, the highest percentage by any team. \nThe 15 threes marked the ninth time this season IU has hit 10 or more threes in a season, but was the first time since Feb. 9. \n"I told our guards that the opportunity would be there, so take it," Davis said. "Coverdale had the look in his eye, Hornsby had the look and Fife has a look all the time."\nThat look has surprised many and ignited IU's best NCAA Tournament run in 10 years. Davis said all season that the team's goals were to win the Big Ten championship, (check) win the Big Ten Tournament, (messed up by a last-second loss) and get to the Final Four. Check. \nFife said after IU's final regular season game, that the Hoosiers were a Final Four long shot. Through the first four games, they tipped the odds in their favor. Next stop, Atlanta. \n"This is where this program belongs," Fife said, "in final eights and Final Fours"
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If you don't like A.J. Moye, you're among the minority.\nIU fans chant his name. Everywhere. All the time. \nWhen he's on the bench. When he -- in what has become his signature -- cringes his face, bounces up and down and flails his arms in response to a positive swing of Hoosier momentum. Even during campus post-game parties when he's 180 miles away in Lexington, Ky.\nIU's seventh man has quickly established himself as a crowd favorite through his emotional play and knack for being in the right place at the right time. The result has come in the form of chants and cheers that don't go unnoticed by Moye, an outspoken sophomore with an entertaining personality. \n"I respect it, and if they want to do it, then I support it," Moye said. "It gets me going."\nHis statistics reveal that much. \nIn his last five games -- four Hoosier victories -- Moye is averaging 10.2 points per game, is shooting 74 percent from the field and is 18 of 20 from the free-throw line. During IU's run to the Final Four, Moye is the Hoosiers' fourth-leading scorer at 9.3 points per game, leading the IU bench to score at least 19 points per game.\nMoye began the season on fire, putting up a career-best 20 points at North Carolina and 17 more at Southern Illinois. But he then endured a 12-game stretch in which he scored just 33 points. \nSince that dry spell, Moye's stock has skyrocketed. He's scored double figures in five games, averaged 6.6 points per game and shot 59 percent from the floor in just more than 15 minutes per game in IU's last 17 games.\nHis biggest performance came in IU's win over top-ranked Duke in the South Regional semifinal. With 11 seconds on the clock and IU clinging to a two-point lead, Moye saved IU from a turnover, got fouled and drained two free throws that provided the winning margin for the Hoosier upset. \n"I just like playing on pressure," Moye said. "There's no bigger challenge. When I get charged up, I'm a real tough guy to compete with."\nHe's revved up more often than not. And this weekend will be no different, when Moye returns home to Atlanta for the Final Four. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound Moye earned Mr. Basketball honors at Atlanta's Westlake High School, where he holds the school record for points (2,480) and rebounds (1,432) and where he recorded a perfect 4.0 GPA. \nMaybe Moye learned how to affix the spotlight on himself at Westlake, something he's done with regularity this season. He's the butt of jokes, the center of conversation and always spicing up stories with his knack for saying just what he means -- in a wacky way. \nHe's already compared Duke to the "University of Jesus Christ with 12 Disciples" on the team, discussed the "major love" he and fellow Atlanta native and teammate Jeff Newton will receive upon their return home tonight and compared himself to an "unchained, loose" panther, for which he wears a tattoo on his left arm. \n"He loves to be at the center of everything," IU coach Mike Davis said. "Just listen to him."\nLike this: \n"I'm a people person," Moye said Monday. "I just get along good with people. Every team has a guy who's the playful one. I'm pretty much the playful one."\nBut as much as he thrives on the attention, he realizes one of the criticisms Davis has for him -- he gets too emotional and lets that disrupt his performance. The chants of "A.J. Mo-ye" in Assembly Hall and most recently at Lexington's Rupp Arena have contributed to the sporadic play. \nCase in point: The three pointer Moye flung up from about 22 feet Saturday against Kent State in the South Regional Final. He had just hit a driving layup and a three from the left corner after about two minutes of playing time. His emotion called for a deep three pointer that wasn't in IU's offensive plans. It missed. \n"(The chanting) can cause me on occasion to lose focus," Moye said. "If you have 20,000 people chanting your name, you feel like you can do no wrong. It's good and I hear it, but I try to block it out of my mind. At times, I get too pumped up and it really hurts us."\nThose times haven't rolled around too often. Even when they do, expect the bubbly and determined Moye to continue his antics. And expect the chants and cheers to continue, too.\nAfter all, said Moye, "I'm a lovable guy"
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IU fans wanting to wish the IU men's basketball team luck and watch the final practice before its trip to Atlanta for the Final Four this weekend can attend an open practice and pep rally today at Assembly Hall. \nThe doors open to the public at 4 p.m., and fans can sit on the East side of the arena to watch the final minutes of practice. \nThe team will head to the locker room after practice, then come back on to the floor to acknowledge the fans. The team will then exit to the bus through the South entrance to Assembly Hall. Fans are invited to line the perimeter of the walkway to show their support. \nThrough IU's run through the NCAA Tournament, fan support has boomed, impressing the Hoosiers. \n"It's insane," junior Kyle Hornsby said. "It's an incredible feeling to walk around campus. In years past, sometimes, it's been hard to walk around campus. It's great to have such a fan base."\nAn estimated 18,000 of the more than 22,000 fans in Lexington, Ky., for the South Regional Final were red-clad Hoosier fans, creating an Assembly-Hall like atmosphere in Rupp Arena. \nThis is the Hoosiers' first Final Four appearance since 1992 and the eighth in school history. IU will meet Oklahoma, the West Regional champion, at 6:07 p.m. Saturday in the Georgia Dome. Maryland and Kansas will meet after the IU-Oklahoma battle.
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Of the 26 teams IU played this season, the Hoosiers have only one with which to compare Oklahoma. \nNot Illinois. Not Louisville. Not Kentucky. \nAfter pondering the question several seconds, junior guard Kyle Hornsby started to speak. \n"The…closest I can come…to comparing them to anybody…might be…Duke," Hornsby said slowly. \nThe Sooners aren't a carbon copy of the Blue Devils, who IU upset in the South Regional Semifinal 74-73, but they are close. OU is strong, physical and any player on the floor can score. The Sooners play tight defense, can beat nearly anyone in a half-court game and can run and dunk with nearly anyone else. \nSounds like Duke. \n"They have athletes," IU coach Mike Davis said. \nAnd they have a deep bench, which might be the only thing separating OU from -- and possibly making Oklahoma (31-4) better than -- Duke. \nEleven different Sooners have started games this season, and eight players average more than 20 minutes per game. That depth allows Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson to play a fast-paced trapping and pressing defense at times, then slow down the next minute to utilize a half-court attack. \nDuke's quick pace and pressure forced IU into 10 turnovers in the game's first 12 minutes March 21, and the Hoosiers expect the Sooners to try the same type of tempo and game plan Saturday evening in the Final Four in Atlanta. \n"They're very quick, they've got good inside players, they have great perimeter players, they're physically strong," Hornsby said. \nSounds like OU has no weakness. \nWhat does it bring to the table? \n"A lot," senior Jarrad Odle deadpanned. "There's a lot of teams that have those athletics guys who run and dunk and do the things that we're going to have to get stopped."\nBut one Sooner drawback could play into IU's hands if the Hoosiers can put their stamp on the tempo of the game. OU averages 79 points per game in its 31 wins but just 68 per game in the four losses. \nFellow Big Ten team Michigan State stopped the Sooners in November, holding OU to just 55 points in a typical, grind-it-out Big Ten-type battle. But most teams can't do that. OU has scored 80 or more points 15 times this season and cracked 90 six times. IU has scored 100 points only once -- against Division II Alaska-Anchorage -- and topped 80 only five times. \nIU was able to dupe Duke into playing a half-court game, enabling the Hoosier to complete a 17-point comeback. IU hit only two three pointers in the game, showing the physical play during the Big Ten season paid off. The game plan for Saturday still isn't evident. \n"If they try to take away our wing, we'll backdoor cut. If they try to take away our inside, we'll take the outside shot," Davis said. "We have a very difficult system to play against."\nSo did Duke, and so does Oklahoma, which is keeping the Hoosiers on their toes and ready for a contest similar to the one they endured against the Blue Devils. \n"They play good defense, they have good guards, they are strong," Hornsby said. "They're a really good team"