After IU's 71-66 upset win against No. 2 Wisconsin on Wednesday night, junior guard A.J. Ratliff tried to get to the IU locker room to celebrate the win with his teammates. The routine is familiar; he's done the same thing after IU's 11 other home wins this season, and with little resistance.
This night, though, the exit was not so easy.
"I'm claustrophobic," Ratliff said. "And some dude in a wig just came up to me and tackled me. It's fun, standing there jumping up and down, but it's also kind of scary at the same time."
A few thousand fans, several of them in wigs, stood between Ratliff and the IU locker room Wednesday night, the product of a celebratory court-crash from the Hoosiers' student fans.
The fan celebration was the first of its kind this year for IU, and the first since the Hoosiers defeated Illinois 62-60 Jan. 1, 2006.
Sampson had similar problems exiting the court after the win, but was helped away from the friendly fray by a group of security guards.
"I kind of felt like (San Diego Chargers running back) LaDainian Tomlinson," Sampson said. "I had pretty good blockers. I had a lot of confidence in my offensive line at the end of the game."
The crowd might have made the most physical impact on Sampson and his players after the game, but the coach said the 17,283 fans had a major impact throughout the contest.
The student crowd -- which has rarely filled the majority of its seats before halftime of any home game this year -- was packed before tip-off. Not only that, but students organized an impromptu "White Out," drenching much of Assembly Hall in white. Those student fans -- in addition to alumni seated all over Assembly Hall -- created a deafening environment for the usually steady Badgers.
The Hoosiers are now 12-0 at Assembly Hall this year, with a 19.5 average margin of victory in those wins. IU is one of only four teams in the Big Ten (Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio State) with an undefeated home record.
