Sports

Exhibitions don’t offer much more a than back-slap

I was sitting in Jimmy John’s some weeks ago when my Blackberry buzzed to let me know I had an e-mail. Upon opening said electronic message, I read that IU would take on Bemidji State in men’s basketball during the exhibition season, and I quite literally thought, “Seriously? That doesn’t sound like a real school.” And yet, as often happens when I know I’m right, I was wrong.

IU looking to tame the Beavers

The IU men’s basketball team will play one last exhibition game tonight before its first regular-season game Saturday. The Hoosiers play host to Division II Bemidji State at 7 p.m. and hope to improve in all areas from their first exhibition victory on Friday against Anderson. Bemidji State, led by coach and IU alumnus Matt Bowen, struggled last season, finishing 6-21 and just 1-11 on the road. The last time the Beavers competed against a Big Ten opponent was in 2006, when they were drubbed by Minnesota 88-32 in an exhibition game. Despite the 103-71 blowout win against Anderson, IU coach Tom Crean insists his team can, and needs to, progress in many aspects before the regular season. One area Crean is looking for improvement in is the young team’s communication on both ends of the floor. “We’ve still got to learn that talking – the communication on both ends – is absolutely paramount on both ends,” Crean said.

IU women's tennis team strong in home invitational

The IU women’s tennis team concluded play for the fall with its second home tournament this year Sunday. The Indiana Invitational brought DePaul, Western Michigan and Wisconsin to the IU Tennis Center to showcase their skills. IU coach Lin Loring said his team had been working on movement during the past two weeks, which seemed to pay off in the results of the tournament. The first day of competition started Friday with singles matches against Wisconsin. IU senior Sigrid Fischer had the most exciting match of the tournament when she faced Angela Chupa of Wisconsin. Fischer lost the first set 4-6, won the second 6-2 and won the tiebreaker 13-11.

Nothing but a one-half wonder

Thirty minutes of hard-nosed, gut-wrenching football simply doesn’t cut it. Not against a non-conference opponent, not against a Big Ten enemy and certainly not on the FBS stage. Since Michigan State’s week four shellacking of the Hoosiers, IU coach Bill Lynch has often repeated the Hoosiers “need to play two halves of football.” Fast-forward six weeks to Wisconsin’s 55-20 manhandling and Lynch’s order remains MIA. “(After halftime) it was such a turn of events,” safety Brandon Mosley said following his team’s fifth conference loss, this one on senior day. “We’ve made a lot of mental mistakes. And as you can tell, mental mistakes can cost you the game.”

IU volleyball team suffers costly loss to Michigan State

What appeared to be a winnable match in the IU volleyball team’s quest to make the NCAA Tournament turned out to be anything but Saturday. On paper, Michigan State appeared to be one of the easier matches the Hoosiers had left, as the Spartans came in with a 4-9 Big Ten record and losers of seven of their last eight games. The Hoosiers, meanwhile, came in as winners of four out of their five previous matches, putting themselves back into postseason contention.

No. 23 IU men's soccer upsets No. 8 Northwestern

Like Jordan and  Pippen, Montana and Rice, sophomore forward/midfielder Andy Adlard and freshman forward Will Bruin make a good couple. Bruin’s header off Adlard’s corner kick in the 26th minute gave IU a 1-0 lead in Friday’s match. Together the duo has scored 10 out of the 26 total team goals for the season. They have also notched a combined total of five game-winning goals.   Later in the game, Adlard notched another assist when senior midfielder John Mellencamp put the ball near the right post after Adlard’s miss in the 38th minute for a 2-0 advantage.

Transition game will be key this year

For Hoosier nation, Friday night was something akin to a baby’s first flu shot – scary, but in the end, really not that bad. Oh, there was dread. For weeks, there hung over Assembly Hall like a Big Ten championship banner lingering questions: “Can these Hoosiers even beat Anderson? Are they really that bad?” No.

Hoosiers bowl hopes blown away by Wisconsin

Ben Chappell saw daylight and sprinted toward the end zone. Preparing to slide at the Wisconsin 4-yard line, he hoped to put IU in position to take a 27-21 halftime lead. For a brief moment, it seemed as if the collective fan base thought maybe, just maybe, this Hoosier team could pull out a win and keep its bowl hopes alive. Only Wisconsin defensive back Jay Valai popped Chappell near the neck, sending the sophomore quarterback out of the game, the ball tumbling into the Badgers’ possession and effectively starting the rout that resulted in a 55-20 Wisconsin win. “We lost our players,” said IU coach Bill Lynch. “I think the turning point of the game was it’s 21-20, we recover a fumble and our quarterback, who’s playing awfully well, runs the ball, gets hit and loses the ball. We lost our quarterback, we lost the ball.”

IU wins Crean’s coaching debut

The IU men’s basketball team went on an 11-0 run to start the game and never looked back, easily defeating Division III Anderson 103-71 in Tom Crean’s coaching debut. Pacing the Hoosiers were junior guard Devan Dumes and freshman forward Tom Pritchard. Dumes scored 22 points, while Pritchard added a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. “It’s good to have a game that they played against somebody else,” Crean said. “And now they really feel like the season’s here.” The exhibition game marked not only Crean’s coaching debut, but also the first time the new-look Hoosiers competed against another team. IU overwhelmed the Ravens, scoring 35 points off turnovers while committing just 10 turnovers themselves. For what is likely to be one of the few times this season, IU had a size advantage over Anderson, which resulted in the Hoosiers taking just 11 3-point attempts and outscoring the Ravens 50-28 in the paint. Freshman guard Verdell Jones said part of IU’s game plan was to to exploit Anderson’s lack of size down low. “They were sort of an undersized team compared to us,” Jones said. “I think Tom (Pritchard) and Tijan (Jobe) and Nick (Williams) and those guys did a great job of getting the ball down low and making plays. That was pretty much our game plan.”

Crean era off and running in 103-71 win

The differences between last season and this season for IU men’s basketball are endless. But perhaps this became most apparent on Friday night, when the new-look Hoosiers took the floor against an opponent for the first time.     PODCAST: Hoosier Headlines

Fans losing faith in Lynch

IU coach Bill Lynch appeared angered when asked about his team’s morale after losing its seventh game, ending any hope of going to a bowl.“We’re going to keep battling, that’s what that morale is,” Lynch said forcibly.Others who were upset after Saturday’s 55-20 loss to Wisconsin were some of the Hoosiers’ most loyal fans.One of those fans is Brad Snyder, who went to Saturday’s game. A 1987 graduate with multiple degrees, Snyder said he has been following the Hoosiers for about 30 years. Snyder disagreed with Lynch’s belief that the team has been battling.

Badgers blow away IU 55-20

On their final home game of the season, everyone inside Memorial Stadium was treated to one more blowout. Losing to Wisconsin 55-20, the Hoosiers officially lost the chance to become bowl eligible long before the final whistle blew. Down 21-20 at the end of the first half, the Badgers rolled off 34 unanswered points in the second half. Decimated by injuries, IU failed to capitalize after winning the turnover battle and effectively hanging with Wisconsin in the first half. For the first two quarters, it was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams, and as the half came to a close it appeared as if the Hoosiers might head into the locker room with the lead. Driving inside the Wisconsin 10-yard line, sophomore quarterback Ben Chappell took an injury to the head, fumbled and the Hoosiers metaphorically fumbled away their season as the Badgers never looked back.

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Badgers come to Bloomington for Hoosiers’ last home game

Saturday, the IU football team plays the first of its final three games this year. To become bowl eligible, they must win all three. The Hoosiers start with their final home game against a struggling Wisconsin team.

Hoosiers close out regular season with ranked match

With returning All-Americans, depth at all positions and a top recruiting class, the IU men’s soccer team entered the season considered one of the best squads in the country.

World class amateur, IU golfer enjoys his global travels

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