Sports

Pacers looking to score – plenty

Seventeen players. Sixteen guaranteed contracts. Fifteen available roster spots. One Jamaal Tinsley. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the 2008-09 Indiana Pacers. On Monday, the Pacers kicked off training camp with media day, when players moved station to station to take photos and give interviews.

A Jimmie Johnson 3-peat won’t come easy

Reading the box score of the final laps of last Sunday’s Camping World RV 400 at Kansas Speedway would certainly have left one thinking the finish of the race was all Jimmie Johnson – and that would be partially correct.

Beat-up IU football team hits the road

The score was not the only painful thing about IU’s loss to Michigan State. The list of Hoosiers wounded almost out distanced the number of mistakes.  The Hoosiers (2-2) have little time to rest, as they head to Minneapolis – their first road trip of the year – this weekend to take on a rising Minnesota (4-1) team led by Eric Decker, one of the top pass-catchers in the nation. “They have an outstanding quarterback, a very good wideout in Decker, and the defense is very sound,” IU coach Bill Lynch said to the media Tuesday. “They have some new guys over there that are very athletic.”

Tired and true: ‘Old Man Favre’ needs to go

Memorial Stadium ain’t so memorial

Allenspach right for AD search committee, students

Volleyball faces defending national champions, No. 1 Penn State

The IU volleyball team might have thought it had it tough last weekend, facing two top-20 teams, Illinois and Purdue. But those teams are nothing compared to the next monster IU will encounter today at the University Gym.

Basketball star inducted into IU Hall of Fame

As he walked into the room, ducking his 6-foot-9 frame under the door with his 19-month-old son Jacob in his arms and his wife Maxine trailing behind him, 35-year-old Alan Henderson knew he was the big man on campus, just as he was 13 years ago when he played for IU.A former IU men’s basketball player with 12 years of NBA experience, Henderson was inducted into the IU Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday night.

Men's golf finishes 5th in Cardinal Intercollegiate

Playing on a much easier golf course than during their first two tournaments, the IU men’s golf team came up short of expectations Tuesday.

Men's soccer uses extra period heroics to thwart Purple Aces

After losing 2-1 to unranked UC-Santa Barbara, the No. 20 Hoosiers traveled to Evansville on Tuesday to prove they remain of the NCAA’s elite teams. A 3-2 overtime win showed the team, though struggling, hasn’t gone away. IU coach Mike Freitag said IU regrouped well after losing to the Gauchos. “It shouldn’t have been close to that (score).” Freitag said. “We played very well from start to finish. Everyone played with the intensity, the composure, the fight we needed.”PODCAST: Hoosier Sidelines

IU releases response to NCAA charge

In a letter to the NCAA released Monday, the IU Athletics Department denied it failed to monitor the IU men’s basketball program’s recruiting practices under former coach Kelvin Sampson. For several reasons listed in the letter, the University asserts the allegation is “not an appropriate finding.”

IU club hockey roster set

The IU club hockey team took to the ice last Friday night for an intrasquad exhibition game at Frank Southern Ice Arena in Bloomington for one final shakedown. The coaches divided the squad into two separate teams to help determine starters and finalize the roster.

Weekend of sports facilitates escape

You know, I really wanted to write about how my Chicago White Sox beat up on the Detroit Tigers to force a one-game playoff, but thanks to Mother Nature, that wasn’t possible – the game was delayed for too long. But the writing must go on. While my heart is currently with the White Sox, I realize this weekend was a pretty good one for sports. There was pretty much something for everyone.

Capobianco: ‘I’m not worried’

With the recent pledge from 6-foot-11 center Bawa Muniru, IU men’s basketball coach Tom Crean now has six commitments from the 2009 class, although he only has room to give away five available scholarships. Muniru’s commitment last Thursday leaves 14 potential scholarship players in the fold for next year’s IU squad. But NCAA rules limit teams to 13 scholarships with the Big Ten permitting the Hoosiers to over-sign by one. Crean will be forced to make an adjustment should all six sign, but that hasn’t stopped him from recruiting for next year. Despite Muniru’s commitment, four-star recruit Chris Braswell visited this past weekend.

Rough atmosphere awaits IU men's soccer’s chance to rebound

After the team’s 2-1 loss to UC-Santa Barbara on Saturday night, IU men’s soccer coach Mike Freitag said his biggest concern was the “casualness” his team displayed on the field. The Hoosiers hope to show a more aggressive approach today when they travel to Evansville for an 8 p.m. showdown against the Purple Aces. This weekend’s loss dropped the Hoosiers to a No. 17 national ranking and 4-2-2 on the season. The Purple Aces are 6-2 and coming off their largest margin of victory this year, a 6-0 win over Centenary.

IU releases response to NCAA

In a letter to the NCAA released today, the IU Athletics Department denied that it failed to monitor the IU men’s basketball program’s recruiting practices. IU today released its response in letter form to the NCAA’s “failure to monitor” allegation leveled against the IU men’s basketball program in June.

Women's soccer team suffers rare pair of Big Ten losses at home

Losing Big Ten Conference games at home is not something to which the IU women’s soccer team is accustomed. In the previous two years, the Hoosiers have gone a combined 7-1-1 in-conference at Bill Armstrong Stadium. This weekend, however, the Hoosiers (5-6-0) dropped two home games as they opened conference play against No. 22 Penn State and Ohio State. Friday, IU lost to the Nittany Lions 1-0, and yesterday they were defeated by the Buckeyes by that same score.

IU men's golf team, new asst. head to Louisville

Two tournaments and two individual champions spell early-season success for the IU men’s golf team. Last week, the team also beat defending champion UCLA by 23 strokes. Junior Alex Martin – who won the most recent tournament, the Olympia Fields/Fighting Illini Invitational – said he hopes to gain confidence but added the team finish also meant a lot to him.

No. 6 Iowa overpowers IU field hockey team

Last November, Iowa ended IU’s season with an 8-2 victory in the Big Ten Tournament. In the Hoosiers’ first chance for revenge this season, it was more of the same. The No. 6 Hawkeyes (7-2) overpowered IU (5-4) with a 6-1 victory Friday afternoon at the IU Field Hockey Field. The Hoosiers played on their heels most of the day with only one shot on goal in the first 52 minutes. By the time sophomore Lena Grote scored IU’s lone goal in the 60th minute, Iowa was on cruise control with six scores of their own.

2 quarterback system looks promising

If you believe the Michigan State game was a must-win, you’re wrong. You’re being oblivious to the fact IU has two-thirds of its schedule left to play. Of the eight games to come, seven are Big Ten duels, including this week’s matchup at Minnesota. If you disagree, go to your local barber and rant in the chair, ’cause I don’t want to hear it.