Ratliff pours in 20 in IU upset victory
A.J. Ratliff walked toward the IU students at the south end of Branch McCracken Court, his arms raised to the rafters. There were 8.6 seconds remaining on the clock, but he cracked a smile anyway.
A.J. Ratliff walked toward the IU students at the south end of Branch McCracken Court, his arms raised to the rafters. There were 8.6 seconds remaining on the clock, but he cracked a smile anyway.
He scored a season-high 32 points against No. 7 Pittsburgh on Dec. 16, 2006. Fifteen days later he dropped 29 on Georgia. Then, last week, he scored 27 against the Iowa Hawkeyes and was named the Co-Big Ten Player of the Week. There are many reasons why the media named Wisconsin's Alando Tucker to the preseason first-team All-Big Ten team and why he's second in the conference in scoring.
It's nearly 2:30 p.m., almost the end of another school day at Bloomington High School South. As the afternoon announcements are wrapping up, the approximately 1,800 students at the school are left with a message. "Remember to pride yourself and the Panthers," the woman giving the announcement says. The high school certainly has something to take pride in this week. One of Bloomington South's former students, Chicago Bears quarterback Rex Grossman, is preparing to lead his team Sunday in Super Bowl XLI.
During intramural basketball season, the courts at the Wildermuth Intramural Center become jam-packed with sweaty male players shooting free throws, playing man-to-man defense and violently vying for rebounds.
MIAMI -- Brian Urlacher was so at ease, he slept on the flight to the Super Bowl. And when Sunday arrives, he'll make sure he tunes into his favorite morning fishing show on TV. Just to sort of chill.
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Sammy Sosa has a contract with the Texas Rangers and a chance to get back to the major leagues. Now the former slugger has to go to spring training and earn a spot on the roster.
With all of the hype surrounding any NCAA game -- let alone a game featuring the No. 2 team in the country -- it's easy to overanalyze the mental capacities of the players involved, to wonder if they'll be properly focused.
The men's tennis team traveled to South Bend on Monday with hopes of a big win, but instead it returned to Bloomington with its first loss of the season. Facing No. 13 Notre Dame, the No. 58 Hoosiers were swept, 7-0, losing each of the nine matches. "I am really, really disappointed," IU coach Ken Hydinger said. "We're better than this, and we didn't go out and fight."
What do Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the day after the Super Bowl have in common? Besides falling on the first day of the work week, not much. But freshman Zac Foutz and more than 4,000 other students hope that, like MLK Day, IU students can take the day off after the big game.
KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. -- Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro was euthanized Monday after complications from his breakdown at last year's Preakness, ending an eight-month ordeal that prompted an outpouring of support across the country. A series of ailments -- including laminitis in the left rear hoof, an abscess in the right rear hoof, as well as new laminitis in both front feet -- proved too much for the gallant colt. The horse was put down at 10:30 a.m. "Certainly, grief is the price we all pay for love," said co-owner Gretchen Jackson at a news conference.
MIAMI -- After his brother died in an auto accident last September, Reggie Wayne returned to the Indianapolis Colts to find Tony Dungy waiting to console him -- as only a man who has been through his own personal tragedies can do. "I was at the lowest point," Wayne recalled last week. "Just to hear it from someone who has been through it helps you a lot. Coach Dungy is a strong man -- a strong soul. It was huge for me." Dungy's tragedy came 13 months ago -- the suicide of his 18-year-old son James.
After losing their first dual of the season at Illinois last Sunday, Jan. 21, the No. 16 Hoosiers were looking to get back on the winning track against Ohio State this weekend.
Despite an early run, nine 3-point shots, a game-high 19 points from senior center Sarah McKay and four players scoring in double-digits, the IU women's basketball team was unable to snap its losing streak. The Hoosiers (13-9, 2-7 Big Ten) dropped a 65-63 contest against Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich., Sunday. The game was IU's fifth straight loss.
After months of grueling practice, the IU water polo season is finally under way. Playing four games in two days at the Michigan Kick-Off Tournament in Ann Arbor, Mich., the No. 20 Hoosiers finished the weekend 3-1. The Hoosiers split their games Saturday, routing UC-Santa Barbara 16-3 before falling to No. 13 Michigan 12-7. The Hoosiers capped off the weekend by going a perfect 2-0 Sunday, beating Colorado State 9-4 followed by a 7-5 victory against Marist.
In its final dual meet before the Big Ten championships, the IU men's swimming and diving team suffered a setback at Purdue.
It was all business for the IU women's tennis team Saturday when the Hoosiers improved to a flawless 6-0 record after defeating both the DePaul Blue Demons and the Butler Bulldogs at home. IU wasn't sure what it would see from the erratic Blue Demons, and no time had been spent toward scouting the underdog Butler squad. But coach Lin Loring's team demonstrated its professional approach to the game. Winning 5-2, the Hoosiers were prepared for the challenge DePaul presented, and Butler's element of surprise wasn't enough to prevent a 7-0 IU win.
In two "white outs" last season, the IU men's basketball team lost against two top-ranked teams -- the Duke Blue Devils and the Connecticut Huskies -- at Assembly Hall. That didn't stop IU sophomore Don Ueber from pushing Hoosier fans to turn Assembly Hall white when the No. 2 Wisconsin Badgers travel to Bloomington for Wednesday's game.
There is a lot at stake for the men's tennis team this afternoon as they hit the road for the first time this season. With a win today against No. 13 Notre Dame, the Hoosiers would boost their chances for postseason play. "If we win this match, we're in the driver's seat for going to the NCAAs," IU coach Ken Hydinger said.
This weekend's Gladstein Invitational saw the IU track and field teams make many strides as they gear up for the Big Ten Championships. The meet, in which more than 900 athletes participated, was hosted by the Hoosiers in the Harry Gladstein Fieldhouse for the second year in a row.
MELBOURNE, Australia -- Roger Federer captured his 10th Grand Slam singles title without dropping a set, finishing a dominating run through the Australian Open by beating Fernando Gonzalez of Chile 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-4 in Sunday's final.