Paul:
Wow, what a perfect breakdown of those two classic games which so closely parallel each other. I’d like to add one difference, which was the Indiana coaches’ reactions to the respective game-winning shots. I think I remember Mike Davis falling to his knees in disbelief for a good 10 seconds, a stark contrast to Crean’s icy “swag” walk to half-court.
Furthermore, I found myself getting caught up in excitement when reading your comparison of what could happen next year, similar to the 2002 season. Past years have shown that the NCAA tournament is won by teams who play together, teams that have a solid mix of young talent and experience. Clearly, this is something Crean has aspired to in his rebuilding of this program. Fred Glass actually commented on that after the game last night, saying something to the extent of how he is so glad Tom Crean is committed to building a team of high-character men, while Calipari would rather serve as an NBA preparatory advisor. I know it’s looking ahead, but man….just imagine this team with 1 more year of experience, minus VJIII and Pritchard, plus the Fab Five. That has the potential to be a special group.
The only thing I hope is that Indiana does not suffer from what Bill Simmons calls “the disease of more”. Although I have confidence that Crean would squash anything like this, the idea goes that once a team has a good amount of success, the players will start looking out for themselves more so than the overall good. With so much talent on the team next year, competition for playing time and recognition will be fierce, and preservation of self-interests could arise as players beginning to think about the NBA, national exposure etc. Again, I don’t think Tom Crean or the rest of the staff would allow this to happen, just a thought.
As for this season’s expectations: Before the UK game, I saw us finishing 6th in the Big10 as a bubble team that could pull a first round upset in the tournament. Afterwards, I see us as a team that could make a Sweet 16 run, finishing closer to 4th in the Big10. I completely agree with you in thinking that UK (and everyone else we played before yesterday) probably took us lightly, and that this underestimation will never happen again this season. It’s going to be a real adjustment to go from the hunter to the hunted. Like you mentioned, the key here is sustainability. Crean even talked to that point in his post-game press conference. Paraphrasing, Coach mentioned that he sold the program to recruits on the basis that nights like Saturday could happen all the time. Michael Jordan used to say the difference between 1 championship and 2 championships is monumental. On a smaller scale, the difference between winning one huge game, and making winning a habit, is just as large. Developing a bit of a theme here, I think Tom Crean is again the right man for the job in this aspect; the key to winning consistently is mindset and mental toughness, which in my opinion is the greatest strength of the perma-tanned savior of Bloomington.
As for rankings, I would say we would be somewhere around 15. Voters will probably look at our schedule, see who we’ve beat, be impressed by the undefeated record and the two shiny wins, and take note. Frankly, I think it isn’t as meaningful as people are making it out to be. However, it will be an exciting and well-deserved gift for both the fans and players when they see that number next to the name “Indiana” on the ESPN bottom line.
What do you think about the potential for a tourney run of this team? Also, I suspect readers will be anxious to jump on the fact that we’re both changing long-run assumptions largely based on 1 game, however epic that game was. We might as well justify these changed expectations while we’re at it. What specifically did you see in the game last night (other than the fact that we won) that elevated your respect for this team? What do you think we still need to work on going forward, and what do you see as the greatest challenge for the 2011-12 Indiana Hoosiers?
Steve:
Just like the loss doesn’t change the fact that Kentucky is national title contender, I don’t think this win really changes IU’s chances at making the tournament. This is still December and although the Hoosiers have made big strides, this team still hasn’t proven they can handle the grueling schedule the B1G has to offer. That being said, I’m still going to be cautiously optimistic and say that we make the tournament as an 8 or 9 seed and finish 5th in the B1G. A Sweet 16 run isn’t out of the realm of possibility, but I’ll take any tournament experience, even if it’s one and done, in preparation for the recruiting class arriving next year.
To the questions you posed I would say that what I like and what we need to work on are one in the same and I’ll explain. When we’ve seen success on the offensive end, it all goes through Zeller. He opens up the perimeter which either leaders to open three pointers (which according to Dick Vitale are like lay-ups for us) or allows us to penetrate and break down the defense from the interior. The Hoosiers finally have a great mix between sharp shooters and slashers. Another thing I’ve noticed is that we don’t rely on one or two players. Last year, for instance, we relied heavily on C-Wat, VJIII and Hulls. Each of these players scoring averages have decreased from the previous year, but they have all been more efficient in how they score the ball; especially Hulls. Hulls has established himself as the Hoosiers floor general and at the same time one of the country’s best spot up three point shooters making them at a 50%+ rate.
On the flip side, whenever you see the Hoosiers struggling on offense, the common theme is that Zeller doesn’t touch the ball. We still fall into old habits of trying to play one on one rather than focusing on moving the ball and trying to feed the post. Granted, this is the first time in 4 years we’ve had the luxury of having a low post option. I expect this to improve as Zeller get’s more comfortable and assertive in this offense. As much as the problem is the other player’s aren’t looking for him, he isn’t demanding the ball and looks to get his teammates into scoring opportunities rather than looking for them himself. Once they start consistently getting Zeller touches in their half court offense, we’ll really get to see what this team can do.
As much as all we want to do is talk offense, a lot of our success and improvement has come on the defensive side of the ball. In 2010, the Hoosiers averaged right around 9 points per game off of turnovers. So far this seaso, they are averaging over 20 points per game off of turnovers and Saturday against Kentucky, the Hoosiers forced 16 turnovers and converted those into 23 points. We can talk all day about the new look offense, but for the first time under CTC, the Hoosiers are playing defense for 40 minutes.
I want to close out our conversation by asking you to address those that would question why IU would rush the court after any game? It seems as though there are quite a few people, Hoosiers and non-Hoosiers a like, that seem to think Hoosier Nation should be above that and I wanted to get your opinion on the matter?
Paul:
Steve, I agree with you on the break-down. It’s real simple, everything has to go through Zeller. Saturday, I was extremely upset when Anthony Davis came back in the game with around 7 minutes to go, and didn’t get challenged at all. In the last 7 minutes, Cody touched the ball twice, once fading away and once getting stuck under the basket and quickly kicking it out. During that same period of time, the lead vanished. While some of it was due to Kentucky’s quickness on offense and ability to score in bunches, it was clear that we had reverted back to our 2009-2010 offense of playing 1-on-1 and forcing bad shots through Jones and Watford.
At some point, you have to step back and say “OK, what is our plan if we have 1 possession, down by 1 with 20 seconds left”. Although it became obvious that Christian showed he is ready to step up and be the leader offensively, I still think he (and everyone else) is still better served getting his touch later in the possession, after Cody’s touch has created rotation and movement in the defense. One example I look at is Derek Elston. Last season he looked downright clumsy on offense most of the time. This year, he has learned to use Zeller as a compliment and has found a terrific niche with his mid-range jumper…off of which he can shot fake and drive as well.
Defensively, I was extremely impressed by Cody’s ability to stay out of foul trouble and Watford’s physicality with Terrence Jones. On the perimeter, Hulls looked slow guarding both Teague and Lamb, but I think I’ll let that slide given the talent of those two guards. Like you mentioned, Victor continues to remain active and wreak havoc on opponents’ offenses, and has been a key to our success.
As for storming the court, I think most of the negative sentiment has come from people a bit more disconnected with Bloomington. After all, it is the students who ultimately determine what is going to happen when it comes down to it. What I would say to anyone disappointed with the storming of the court is this: If you were on campus in the week building up to this game, you would understand. Walk by Assembly Hall, walk down Kirkwood, read the Indiana Daily Student newspaper, hell even just go on twitter and search #iubb.
I get the other side of the argument. Indiana is a program that has seen 5 National Titles. This was a regular season game (and just one game at that). But the bottom line is this:
-This was a game that we had been waiting for since the day Kelvin Sampson left Bloomington with a mushroom cloud over it
-This was a game against our most hated rival
-This was a crowd that was made up partly of juniors and seniors who have been the butt of more college basketball jokes than Anthony Davis’ unibrow during their college careers
-This was the #1 team in the nation
-Christian Watford hit a game-winning 3 as time expired
I think Coach Crean said it better than I ever could “Our fans deserve that. They deserve to storm the court, they deserve to stand on chairs and tables and be excited”
Steve:
I tweeted a question in the hour following the win over Kentucky to my follower’s and I’d like to pose it to the reader’s of this blog. My answer is my apartment and Paul’s is Assembly Hall … the question … Where were you when Christian Watford showed the nation that Indiana University basketball is back?