Tuesday, January 23, 2007

IU 43 Illinois 51

I always hate to lose, but I REALLY hate to lose like that. IU was winning 18-11 with 12:00 to go in the first half and then managed to score only 19 points over the next 30 minutes. I just can't....awww, screw it, I'm not talking about this crap-ass game. I will at least give the final poll results: Only 3 out of 16 voters saw this loss coming. As for the most hated Illinois player: 5 - Dee Brown 3 - Nick Anderson (damn half-court shot ruined Jay Edwards' heroics) 2 - Lucas Johnson 2 - Other 1 - Frank Williams (screwed Haston out of Big Ten MVP) 1 - Nick Smith 1- Deron Williams

10 comments:

Unknown said...

Looks like Brian Randle might not play tonight. That should help the Hoosiers. Should be a nasty environment tonight but this team is tougher than recent Hoosier teams. If they rebound a little better than they did against UConn and continue to hit their free throws, they should have a chance.

DJ White was Big Ten player of the week for last weeks efforts. Also, the Hoosiers are #1 in the Big Ten in free throw shooting in conference games after being tenth out of 11 in non-conference games.

Unknown said...

How about the IU recruit that is suspended for playing ball b/c of shoving an official last season, and now apparently was nearly shot on his way to a party this last weekend. Sounds like a shaky resume at best. I hope Sampson did his homework on this guy. The last thing he needs this early in his IU career is poor character players.

jdhoosier said...

That would be great if Randle didn't play. Pruitt is also bothered by a knee injury, but expected to play.

Anybody see any word on the status of Calloway and Ratliffe's injuries? I'm assuming they'll both be ready to go.

Sean, everything you said about Eli Holman is true. However, most officials deserve to be slapped around a little bit. And getting nearly shot or grazed by a bullet is a lot different than getting shot and dying. Also, William Gladness got shot before arriving in Bloomington and he went on to become IU's 714th greatest player of all-time.

Sounds like Holman is a bit questionable from a character standpoint, but he does have the wingspan of a 7-footer and is a great shot-blocker, so I don't mind IU giving him a shot. Also, sounds like Holman could really use a change of atmosphere and some guidance, so hopefully Bloomington and Sampson can provide that. Plus, 100% of the attention will be on Eric Gordon.

Unknown said...

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Holman doesn't deserve a chance or passing early judgement, I would just hate to see Sampson take a black eye on a bad character recruit now that it seems he is finally starting to build a support base. Of course, as long as they continue to win, I'm sure much more will be looked past.

On an additional somewhat IU related note, today ends a 5-year new music drought as Mellencamp released his new album 'Freedom Road'. I'm giving it a first listen now and so far so good.

Unknown said...

Prediction: IL 65 IU 60. I obviously want IU to win, but Illinois this is a MUST WIN for Illinois and its going to be a poisonous crowd full of hatred for IU and Sampson. I just have a feeling that the Hoosiers will face their toughest road test tonight and will probably come up a little short. HOWEVER, win or lose they will be ready for any, and I mean any, road environment going forward. That means wins at MSU and Purdue.

If IU wins tonight, I predict a sweep of the remaining schedule.

Unknown said...

I agree tonight will be a Nasty Environment. However, I believe IU will pull this out. I think there is extra motivation for Sampson in this game and he will have the team ready to play!

After the win, I predict Bruce Webber won't shake Sampsons hand. This will cause 40 Cent to run over to Bruce Webber, pull that UGLY orange jacket over his head, give him a wedgy and push him over the scorers table! Afterwards, 40 will not be suspended since Webber deserves this!!

Just a hunch?!?!

Unknown said...

Oh ya, over the last week or so, I have been chosen to win 2 free Ipod Nano's 4 times when logging onto the blog! Thanks for the 8 Nano's Jeff!

Tom Earth said...

Hoosiers are coming back. The IU flags should be out at the next dead ball. I think that will carry IU to victory.

Since logging onto the site, I have stockpiled 68 Nanos. I am not sure exactly what they are but I hope they can be eatten as a snack.

Unknown said...

Plaaayoffs?!? You want to talk about Plaaayoffs?!? I just want to win a damn game. Plaaayoffs! -Jim Mora.

Well the loss was expected, but 43 points was not expected. Both teams stunk, we just stunk worse.

I think the team needs to get some rest. DJ has been logging a lot of minutes and they just came of a trip out East against an athletic UCONN team. Maybe that accounts for the sluggish play?? Anyone else have a good reason? Please tell me it wasn't Illinois' Defense.

I'm actually stating to dispise Illinois more than Purdue. Anyone else feeling that?

Unknown said...

I can honestly say that I despise Illinois more than Purdue. Bruce Weber is a jag. Just because they are having a 'sub-par" season doesn't mean it is all Sampson's fault. I like what Digger and Vilas said on the post game last night...the whole Gordon thing is whining.

So far, it seems like they have 2 scoring options right now (1)DJ White down low and (2) The 3-ball. As long as both are on, we are in good shape. However, if one or both aren't working, the team is in trouble. They need another scoring option to take the pressure off of DJ and the 3's. I like 40 Cent, but he needs to quit missing the easy lay-ups(and he usually misses badly). The whole team needs to drive to the basket more often for a higher % shot or to draw a foul.

Enough of that, I nice win over Michigan will get us back on track!