Man, that was an intense game. For me, it was intense because I felt like it was a must-win for the Hoosiers. Coming off a road loss and 2 games on the road next week, they absolutely had to have this one at home. When they were down 3 late in the game, I wasn't feeling too good. The important thing is that they found a way to win and they remain undefeated at home.
Bassett was the CBS player of the game and was very deserving. He constantly looks to penetrate and puts pressure on the defense. That was a huge bucket late in the game (too bad he missed the free throw).
As Tom already noted in his comments, Stemler was absolutely horrible. That guy has sunk to new lows. So much so that Andy has invited him to the exclusive club of getting a nickname based on poor play (see poll question). Stemler's poor play also prompted another poll question and that's who should be getting the minutes at the 4-spot? Today, Zeke (Xavier Keeling) got the start. Zeke played ok (hit all 4 of his FTs), but was shaky with the ball and didn't have a single rebound. Mike White played a few minutes but didn't do a whole lot. Stemler came in and played like he had oven mitts on both hands -- he couldn't handle the ball, he couldn't hit wide-open shots, and he missed yet another front-end at the line.
I don't know what it is but Illinois seems to bring out the worst in us, so I am really happy that we managed a win. Wilmont was solid again with 17 points, 6 boards, and 2 steals. However, with about a minute to go, he missed the layup on a 2-on-1 fast-break that would have given IU the lead. Fortunately, that didn't matter in the end, but that is a situation where you have to come away with points.
D.J. was OK today. He finished with 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks. I really like his turn-around jump-shot and think he needs to use that more, even when the double-team comes at him. Whenever he tries to bull his way to the hoop, he looks awkward and usually misses the shot. Stick with the turn-around jumper as the bread & butter move. If the defense overplays it, then go to the other moves.
Calloway had his typical game of some great plays and some horrible plays. I actually thought he got hosed on a couple of the traveling calls. He did hit the 2 big FTs at the end of the game and has surprisingly become the team's best FT shooter.
Everyone else was pretty much a non-factor, including Ratliff.
It's 2 on the road in the coming week. Hopefully, they can find a way to play better on the road and pull out a couple victories. One thing is pretty much guaranteed....it won't be easy.
Go Hoosiers!
***********************
Pre-game Comments:
Hopefully, IU is fully prepared to seek revenge on Illinois today. I have a feeling that the "rebounding bubble" was welded on to the hoops all week. The Hoosiers have been very good at home this year and I see that trend continuing with a big 76-62 victory today.
Here are the Final Poll Results for this week:
Predicting today's game:
7 votes for win by 14-20
2 votes for win by 7-13
2 votes for win by 6 or less
1 vote for they'll lose
Of the remaining 4 road games, how many will IU win?
8 votes for 3 games
4 votes for 2 games
1 vote for 0 games
I have to admit that these results surprised me a little bit. 8 votes for winning 3 of their last 4 road games when they have only won 2 road games all year. And those 2 wins have been against UConn who has fallen off the face of the earth and a bad Penn State team. Let's just say that I would be very happy if a majority of the voters were right on this won and the Hoosiers won 3 of those games.
And finally, looking back at the biggest factor in the loss at Iowa....
5 votes for rebounding
2 votes for officiating
1 vote for D.J.'s bad game
1 vote for the FT differential
1 vote for Haluska
Go Hoosiers!
Bassett was the CBS player of the game and was very deserving. He constantly looks to penetrate and puts pressure on the defense. That was a huge bucket late in the game (too bad he missed the free throw).
As Tom already noted in his comments, Stemler was absolutely horrible. That guy has sunk to new lows. So much so that Andy has invited him to the exclusive club of getting a nickname based on poor play (see poll question). Stemler's poor play also prompted another poll question and that's who should be getting the minutes at the 4-spot? Today, Zeke (Xavier Keeling) got the start. Zeke played ok (hit all 4 of his FTs), but was shaky with the ball and didn't have a single rebound. Mike White played a few minutes but didn't do a whole lot. Stemler came in and played like he had oven mitts on both hands -- he couldn't handle the ball, he couldn't hit wide-open shots, and he missed yet another front-end at the line.
I don't know what it is but Illinois seems to bring out the worst in us, so I am really happy that we managed a win. Wilmont was solid again with 17 points, 6 boards, and 2 steals. However, with about a minute to go, he missed the layup on a 2-on-1 fast-break that would have given IU the lead. Fortunately, that didn't matter in the end, but that is a situation where you have to come away with points.
D.J. was OK today. He finished with 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks. I really like his turn-around jump-shot and think he needs to use that more, even when the double-team comes at him. Whenever he tries to bull his way to the hoop, he looks awkward and usually misses the shot. Stick with the turn-around jumper as the bread & butter move. If the defense overplays it, then go to the other moves.
Calloway had his typical game of some great plays and some horrible plays. I actually thought he got hosed on a couple of the traveling calls. He did hit the 2 big FTs at the end of the game and has surprisingly become the team's best FT shooter.
Everyone else was pretty much a non-factor, including Ratliff.
It's 2 on the road in the coming week. Hopefully, they can find a way to play better on the road and pull out a couple victories. One thing is pretty much guaranteed....it won't be easy.
Go Hoosiers!
***********************
Pre-game Comments:
Hopefully, IU is fully prepared to seek revenge on Illinois today. I have a feeling that the "rebounding bubble" was welded on to the hoops all week. The Hoosiers have been very good at home this year and I see that trend continuing with a big 76-62 victory today.
Here are the Final Poll Results for this week:
Predicting today's game:
7 votes for win by 14-20
2 votes for win by 7-13
2 votes for win by 6 or less
1 vote for they'll lose
Of the remaining 4 road games, how many will IU win?
8 votes for 3 games
4 votes for 2 games
1 vote for 0 games
I have to admit that these results surprised me a little bit. 8 votes for winning 3 of their last 4 road games when they have only won 2 road games all year. And those 2 wins have been against UConn who has fallen off the face of the earth and a bad Penn State team. Let's just say that I would be very happy if a majority of the voters were right on this won and the Hoosiers won 3 of those games.
And finally, looking back at the biggest factor in the loss at Iowa....
5 votes for rebounding
2 votes for officiating
1 vote for D.J.'s bad game
1 vote for the FT differential
1 vote for Haluska
Go Hoosiers!
Posts
7 comments:
it was so nice the other night turning on the TV and seeing mike davis on someone else's bench! i hope vaden enjoys playing at UAB. loser!
A win is a win but that was ugly. Stemler is getting to be just as bad as Bendeman. His defense is bad and he cannot knock down an open shot. It seemed like IU shot a lot worse that 70% from the line today. They also hit their first two 3s and then only made 1 out of the next 8. I am really surprised IU won today. It didn't seem like they deserved it. With that said, they are 7-3 in the Big Ten with games against NW, Penn State and Minnesota left. I hope they can hold onto the #3 spot in the Big Ten. That should give them a high seed for the Big Dance.
First off...I love the Sampson t-shirts, blue with the red tie...classic! I will definitely pick one up next time I'm down in B-town...July 4th Baby!
As far as the game goes, am I going crazy or did CBS only show the second half of the IU game. (In Wisconsin) Oh well, the ending is what mattered...a good, much needed win.
Ben, you're not crazy. CBS-Milwaukee brilliantly planned a whole hour time-slot for a college basketball game.
Fortunately for me, I am a master of procrastination and had not yet cancelled my DirecTV Sports Pack from the ESPNU game, so I was able to find the first half on some other channel.
I'm with Ben on the Sampson T-shirts. If I had one (and I will eventually), I'd wear it to work on Monday given all the Illini fans here. Fortunately, here in Chicagoland we had IU and CBS and Wisc on ESPN. Why only Weber and not Sampson participating in the "Suits and Sneakers" event?
I'm just grateful that Illinois kept turning the ball over (in a few critical situations)and couldn't hit anything down the stretch. we're very lucky to walk away with another win.
Sean, Jeff, Tom and I are going to the NW game on Feb 28. I have 4 more tickets if you or any of your friends are interested. Just let me know. They are located up high in the cheap seats, but that's OK at Welsh-Ryan Arena which ain't much bigger than many highschool gyms in Indiana.
Peegs had some recent game stats from all 5 players in next year's recruiting class.
Another big game from Eli Holman -- 31 points, 12 rebounds, 7 blocks, and 7 assists.
Gordon only had 17 points in his game, but still shot it at a high percentage (6-10 FG and 2-4 3-PT).
JuCo Jamarcus Ellis had a nice game with 20 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists. Through 24 games, he is averaging 15.8 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game. 45.7% FGs and 81% FTs.
Brandon McGee had 12 points and 8 rebounds.
Jordan Crawford had 10 points & 11 assists in one game and 13 points and 7 assists in another game. However, those numbers aren't too spectacular considering his Hargrave Prep School team scored 156 and 119 points in those games.
Sampson did particiapte in the Sneakers deal. His were black though. I read about it in the Sunday Suntimes. I guess the IU fans didn't know about the Coaches for Cancer program and were ripping on Webber for wearing gym shoes. I guess his daughter was in the stands and told him about it. One of the great lines from the game was the IU fans were chanting I-L-L....D-U-I. Either Pruitt or Randle had a DUI recently. I like that chant better than "Stand up old people."
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