Hoosier Weekend Wins & the Big 10/ACC challenge

It's a good thing I have the recent memory of the Hoosiers playing their best game in the Crean to beat Cornell going into tonight. I know, Cornell didn't have it's starting backcourt, but I was amazed at the way Pritchard took the ball at the 7-footer, Jeff Foote. Our wings did step up for the win, and Nick Williams was impressive, but I hate the way he turns over the ball. Williams is going to be a solid player for the Hoosiers for some time to come, but as long as Tom Pritchard keeps working like he has inside, Williams won't be the best player in this freshman class.
We'll see how Pritchard fares against the very tall and tough line-up of Wake Forest tonight. Indiana really got hosed on this one, but I guess they set up the match-up before everyone transferred out. I think our baseline of expectation should be similar to when the Hoosiers last traipsed over to Wake Forest in the Challenge and got thumped something like 100-65. I suspect we'll give up a 100 points, but I'm hoping we can score around 65. That's right, I am hoping that we lose by less than forty points tonight.

In other challenge notes, the Big Ten let an amazing opportunity slip away to maybe steal their first challenge when Iowa missed the front of a 1-and-1 with a second left to lose by two, and Illinois then also down two, didn't get a shot off with plenty of time remaining. But the Big Ten also caught something of break when senior Jack McClinton of Miami lost his mind and slapped a Buckeye freshman, and got ejected. OSU rallied for a big road win. Wisconsin started off the challenge winning for the first time in I-don't-know-when, usually Bo Ryan's teams play terribly in this contest, and Duke smacked Purdue down hard. Interior depth and offensive rebounding are now major concerns for the Boilermakers. If MSU was playing decent at all, (and they might be if Suton was healthy), they'd be by far my favorites for the conference title. But with all of this, the Big 10 could be up 5-1 and only needing a single win to pull off the challenge upset for the first time ever. Instead it's 3-3 and the only chances for victory over the ACC tonight are Michigan State at home against the UNC squad that has so far looked absolutely invulnerable, and Northwestern at home over Florida State. I would be shocked if Penn State was able to bump off Georgia Tech at home- they'd have to win the turnover & three-point shooting battles by a lot to offset GT's interior advantage- and Michigan winning at Maryland seems like a stretch, but it seems like that (plus NU & MSU victories) may be the best path of ending the ACC's dominance in the challenge. We all know IU's not in a position for even a moral victory- hopefully they get back to Bloomington without any injuries. Really, the Big Ten getting a single win tonight seems the most likely scenario.

IU Men's Soccer is only one game away from the Final Four! Unfortunately, that game will be at St. John's. I watched second half of the game against Michigan (who honestly looks better statistically than St. John's) in which IU was defensively sound and definitely the better team, but the Wolverines were actually a bounce here, and a shot off of the post there- to having a lead late in the game. Things finally broke the Hoosiers' way and as Michigan started pressing, the Hoosiers ran effective counter-attacks and walked off with a 3-0 win. Generally, I've been less-than-great at predicting soccer matches, but I like IU's chances, even on the road. I think the Hoosiers will out-shoot and out-possess St. John's, and as St. John's keeper doesn't seem to be any more gifted than Chay Cain at making saves, I'm betting the Hoosier offense strikes in the first half. I wouldn't bet that the Hoosiers do as well in the second half as they did against Michigan, so I'm thinking St. John's rallies at home to send it to OT, but here's where the Hoosier depth and new-found ability to counter-attack should pay off. IU 2-1 over St. John's in OT.
The only caveat I have is that these Hoosiers have stayed out of red card trouble so far this year, and usually there's at least one that IU gets hit with per season that just seems undeserved. If it happens at St. John's, that's a mighty hard obstacle to overcome.

Will the last one out of Assembly Hall please...

turn off lights? Taber? Crawford?

Finkelmeier?

Well, Brandon McGee got booted, and it sounds pretty bad, as Crean said he felt bad for McGee's family & high school coach who were trying to help keep him on the team. Certainly Crean has a right to create his own team and program, but I was rather hoping McGee would be the sort of player who grew up and responded better to a new coaching style, like Tom Coverdale. Yeah, McGee only averaged 1.5 points and saw very few minutes, but he was the tallest athletic talent we had returning. The fact that McGee dripped athleticism, had a nice outside shot (I believe he hit 4 threes in an exhibition game last fall), and was a consensus top-100 recruit coming into IU made me think that McGee was quite possibly a star in the making. But we knew next year was going to be rough for the Hoosiers, now it'll be just be a little rougher. 3 wins in the conference? Maybe. I hope the Hoosiers land 6-7 Emmanuel Negedu, even tho it seems likely he'll head to Memphis.

I watched a little of the NBA, and remembered why I don't like it. The officiating drives me nuts. The last two minutes of any game aren't basketball, it's some sort of rugby or something, and periodically whistles blow followed by strange and terrible decisions. The last few possessions of the Spurs-Lakers game 1 is a case in point. First, the ball goes out of bounds as Tim Duncan gets a rebound and as half-nelsoned by Pau Gasol. Duncan of course drops the ball and the whistle blows- ball out of bounds to the Lakers. Then the ball gets loose on the ensuing possession, and Manu Ginobili clearly is the only person touching it as it sails into the stands- ball out of bounds to the Spurs.

I know, you're probably thinking "make-up" call, too, but then as the Lakers come back down with the score now tied, Kobe Bryant gives Bruce Bowen a fore-arm that would raise any college ref's whistle (when one guy goes flying and the other has elbow sticking out like a chicken wing, it's called an offensive foul in the game of basketball). Bowen goes flying, to no call, as Kobe is all alone to drain the go-ahead shot. When the Spurs come back down, Ginobili misses a shot, the ball bounces around, and then it looks like Ginobili is about to have possession when he gets *tackled* from behind. The ball squirts out to a Laker, the game is essentially over. And I'm sitting there thinking, why do I watch this mockery of the game I love?

Oh yeah, I don't. And over the last ten years, people are joining me in watching something else. There's a bit of a bump this season, I think because of the post-writer's strike landscape on television these days. There's very little else to watch but the NBA playoffs if you've any interest in basketball.

Sure sure, I hate the Lakers, but what I hate more is the way "star power" and late-game fear corrupts the NBA whistles. Defensive prowess isn't respected the way offensive talent is in the league, and refs are scared of making a call that ends the game, and the players know it, so they can just maim with abandon in the final minute. I could expand this to discuss how the NBA is a more explicitly money-driven league that rigs the rules to give the fans a show, and how the allure of money-making & the culture of celebrity ruins everything, but I'll save my old-man-curmudgeon rant for another day.

Big Ten-ACC Preview, weekend results

I was wary of the Musketeers and for good reason. XU spanked IU 80-65. They were vulnerable inside (DJ went for 16 points & 10 rebounds), but from what little I've been able to see of the Hoosiers this season, they're working outside-in instead of inside-out. You're going to have nights where the threes don't fall (and boy, going 1 -for-15 is one of those nights) and you have to find other ways to win. The Hoosiers won 21 games last season riding DJ White. Eric Gordon is awesome, but you have to find ways to have a chance to win every game if you want to be a championship squad. It's not that Indiana should subdue Gordon's game, it's that Indiana should work on using the talent it has in the paint early on to get opponents into foul trouble. Having a twosome like DJ White and DeAndre Thomas is a rare thing, and it'd take a very unusual team (last year's Florida squad maybe?) to play them straight up.

Sure, you can just rely on one of your players being awesome, but it's just a lot better to move the ball around and get open perimeter shots when foes are having to double down into the paint. I think you better quality looks at the three, and it gives you better chances for dribble penetration and backdoors once a couple of those threes fall. Also, fouling out your foes is an excellent strategy, as it forces your opponents having to throw unusual combinations of players on the floor, who aren't used to playing with each other. I hope this loss will enable Sampson to get his players to realize that it's a team game, and a strategic game, too. I'm sure Sampson will also concentrate on the number of offensive rebounds given up (overall rebounding was pretty even, but Xavier missed fewer shots and still got more offensive boards), and the need not have let-downs, etc.

Big Ten-ACC Challenge starts tonight!
This year ought to be interesting. I still think the ACC probably wins it, although I'd project a narrow 6-5 victory. The seeding is all screwed up, tho. UNC plays middle-of-the-pack Ohio State and likely NIT squad Georgia Tech visits front-running Indiana?

Tonight:
Wake Forest(3-0) at Iowa (4-2)
I'll go with the home team on this match-up of cellar-dwellers. No disrespect to Wake, but I see them as last place in the ACC, and I just can't imagine they'll be able to outlast Iowa in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Tuesday:
Georgia Tech (3-2) at Indiana (4-1)
Mismatch? Oh yeah. GT's cause isn't helped by the fact that IU's coming off a loss.

Northwestern (1-3) at Virginia (5-1)
This one's gonna be ugly. NU still doesn't have a D-I win, and the Cavs will make sure that continues.

Minnesota (3-1) at Florida State (5-2)
This one is hard to handicap, as Minnesota has a solid road win already over Iowa State and FSU has fallen to Cleveland State and South Florida, but just hammered Florida. I'm defaulting (barely) to the home team, but this is one to watch!

Wisconsin (5-0) at Duke (6-0)
Is Duke ever going to play a road game in the Challenge? I still am not on the Duke bandwagon, even after they beat Marquette, but Wisconsin usually disappoints against the ACC.

Purdue (3-0) at Clemson (6-0)
That 3-0 record of the Boilermakers might fool you into thinking that Purdue is actually an okay squad. The three wins were all home games against inferior competition, and Purdue barely got by Lipscomb (66-62). Clemson is a good team that has a shot at the Sweet 16. The result is not in doubt here. Clemson by a lot.

Wednesday
NCSU (4-1) at Michigan State (4-1)
This should be a solid game, but the Spartans are a good team (if not great, just yet) and are at home. The call goes for the Green.

Boston College (4-0) at Michigan (3-3)
Although BC just got a nice win against Rhode Island, I still don't think the under-sized Eagles are strong enough to go into Michigan and pull out the road win. Michigan is not going to be one of the better teams in the Big 10, but they'll do okay at home.

Illinois (4-1) at Maryland (4-2)
This is the second game where the Big Ten might reverse its fate and finally claim a challenge. The Illini have a much better chance at the NCAA tourney than Maryland, but right now the Terrapins are playing well, & they'll be at home. Fear the Turtle.

Virginia Tech (2-2) at Penn State (2-3)
This is another very tough to call. Again, I default to the home team, but this is where the ACC could make up for an earlier surprise loss by FSU or Maryland. Penn State has more talent than last year, but still has not been able to put together a good win. VT is in full rebuilding mode, but Vassallo and Washington are dangerous.

North Carolina (5-0) at Ohio State (4-1)
Sure, I'd love to see the Buckeyes spring the home upset over UNC, but the Tarheels are an elite team. OSU is not, and the freshmen are still learning. UNC, and the ACC, for the W.

Not a great weekend for Hoosier fans:
The Women's soccer team lost at home to Duke, 2-0. The Hoosiers had their chances, but the Blue Devils go on. However, it was a great year for the Women's Soccer team, and with only one starter lost to graduation, next year could be even better.

The Men's soccer team (13-4-4) faces Bradley (15-5-3) at Bill Armstrong Stadium on Wednesday. I think the IU probably takes this one, but they really need to start scoring multiple goals or the season's over.

Go Hoosiers!