DISQUS

I think going .500 is very reasonable if not an underestimate. The impact of Rivers is huge in terms of turnover ratio. He'a already one of the best defenders in the country. He was the "shut-down" guy on Georgetown's Final Four run. Furthermore, he won't toss it away like Jones and Moore. Crean was recently asked if there was any possibilty there could be 5 freshmen starters next year. The first guy he mentioned was Rivers making that a non-possibility.

Dumes gets the talent around him to get more space. He's a great shooter as we speak.

Watford is the real deal. He's ranked as 30 something nationally but is now a serious McDonald's All-American candidate and a match-up nightmare (still growing).

How can Pritchard not get better with a guy like Capo knocking down 12 footers? Taber craps himself every time he has an open shot. You get Capo banging around in there and Pritchard is alone on the week side? Capo's way ahead on the body development scale and actually kind of a freak. He prefers people to bang on him in the lane.

If 2 of the other 4 freshmen give a solid contribution (and I believe Creek and Elston will do exactly that) combined with Nick, Verdell, Matt & Malik getting stronger.....

It's a solid team and a foundation that has unlimited potential. I think that's why IU is being so careful with the 2010 class. There's no hurry to "settle" for someone. If they can wiggle a couple of top 50 kids in that class, look out Big Ten. It's on like Donkey Kong.

Pull his scholarship? Kick him off the team? 5 game suspension? I'll remind you folks this kid chose Indiana over Ohio State this year. The fact he walked into this rats nest of a season defines a lot of character. This guy has the potential to be All-Big Ten next season.

Clearly he needs to chill out and we'll leave that to the coach. There is a certain 1-2 game suspension on the horizon and I would be shocked if we see anything close to this type of behavior in the future.

To those of you on this blog that follow Purdue, Michigan State, Illinois etc......I personally have never visited one blog following your teams, because frankly I could care less. The fact you are on an INDIANA blog only confirms your infatuation with the program and the 5 banners hanging in the stands. We're all really shocked you think Dumes should receive a harsh punishment.

The last two games vaulted Roth to #8 in 3-point shooting in the Big Ten.

Other notables,

Pritchard #6 in rebounding
Dumes #12 in scoring
Moore #10 in assists per game

Certainly something to build on.

I hear you James. No one wants the kid to hit the skids. Fact is Crean and others will avoid a kid like this due to behavioral patterns.

There's a better way to celebrate out there and it starts with the head coach. Now we know why IU never gets the Indianapolis talent.

He's only hurting his own stock. No worries, the SEC, Big 12 or Big East would love to have him.

When I first saw this video, I replayed the first 10 seconds to make sure it was Teague I saw talking smack after that first jump shot. That was all I needed to see to know he can take his _ss to Louisville and play for Pitino.

They got waxed at home by 25 yet I doubt he learned anything from it.

The first thing I noticed here was the poor kid #15 for Bloomington. Teague broke his ankles all night. Teague is going to Louisville anyway folks. Why are we torturing ourselves by following his games?

The real news here is Teague was assigned to shut down Jordan Hulls and our boy went for 23 points and 6 assists.

Either Hulls is that much further ahead or Teague can't play defense. Either way this may have paved the way for his Mr. Basketball award.

Well said JerryCT I won't disagree. I have high hopes for Story. He just seems to be a comfortable scorer doesn't he? Hope he sticks it out he could go for 20 ppg as a senior.

The jury is still out on Williams too isn't it? I think Nick will also benefit from more talent on the floor. He's automatic from 12 feet in and can get tough rebounds at the 3 spot.

We'll see about Verdell. Ask me again after a game that he doesn't have 7 turnovers! I agree though he has talent.

I think the problem in the future we will face is we have all these kids getting playing time as FR when honestly they should be getting stronger and honing their skills. So when the talent pool immediately doubles, will they have the patience to wait their turn after getting the minutes as underclassmen?

Hey, it's a nice problem to have. But it's still a potential problem.

Gary, I think we'll look more like this to start 09. The depth really looks good. As a matter of fact, I would expect a transfer ot two over the next few seasons unfortunately.

PG Rivers
SG Dumes
SF Watford
PF Pritchard
C Capobianco

Rivers has been waiting to lead a team for three years. To say he is mentally ready is an understatement. Dumes gets talent around him that can give him more space to create. Watford is a match-up nightmare at the SF position. Pritchard gets a lot of garbage points on the weak side. The C position is the question mark. Capobianco fits the mold. Maniru is a project at best much like Jobe.

PG - Jones or Hulls (expect this to be a 2 year battle behind Rivers. Jones very well could transfer at some point. Is he patient enough behind Rivers for two years?)
SG - Creek with Roth busting those zones when needed
SF - Nick Williams
PF - Malik Story
C - Elston (Either Pritchard or Capo will always be on the floor, and Elston gives them a 3rd option in the paint) I think Maniru is at least 2 years away. I hope I'm wrong.

Sorry guys but I don't see Moore getting anything but garbage time after this season unless he can start hitting threes.

If nothing else this team shows us what you get when a number of freshmen are on the floor together. I'm still a little frsutrated by the 5 or so utterly rediculous turnovers a game that only IU puts on display in the Big Ten. When Verdell bounces the ball off his thigh that turns into a layup, you can bet all the marbles you just CANNOT win a Big Ten game.

What else does Story have to do to get more minutes? He ABSOLUTELY should be in the starting lineup eating into Taber and Williams minutes. Aside from Dumes and at times Jones, he's the only true offensive threat that can create for himself. I really like that guy.

The defining moment of this game for me, in terms of the future of the program, was in the game tying possession with 30 second left. (I love DVR so I can go back and slow things down) Matt Roth is camped in the corner on the weak side. He is jumping and pointing to the wing for the cross court pass. We pass to the wing and he is SCREAMING for the ball with his hands in the ready position. Next thing you know "swish!"

That's the IU we fell in love with. A Coverdale mentality. He know's he's a shooter and wants the ball and knows he can drain it. Sweetness.

Everyone is in love with the incoming class but I'm telling you we have five freshmen right now that will be solid and Dumes has a chance to be All-Big Ten next year with more support around him (and a little more ball control).

I think another thing to consider here is Coach Crean. Dumes really hasn't made any adjustments to his game since game 1 and Coach has to take some responsibility there. Coach also made two decisions down the stretch I wasn't thrilled about.

We're up 3 points with possession and freshmen all over the place. As soon as Pritchard makes that skip pass and we cross half court CALL TIMEOUT!!!! These guys need to be TOLD how to close it out.

Then with a tied game and 20 seconds on the clock with possession, he calls tiemout with 7 seconds left? That's not enough time to run a set.

Don't get me wrong. CTC is our boy I know that. But these decisons affected the outcome of the game.

Yes it is a story, and old one. I'm pretty sure the stock "we're coopoerating yadda yadda" isn't what this guy was looking for. You honestly believe he would have accepted that answer and moved on?

I mean, who is this guy? Chris Berman? I'm thinking Coach doesn't want to give him something to work with under the circumstances. I personally think it's a waste of time until the NCAA comes forward with infractions. Furthermore, maybe they won't. Maybe that's why he doesn't have a lot to say about it in the first place.

Were you guys around for the Bobby Knight era? Let's give the guy a break.

A lot of good commentary here. What I saw was a horribly officiated game. The officials set the tone early. This was a game where major contact was allowed and when that's established 5 minutes into the the game it's going to be ugly. Of the many IU turnovers I counted at least 7 that were a result of major contact. (See Tollackson playing piggy-back on Deandre). With this being the case, how many fouls were called on IU off the ball? It's a complete double standard.

Meanwhile, as usual the commentators are noting "Big Ten Basketball" is on display. I got news for you guys, this isn't basketball at all and I have proof. Every season we watch the officials let Big Ten teams maul each other for 40 minutes. What happens in the NCAA tournament? It's back to reality. Hand checks and scrapes are called consistently and the average ACC or SEC team blows us out by 20 points. (See the ACC-Big 10 Challenge).

The Hoosiers pulling this out was just short of a miracle. No they did not play well but many of us in this blog have played street basketball and know what it's like to play under these conditions.

MAJOR props to Stemler for nailing that 3 and keeping two possessions alive late.

You want to report news right? Well, report this. These guys are now 15-1 and are going through the brutal Big Ten schedule. It may be one of the 10 best teams IU has put on the court. Report that.

How do you expect him to respond. Giving you any details whatsoever only does Coach Sampson harm at this stage. It's all out of his control. It's lame you even printed this as if it were a story.