:(

That was the most lackluster effort I have seen.

Second most lackluster for me. I once saw a sloth at a zoo that moved slower on defense. He did show more emotion, though.

Wow. My worst fears came true. We totally fell apart and I did not see anyone other than DJ playing with the passion needed to win the B10. This Sampson thing has taken its toll and we will only be ok the rest of the season. I think we are going through the motions now. It's just wait and see now who stays, who leaves, who decides to still come and who the new coach will be. Dakich is not in control. He needs to assert himself with this team. The time for coddling is over. Either they want to play or not. If not, play the ones that do. Stop trying to not piss them off being afraid they will walk. Start coaching your way, if not the season will end after 4 more games.

I vote Neil Reed for next coach, at least he might be able to choke a little life into these players...................

That's funny.

Not sure if anyone else feels this way....but I feel this season has been a dissapointment....based on...

* coaching instability
* player progress
* winning against major competition
* depth we thought we had, but we don't

Maybe it is emotions right now but this seems to be a let down for the moment.

The depth is hurting us now with no Rat, no Holman, Thomas not doing anything. We basically have 71/2 players for our rotation.

Wow. Tip your cap to an inspired, emotional Spartans squad who beat Indiana in every facet of the game. That was a beat down of epic proportions.

How does the team bounce back after that? Do they choke away a win at home against Minnesota? Is their stock suddenly plummeting? The Kelvin Sampson hangover should be over. It's time to start playing basketball.

We are acutely weak at the 4. DJ should be playing the 4. Wow...were we exposed or what?! Gotta love the refs. I still think they hate us. Fundamentals (lack thereof) drive me mental. 6th grade!!!

Thank God for Vermouth!

I hope the players learned an important career lesson today: whether in sports or business, opponents will not let up on you just because you're having a rough day.

If they didn't learn it, our next opponent will be glad to teach them again.

I 'm guessing that now there will be more than one crucifixion being discussed in March. Coach Dakich--please forgive them. . .
I pray the "up" side of the last several weeks will soon be seen.

* How did MSU only score 36 points against Iowa? What the hell?

* This game, if anything, was an anomoly, let's not get too carried away. Jordan Crawford missed a break away dunk, which was absurd, and Michigan State was hitting EVERYTHING.

* I still like IU to win the Big Ten tournament next week, that is, assuming that they bounce back and let this loss go.

This is really depressing. This is one of the most talented teams we've had since 01-02......and we can't do any better than this? Dakich should not be coaching this team. He doesn't actually coach anyhow. The last 3 games have been pathetic. This coaching situation has really taken its toll on this team. There is no way you can compare the 93 hoosiers to this team anyhow. No way. That team was talented in all spots and were well coached. They also had to deal with a lot better competition in the big 10. I'm fusterated like every other IU fan right now, and it is not just because we got blown out. I'm tired of hearing about the KS BS. I'm tired of no offense and poor defense. I'm tired of adding years to the last time we won an NCAA championship. I'm just sick of it. I'm tired of it. We need to get someone in charge of this program that knows what in the hell they are doing. I mean the damn Knight mess....the Davis disaster...and now the KS deal.....come on. I mean how much more can we put up with?
Whoever said DJ should be a 4 is absolutely correct. I thought maybe we could get something out of a 6-11center like eli. Eli, DJ, Ellis, Gordan, Basset. Size is what usually wins the Big 10. We always have pretty good gaurds....I think its time to focus on the big men. That is what brought helped us win in 01-02. We had jefferies, newton, odle, leach...that gave us some decent size that could be rotated.

I don't know. We need to get a damn coach.

We'll be one and done in the B10 if we play like we are now and most likely we will because we have no one playing like a team. We will win Wed., lose to PSU, lose 1st round of B10 tourney and go 1-1 in NCAA out west to finish the season at 26-8. We will then have defections and the new coach will begin the rebuilding process. 09-10 will be a good year for us. Forget the 08-09 season as whatever we do as far as wins go will just be building for the next season.

um, i'm definitely not ready to write-off IU over one game. michigan state plays their best game in five years and we just happened to be standing on the train tracks. i highly doubt they lose at penn state.

Also, this was a buzzsaw waiting to happen. It was senior night for Michigan State, they had just been embarrased on national tv at Indiana, and they laid an egg against Wisco. I think this was a season's worth of road frustrations all coming out in front of an electric home crowd and that team was firing on every cylinder.

I don't think there's such a thing as a good loss, but maybe this is one that will cause the Hoosiers to wake up and dislodge their heads from their rectums. It could be the perfect wake up call that this team has needed in the wake of the KS dismissal/resignation.

I have to say I thought we had a chance today, but I watched that game at the Breslin Center today with friends of mine and I was embarrassed to where my IU sweatshirt in there. They hit everything because they only shot WIDE OPEN lay-ups, dunks, and three pointers!!! I don't think we forced them to take a contested shot the whole game.

Someone wrote anomaly on here before on how MSU shot. I watched the MSU and Whisky game and thought we actually had a shot at winning. Looking back Wisky was challenging their shots and playing good d. We letting MSU eat a steak dinner, then set up and follow through with their shot. Worst defense I have seen in a long time. I hate NBA basketball but I turned the channel to that and they were playing more D.

This is ridiculous! What an embarassment. Just a reminder that this is the same MSU squad that lost to a DIV 11 school in the pre-season. This is a team that barely scored over 40 points against Wisconsin the three nights ago. They almost lost to Purdue at home and haven't look this good since the Magic Johnson days. Did IU showed up today? Maybe, they should throw in the towel for the rest of the season. An elite team should not get blown out at this point of the season. SO What's Up? Words of Wisdom- PLAY ZONE or the season is over? Does anyone still wants Dan Dakich for the head coaching job? I think not.

Playing zone relies on men getting back on defense.

This concept seems to not be a priority for this team.

"... haven't look this good since the Magic Johnson days. "

To be fair, if memory serves Sparty looked fairly crisp in the spring of 2000.

Nothing we can do about MSU now or reg season B-10.

This team needs some love and support despite our collective disappointment. Maybe you guys who can actually attend games can do that for the rest of us this week.

We have 2 tournaments to play and I badly want us to recover. Keep in mind UCONN losing big at home against Providence before they turned it around.

The "KS" on shoes has GOT to go, and should never have been allowed in the first place. It makes the players look like spoiled children who are pouting because they didn't get their way. And it shows Dakich doesn't have control of the team when he allows it. Immature by the players, and a HUGE mistake on DD's part. Just my opinion.

I think that if dan dakich hired as the coach......i might not support the team anymore

I completely agree...if they miss him so much, perhaps they can embroider his initials on their jock straps. Better yet, they can just call him during the game...make sense since no one showed up to play anyway today!

"Embroider his initials on their jock straps." - THAT is a great line.

IU has been barely beating very mediocre teams. MSU is a really good team and they have been due a blow-out. The emotional crap made too too hard for IU to really jell as a seriously superior team.

We will be lucky to win two game in the NCAA. Next year with anew coach we can start building again.

I think the off season is rapidly approaching. Faster and faster with every passing game.

No intensity since Double D took over. Thank you, Greenspan.

I like the verb "shellacked"........how about dismantled, destroyed, manhandled, anihilated, taken behind the woodshed, out coached (i guess that's technically not a verb, or is it? not sure, I teach math, not english), flattened, crushed, trampled, or just plain WHIPPED.

Yeah, you're right...shellacked is perfect!

Many of you surprise me with your comments. What did you think would happen
when we fired the head coach these guys loved? A Sampson lead IU team beat these guys by 19 a couple of weeks ago. If we love IU basketball it is time to support this team more than ever. They have won 24 games for our school in the regular season so far and they can get 26 wins in the regular season. It has been a long time since any IU team did this well. Next week is senior week and several players, DJ included, will play their last home game for IU. I hope the fans get control of their emotions. Seems like many of you are more upset than the players. They need ALL of us for the remainder of the season. Many of you seem to have given up on IU. I happen to love my school and our teams. Win or loose I have loved IU for 42 years. One bad game can't change my support for IU. No matter who coaches IU they will loose games and have bad games. Coach K just got 800 wins but
he also has lots and lots of losses. FANUP GO HOOSIERS!!!

I think you are right when you say we are more upset than the players. That's the problem I think. The players need to get upset and act as though they fully understand what it means to wear an IU uniform. It's not to just show up at a game on the road, it's to play hard all the time. I support IU and have for 30 years, but I have a right to complain when I see no adjustments in game, players playing 1/1 ball, not getting back on D, worried about personal stats, putting a cheater's initials on shoes I helped buy with my donations, play with a lack of emotion and basically phone it in because they can't get over their coach leaving. Dakich wasn't their choice and they are sending a message they don't/won't play for him and it appears McCallum isn't going out on a limb to help DD. So, I will continue to fanup as you say, but let's get real, we sucked today and I don't see them doing anything to improve upon this for the rest of the season. Get me a coach, dismantle and rebuild the team, and continue to honor the tradition of IU basketball by playing hard, clean and for the glory of old IU, not for themselves.

The players are feeling sorry for themselves, and waiting for the world to join them. It's going to be a long wait.

Jordan Crawford embarrassed himself out there today. He rarely got back on defense, and when he did, he refused...REFUSED to guard a man that wasn't technically assigned to him. MSU scored on so many 3 on 3's, because an IU player, usually The Undisciplined One, didn't think he had to pick up a guy if his man wasn't down the court yet.

I say DD runs their asses into the ground this week. Forget the Minnesota game, it means very little. Punish these guys, have them running stairs at Memorial deep into the night this week. Hell, pull a Herb Brooks and make the team hate DD. But we've got 2 weeks to get this collection of individuals to play like a team.

For the love of Ted Kitchel though, make these guys do SOMETHING every time they're caught on tape whining to a referee. Get your butt back down the court, even if you get fouled lightly, you should still be able to finish a lay-up.

Amen! Every time one of our players is whining, our opponent is at the other end of the floor scoring a freakin' layup! How is it that we can leave our opponents WIDE open for uncontested shots at the same time we are constantly shooting off-balance heaves with two guys in our face. Please, I beg, give us some ball movement! I love IU basketball, but It's so frustrating to watch the undisciplined sloppiness of this team. Let's hope for a miraculous turnaround, because that's what it will take to make any kind of decent tournament run.

"The loss was the 14th straight at the Breslin Center for Indiana."

That is a prodigious streak. Man.

I second the comment extolling vermouth.

At least it's not 53 in a row (or oh-for-ever) like Clemson and UNC.

Also, it's a sad day when I turn into a "silver lining" guy.

The game was ugly....very ugly.

But don't jump off the ledge just yet. It was a perfect storm of sorts for IU to drop this game. The discouraging thing was how badly they got beat...but this game is more fluke-ish then anything.

The game to watch will be on Wednesday, if the Hoosiers come out flat after being embarassed, then it's safe to say they're probably not going to get that intensity back the rest of the year. IF they come out fired up and smoke the Gophers...then maybe, just maybe, they'll be able to make a run later this month.

Just a loss by either a point or 100. The next game will tell the whole story. Don't blame anyone but the university.

What did we get a bunch of UK fans to jump the fence and now are sounding OFF on IU and its players................

Its just a game, not bball but losing to MSU, the true test lies ahead and I think this team will be fine. I want to see a GREAT effort against Minny and then when I go to see the Hoosiers at PSU sunday I am hoping to see a re-focused team that is ready to achieve the goals established months ago.................

You people calling our players names are showing your IQ, thanks for getting that out of the way, makes your points if you have any lack any SUBSTANCE............

Did you watch the game yesterday? The reason for most of these posts are from disappointment of this team not just to bad mouth. It's kind of like having a son. Your son gets in trouble in school. You're disappointed with him, and thought he should have known the right thing to do, but you still love him.

Well said.

I understand the questioning how hard they played, but calling them names is just over the top. I personally dont think this team will fold, I look for 2 solid wins to go along with IUs first BTT and a DEEP run in the NCAA tourney. I am just glad we dropped this stinker NOW instead of in the TOURNEY when its 1 and done, we are one LATE GAME bankshot from winning the BT..............

PS: I would like some of what that guy is smoking that would take ALL those guys above EJ, he does turn the ball over but makes more than up for it with ALL the other things he does. Get real, he is leading the BT in scoring while being injured MOST of the season, shooting a TON of FTs at HIGH percentage, once again people see what they want to see...............

Knas, I agree we shouldn't name-call. At the same time, I believe the players are sulking, and will continue to sulk. As if not trying hard, and even losing, will somehow teach everyone a lesson. That may be a bit of a reach, but I think that's part of it. I don't know what the solution is.

This game wasn't a fluke. The team has played very poorly for the three games since Sampson went away. Unless Dakich's game plan was for 4 guys to stand around while one guy dribbled the ball and shot, the players have decided they won't run their coach's offense.
MSU was hitting their shots, but their shots were undefended. Unless you're Crawford, you will have pretty high shooting percentage when you have wide open dunks. Unless it was Dakich's plan to let MSU have open shots, the players have decided that they won't run their coach's defense, either.
I think Dakich needs to bench the starters and let them earn their way back into playing time in the remaining games. Having players who look like they don't care whether they win, lose, or get badly whipped is embarrassing.

Nice....Cheating scandel at Harvard....Nice Tommy Amaker...
fixed SAT scores, cold hard cash, houses....

Bring back KS at least it was just phone calls.....Hell he may apply for that job once amaker gets canned.

http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaab/news;_ylt=AuPi6YU...

While what Times reporter Pete Thamel uncovered isn’t the juicy stuff they make movies about – fixed SAT scores, cash to recruits, a free house for mom and dad – the questionable actions appear to be deliberate attempts to, at the very least, work around well-known NCAA rules.

IU should have kept Kelvin Sampson in the first place because the NCAA is Still going to punish IU in the end. The damage is aready done, so the NCAA is not going to show any mercy. IU needed to stick by their coach through the tough times with stipulations and punishments. Sampson made only one mistake at IU and he should had given another chance with zero tolerance policy in place. You think IU has regret hiring Sampson, well they are going to regret letting him go even more.

I have a question for Dak.....why isn't Taber starting anymore? It is clear that he doesn't have the respect of this team and he may not get it.....They beat Northwestern and OSU on talent alone........Not sure about the NCAA tourney.

because DeAndre's fade-away jumper is straight butter.

oh wait...that can't be it.

that butter was left over from the biscuit he had during the halftime meal

Gordon to the NBA? I don't think there is any chance of him entering the NBA next season. The poll on insidetheahall shows just that. I want to know what other people's thoughts are on him either leaving for the NBA, staying at IU, or transfering to play for another school/coach? His shooting has been awful in addition to his increasing turnovers. If he did't get to the line 10 times a game he would be scoring in the low teens every night. He needs to step up... The hoosiers also need to drop the ball down to DJ White more often. Finally, Deandre Thomas deserves no playing time. He creates significant turnover, misses layups, and fouls opposing players. Why isn't kyle Taber or Mike White not playing more?

I tried to be positive and "feel" a victory yesterday, but I was obviously WAY OFF. What an embarassment. For those who think we shouldn't get "carried away" after this game are not seeing straight.

At this stage in the season, NO TEAM in Indiana's position should get blown out that way.
1.) We have the two best offensive weapons in the Big Ten.
2.) We have two of the top three rebounders in the Big Ten.
3.) Bassett has emerged as a threat.
4.) We were competing for a Big Ten title
5.) Our assistants haven't changed...did KS make that big of a difference?

It seems that the coaching switch has had a bigger impact on the team that we ever could have imagined. I mean we are competing for a Big Ten title and we play like that? It was like they weren't even trying.

My thoughts:

1.) A sweet sixteen berth would be a miracle at this stage.
2.) Our players need to stop pouting or just quit. I'd rather watch Taber, Ahlfeld, Finklemeier, Mike White, and Bradon McGee play.
3.) DJ, I love you, but I hope you chewed the team out because that was pathetic. If Dakich won't, then you have to, or it's a lost season. The last two games were bad...but this one was pathetic!
4.) I pray that this was the eye-opener that Northwestern and Ohio State was not...or else we're not going to win another game this season.
5.) Maybe this will knock us down to a six seed...I'd rather be a six seed than a 4 or 5 seed. (Keeps us away from the 1 seeds longer...if we made a run).

I have been reamed on this site for stating early in the year that Gordon has great skills but is not a good player.........because..........he hurts vs improves the players around him. I think he should stay and learn a passing, set up and mid range game. A good GM will see many others in draft able to play right away . Right now even among freshman I would take Bayless, Mayo, Hardin, Rose, over him not to mention older players like Augustin, Reynolds, Price, Maynor, Collison, Rush etc.

What does he play in the pros anyway ? Point ....no. Shooting guard , expected to defend 6'6" guys better than he is .Ray Alen, Caron Butler, rip Hamilton, Ginobli............no. He needs an extra year with a better coach.

“At this point it’s been 10 days,” Dakich said. “That’s no excuse. We have to be better than what we were today.”

We just didn’t come to play at all,” he said.........EJ quote

Both Gordon and D.J. White said they were embarrassed by the loss.

After reading these quotes it is clear that this team is NOT a team. They are a good group of individual players who have not been TAUGHT team stuff. KS is a helluva coach but what has carried over? I think those games they won ( PU and MSU), they were inspired by the possible loss of their coach and played for his job....after his firing, it seems they have nothing to play which is sad.

As I have said before despite our record this season has been a dissapointment and however it ends, I am just ready for a good new coach hired without a $80K search committee and a hire with the future in mind of this program, not some well establish older guy who will be done in 3-5 years.....

Jerry I ripped you and I owe you an apology and especially agree with your last statement....He needs to be coached better for another season to develop his game. Oddly enough he showed some midrange game yesterday that looked good.

EJ as a sophmore would:
*Become a better ballhanlder
*Improve his scoring guard skills and playmaking
*become unstopable with a mid range game
*would be a POY candidate and could be at SOLID top 5 or higher pick

He leaves this year....
his ballhandling will be picked apart
his turnovers will be a red flag
and his recent shooting woes be another red flag

My gut tells me.....understanding the people around him with his family....EJ stays another year....unless we hire another horrible coach

I always thought they'd get two out of him (although I was a little less enthusiastic about that claim after the sanctions letter was sent) based on his demeanor and personality. I'm not sure about that, but like you, my gut tells me he'll be back for one more.

I hope you're right, but I would be shocked to see him back, even though it is obvious he needs to. I think some of the things that EJ does wrong could be corrected by the end of this season, but he's had too much free reign. A simple "benching" for a mistake for a few mintues, but help get a point across.

Say all you want to about uninspired performance, Michigan State was hot, etc. The bottom line is we sucked. There is no way that we should lose by that margin with the talent on hand. Dan Dakich may be a great guy but he's not the man for the job--even though I can sympathesize with him having to walk a tightrope for the last portion of the season. Let's find a proven winner or a sure-fire on the rise guy.