The season is almost here which means it’s time for video features from our friends at UWire (formerly The Palestra). Casey Richards has the story on the backcourt competition and the new up-tempo Hoosiers below:
Notes from Tom Crean’s Thursday press conference
by Alex Bozich in Media | October 8th, 2009
Tom Crean met with the media Thursday and we’ve sifted through his comments and posted some highlights below. A full transcript is available here and you can listen to the audio from the H-T/Hoosier Scoop here.
On Jeremiah Rivers:
“As a coach you want the leadership vacuum to be filled right now. You want it to be set. But it is not like that. He hasn’t played in a year. I don’t know that he always understands when I say this, but he has won at every level. There is no question about that. He won in high school and he won in college. He has won three BIG EAST Championships and has been to a Final Four. However, outside of high school, which is a little different, I’m not sure he has absolutely been responsible for winning. He is going to have a huge responsibility in how we play to win. Not just coming in like at Georgetown. Now, he was on the court a lot at winning time at Georgetown because of his defensive abilities, but he also wasn’t the lead guard. He also wasn’t one of the 28 or 30 minutes a game guys. He very well could play into that for us.”
ITH Super Happy Fun Time Player Profile: Verdell Jones
by Eamonn Brennan in Commentary | October 8th, 2009
Hoosier Hysteria is on the horizon and it’s time for Inside the Hall’s player-by-player breakdown of the 2009-2010 Indiana Hoosiers. Today: Verdell Jones.
In a year of horrific gosh-they-just-play-so-hard basketball, Verdell Jones was a pleasant surprise. Whether he’s anything more than that — whether he’s a legitimate Big Ten point guard, or merely a seat-saver for the likes of Jeremiah Rivers — is the predominant question facing him in 2009-10.
But first, his 2008-09. Jones was second on the team in minutes in 2008-09, which, considering the frequency with which Daniel Moore played, is a testament to how bad the Hoosiers were last year; there were times when Jones and Moore actually shared the floor. Jones was second on the team in points per game to Devan Dumes, but he did it at a more efficient rate, with a slightly better effective field goal percentage than Dumes. (Dumes made more threes, though, so take that as you will.) But Dumes, as turnover-prone and erratic as he was, actually committed fewer turnovers than Jones, who gave the ball away over three times a game. That is not good, especially not from a point guard.
The real revelation with Verdell Jones comes in the eye test. He has the calm, casual manner of someone used to controlling games. He can hit outside shots and slash to the rim — his slash is more of glide, but you know what I mean — and his passing ability is probably his best attribute. Even with explosive recruits on the horizon, the Hoosiers still need scoring; if Jones can provide an extra threat, all the better.
AP: Knight undecided on Hall of Fame induction
by Alex Bozich in Former Hoosiers | October 7th, 2009
Buried near the bottom of an Associated Press story about Bob Knight taking a jab at the NCAA (surprise, surprise) was confirmation that the former coach is still undecided on his plans for November 6:
Knight was fired at Indiana in 2000 after violating a zero-tolerance behavioral policy. He said Tuesday he hadn’t decided whether to attend his induction into the university’s athletics Hall of Fame on Nov. 6. He hasn’t returned to the school since his firing.
Undecided is certainly better than no, right? While it was once inconceivable that Knight would return, it seems like Indiana will do everything within reason to get him back to Bloomington. Whether it works, well, that’s anybody’s guess.
Site news: Get ready for the ITH “Pick to Click”
by Alex Bozich in Site News | October 7th, 2009
As you may or may not know, Ryan and I are White Sox fans. (Eamonn is, unfortunately, a Cubs fan. But we still love him.) And part of being a fan of the Sox is the “Pick to Click.” So from our White Sox fandom, we’ve derived a new feature on Inside the Hall that we think you’ll enjoy.
ITH Super Happy Fun Time Player Profile: Derek Elston
by Alex Bozich in Commentary | October 7th, 2009
Hoosier Hysteria is on the horizon and it’s time for Inside the Hall’s player-by-player breakdown of the 2009-2010 Indiana Hoosiers. Today: Derek Elston.
Derek Elston, the first player to commit to Indiana’s 2009 class, made the call to become a Hoosier in September of 2007. After his decision, he watched Indiana go from a top ten team during the 2007-2008 to a program decimated by Kelvin Sampson’s excessive phone calls. Once Tom Crean was hired, it only took a couple of conversations between the coach and the player to decide that Elston’s commitment was still a perfect fit.
At 6-8 and 225 pounds, the Tipton (IN) forward has the body to play inside and the versatility to step out and play the three. He averaged 19.8 ppg and 10.8 rpg his senior season and finished third in the voting for Mr. Basketball. His ability to rebound and defend will put him in position to play major minutes from day one. It’s not out of question that he could lead IU in rebounding this season.
What remains to be seen is how much Elston has improved his mid-range game over the summer. Mechanically, his stroke is very sound and if he can consistently knock down shots from the perimeter, he becomes a much tougher player to guard. He’s also a solid ball handler and when he doesn’t finish in the paint, he consistently gets to the line and knocks down free throws.
