+ Among the coaches in attendance: Tom Crean and Tim Buckley; Michigan State’s Tom Izzo; Butler’s Brad Stevens; Xavier’s Chris Mack and assistants from Ohio State, Tennessee, Iowa, Wisconsin and Purdue.

+ At Hoops, the Spiece Indy Stars crushed Indiana Swish Orange. This Spiece group was coming off a tournament win at the Hoosier Shootout and Broad Ripple’s Ron Patterson, Lawrence Central’s Jeremy Hollowell (pictured), Southport’s Kellon Thomas and Avon’s Austin Burgett were all impressive. You’d be hard pressed to find a stronger group of 15-year olds.

Hollowell confirmed that Indiana is ready to make an offer, but it won’t be official until his mother gets a chance to be there for the occasion. Iowa and Cincinnati have offered. Hollowell is 6-5 (and still growing) and said he enjoyed his time last month at the Indiana Elite Camp.

Thomas, a strong point guard that can also shoot it, is getting looks from Indiana, Iowa, Oregon State, Minnesota, Xavier, Michigan State, Purdue and Butler. He also attended the Elite Camp and had this to say about that experience: “It was a good camp. Coach Crean is very intense. It was one of those camps where you get better. It was hard. There were a lot of good players there.”

Burgett picked up his first major offer a couple of weeks ago from Cincinnati, but has no leader at this point. “I’d say everybody is about medium. I don’t think I’m going to decide until my junior year.” After watching Burgett at the AMC in May and again today, his game resembles Purdue’s Robbie Hummel.

Patterson reeled off a list of seven offers – IU, Illinois, Purdue, Depaul, Xavier, Ohio State and Tennessee. The 6-3 guard plans a decision sometime after his sophomore season.

+ At Basketball Academy, Indiana Elite Team Indiana cruised past the Kentucky Blazers behind the play of Xavier commit Darwin Davis, Muncie Central’s Jeremiah Davis and Hamilton Heights’ Austin Etherington. But the best player on the court might have been 6-7 Cincinnati commitment Chane Behanan who recently moved to Bowling Green, Kentucky and is playing with the Kentucky Blazers.

Crean and Buckley watched on the baseline as Jeremiah Davis continued his solid play from earlier in the week and Etherington solidified the vote of confidence Scout.com gave him in their recent 2011 rankings.

Up next: Friday morning we’ll get a look at 2013 Jeffersonville guard and IU Elite Camper Darryl Baker and Indiana Elite One Orange featuring Matt Carlino, Cody Zeller, Marshall Plumlee and Spencer Turner. Follow Inside the Hall on Twitter for updates.

Davis also held an offer from Purdue and was receiving interest from Butler, Cincinnati, Iowa, Tennessee and IU.

That said, let’s take a look at the names being frequently mentioned in Indiana’s 2011 recruiting efforts:

– Marquis Teague – Depending on who you talk to, Indiana’s chances to land Teague range from coming on strong to a longshot. Where the Hoosiers actually stand is anybody’s guess. Teague’s talent is undeniable. He is an excellent ball handler and can both score and distribute from the point guard position. And he’s already ready physically for the rigors of the Big Ten. His only knocks? An attitude that sometimes doesn’t endear him to officials and a jumpshot that is still improving. In the end, Teague possesses the talent to be special.

– Cody Zeller – I’ve watched Zeller twice this spring and came away impressed after watching him in the adidas May Classic. He’s a legitimate 6-9 and still growing. And as is usually the case with big men, he’s tweaking his game to adjust to his changing physique. Zeller is a heady player who can be a little too unselfish at times, but his skills in the post are very good. If he can improve his strength over the next two years, he’ll be a difference maker.

– Marshall Plumlee – Despite having two older brothers at Duke, Plumlee isn’t a lock to head to Durham. Indiana figures to play a pivotal role in his recruitment and he told a group of reporters at the adidas May Classic that he likes Tom Crean’s plan to rebuild the program. Like Zeller, he’s still adjusting his near 7-foot frame to a developing game.

– Branden Dawson – If Indiana wants to make a statement about recruiting in the northwest corner of the state, Dawson should be at the top of the list. As a sophomore at Gary Lew Wallace, he averaged 16.7 points and 15.5 rebounds. There’s a lot to like about his game: he’s athletic, long and plays with a lot of energy. And most importantly, you can tell he genuinely enjoys playing hard and competing.

– Jeremiah Davis – The Muncie Central point guard made national waves when then-Kentucky coach Billy Gillispie offered a scholarship shortly after his freshman year. Indiana has also offered and Crean watched Davis workout last month. He’s a powerful point guard that can make plays off the dribble. His decision making is a bit erratic at times, but he’s got the talent to be an impact player in the Big Ten.

– Keep an eye on: Darwin Davis Jr. and Spencer Turner. Neither Bloomington South player holds an Indiana offer, but Davis is starting to garner national attention with his play this spring. Turner is an elite shooter. Austin Etherington, who missed half of last season after knee surgery, has the attention of the Indiana staff. The 6-5 Hamilton Heights wing can fill it up. Indiana Elite’s Deng Leek is an athletic seven-footer who is still learning the game. But you can’t teach size and Leek can run the floor, block shots and finish. Chesterton and SYF Players 6-9 forward Mitch McGary is still rounding into form after returning from a broken left wrist and hopes to attend the IU elite camp.

“I’ll never accept it and I never have, but this was bound to happen at some point with this team. We’ve asked a lot of them. A majority of theses guys would be redshirting on most any Division I program. I shouldn’t say most, but the high quality level to get that year to get their bodies right, to get stronger and all those kinds of things, to learn the college game. We are asking a lot of guys that have never done this before and it showed up tonight in a big way. There is nothing to hang our hat on tonight. It is just part of it.” – Tom Crean after Indiana’s 75-53 home loss on Wednesday to Northwestern.

No matter how much we’d all like to sugar coat it and talk about the hard work this version of the Indiana Hoosiers is putting in, the reality is that this team never really had a shot to compete at a high level. Crean and the coaching staff have coached them to competitiveness in spurts, but the talent and experience just isn’t there. Crean has done a superb job keeping the attitude and the spirit of his team positive, but there’s only so much you can say when the losses keep piling up. Take this season for what it is: an anomaly in the history of the Indiana basketball and no indication of the direction the program is heading.

– Ryan did an excellent job of summing up the extra phone call the Indianapolis Star reported early Wednesday morning. Under normal circumstances, this would have flown so far under the radar you wouldn’t have even known about it. But the circumstances following Kelvin Sampson’s major violations aren’t normal. You can believe Crean when he says it was an honest mistake, but it was the last thing Indiana needs right now.

– The Kentucky Derby Festival Basketball Classic will take place on April 11 in Freedom Hall in Louisville and event organizers told me on Wednesday they expect three or four of the Indiana signees to participate. Maurice Creek told me earlier in the week that he will take part in the game. Rosters are expected to be finalized sometime in March. On April 10, Bellarmine University will host the Night of the Future Stars which will feature a 2-on-2 contest, a 3-point shootout and a slam dunk contest. Tickets for the game are $10 and $15, which includes admission to the Night of the Future Stars, and can be purchased at the Freedom Hall box office or through Ticketmaster.

– Crean said on the Big Ten Network last night in an interview with Mike Hall that he was planning to head south to watch a high school game Thursday and my guess is that it’s New Albany at Jasper. The Bulldogs are unbeaten, No. 2 in Class 4-A and appear to be the most legitimate roadblock between Bloomington South and Conseco Fieldhouse. They also feature 6-8 junior Donnie Hale who holds offers from Purdue and Xavier and is starting to pick up interest from IU. Assistant coach Tim Buckley reportedly made a trip recently to New Albany to watch Hale. With the Hoosiers presumably looking to fill two slots in the 2010 class, Hale could become a strong possibility.

– Speaking of Bloomington South, it was nice to see Darwin Davis Jr. and Spencer Turner seated directly behind the bench during the Northwestern game. After watching South play a couple of times this season, both of these guys warrant serious Division I attention. The staff at South is second to none in the state and is largely responsible for consistently developing players that play the game the right way.

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