For those of you who weren’t able to make it out to one of the first two stops of the Barnstorming Tour at New Albany or Batesville, there’s a very nice YouTube video that has surfaced of the game at Batesville courtesy of the Hoosier Authority. You can get a good look at all of the incoming players (sans Eric Gordon) so I encourage you to check it out. Thanks to ITH reader Kelin for pointing this out.
Lance Stemler speaks on the upcoming season, the status of his ankle, Eric Gordon and more
by Alex Bozich in Interviews | August 4th, 2007
Lance Stemler talked to reporters following the Barnstorming Tour game at New Albany High School and the 6’8″ senior forward had a lot of interesting thoughts.
Inside the Hall was there as he discussed the upcoming season, his ankle injury, the advice he gave the incoming players about the tour around the state, Eli Holman, Eric Gordon, DeAndre Thomas and Jordan Crawford.
On the depth of this year’s team:
“We’re definitely going to have to compete for our spots, which is a good thing. No one can get too comfortable with as deep as we are.”
On the status of his ankle:
“It feels good. I’ve been playing for about two weeks now.”
On how the ankle injury impacted his play last year:
“It changed the way I played a little bit. I couldn’t do some things that I did before. My shooting went down and I didn’t have any push off of it. Coach told me that he needed me to be the hustle guy, so that’s what I tried to do.”
Barnstorming Tour wrapup from New Albany
by Alex Bozich in Media | August 2nd, 2007
We’re jammed pack with content for you over the next few days and a great time was had by all at the first stop of the Barnstorming Tour at New Albany High School. Among those we were able to interview tonight: Lance Stemler, Armon Bassett, Bud Mackey, Jordan Crawford and Jamarcus Ellis. So look for content regarding each of them over the next few days, starting tomorrow.
I was able to honor some of your requests for questions and I’ll be sure to include the answers where applicable.
As far as my closing thoughts for the evening, I’ve got quite a few to share with you. First off, Eli Holman has qualified and will suit up for the Hoosiers next season. That’s great news because the Richmond (CA) product will be a factor once the Big Ten season rolls around. His offensive game isn’t spectacular, but he can finish and he’ll help a great deal defensively because of how long he is.
DeAndre Thomas has dropped about 30 pounds since his arrival in Bloomington. He’s doing quite a bit of cardio work to shed the pounds.
Eric Gordon was spectacular once again. He showed why he is the top incoming freshman in the land. He’s also looking a bit stronger in the upper body since we last saw him in the Jordan Brand All-American game. For those of you who haven’t seen him in person, it’s a real treat and IU is fortunate to have a player of his caliber.
Jordan Crawford played well and since it was the first time I saw him, it’s the first time I can pass real judgment on the Hargrave Academy product. He’s got excellent court vision and gets up and down the floor very well. I expect he’ll contribute immediately.
Jamarcus Ellis was my favorite interview of the night. The Juco Player of the Year can score, rebound and pass. He’s definitely the slasher that IU needs. Most importantly, he’s a good kid who came to IU for the right reasons.
Brandon McGee is a blue collar player that does a lot of different things well. He likes to go inside and mix it up and he can also handle the ball a bit on the perimeter if need be.
Bud Mackey seemed thrilled to be at the game and he enjoyed the love from the IU fans. The lefty from Scott County should be a top contender for Mr. Basketball in the state of Kentucky.
And last, but certainly not least, Ray McCallum Jr. impressed me with his exceptional quickness. He’ll only be a sophomore at Bloomington North, but he’s already a high major target.
I hope you enjoyed the live blog coverage and make sure to check back over the next few days. There will certainly be plenty to talk about.
On Deck: Thursday’s recruit game
by Alex Bozich in Media | August 1st, 2007
After a couple of phone calls and some investigation, I’ve got a pretty good grasp of the festivities that will be taking place Thursday night at 7 PM at New Albany High School. Tickets will be sold at the door beginning at 6PM for $7 each.
Playing for the IU recruit team will be Eric Gordon, Jamarcus Ellis, Eli Holman, DeAndre Thomas, Brandon McGee and Jordan Crawford. Joining them will be Bloomington North sophomore-to-be Ray McCallum Jr. and 2008 verbal Bud Mackey from Scott County (KY).
They’ll square off with a team of locals from the Southern Indiana area. Of note for those in the New Albany area are current New Albany players Braydon Hobbs and Spencer Shannon. Logan Jones (committed to Valparaiso) from Madison will also participate.
It’s an excellent opportunity to get a first hand look at what’s on the horizon this upcoming season for Indiana Basketball so I encourage any of you in the area to come on out. For those who can’t attend, we’ll have a live blog, pictures, interviews (time permitting) and notes from the event.
Tentative IU recruit barnstorming tour dates
by Alex Bozich in Schedule | July 7th, 2007
Get out your calenders and save the date. Six incoming IU players (Eric Gordon, Jamarcus Ellis, Eli Holman, Jordan Crawford, Brandon McGee and DeAndre Thomas) will be coming to a gym near you for the annual IU recruit barnstorming tour.
Tentative dates, but no times or locations, have been announced:
- August 2: New Albany
- August 3: Batesville
- August 7: North Daviess
- August 9: Muncie
There will also be a stop in Indianapolis. We’ll have more details as soon as they become available.
Among the things we’ll be interested in seeing:
- Is Jordan Crawford ready to step in and contribute immediately?
- Is Jamarcus Ellis the slasher and playmaker that IU desperately needs?
- Has DeAndre Thomas trimmed down enough to be a factor? What do we have in Brandon McGee and Eli Holman?
- Is Eric Gordon really THAT good? Wait, we already know the answer.
(Via The Hoosier Scoop.)
July 10th update: According to a report on Peegs, there will be a game August 4th in Fort Wayne. Additionally, the game in New Albany will be held at New Albany High School. Normally that game is held at IU Southeast.
Will Eli qualify?
by Alex Bozich in Media | June 30th, 2007
Much of the talk by Hoosier fans in recent weeks has been regarding the eligibility of incoming freshman Eli Holman. We know that Holman has recently arrived in Bloomington. What we don’t know is whether or not Eli will be eligible to don the candy striped warm ups for the 2007-2008 campaign.
In a report by Terry Hutchens in today’s Indianapolis Star, it appears we’re about to find out and the news is looking favorable for the Richmond (CA) native.
“It’s our understanding that he has qualified, but it isn’t official until the Clearinghouse says so,” said Leonard Coleman, an assistant coach at Richmond (Calif.) High School.
“Eli was able to improve his test score, and his grade-point average was already strong.
If it pans out, this would be a huge boost on the interior for the Hoosiers. Holman, from the video I’ve seen, looks like a shot blocker who can contribute immediately.
More importantly, this would be a feel good story for a young man who has fallen on troubled times the last few years. In December 2005, he pushed a referee and was suspended for quite some time. He was also shot in a drive-by shooting in January of this year.
Here’s to good news for you, Eli.
