On last year’s atmosphere at Hoosier Hysteria versus this year:

“I thought it was a lot more comfortable because Coach Crean has gotten to know the town really well and they’ve gotten to know him. This year people have more of an idea of where we’re at and where we’re going.”

On how the adjustment has been moving from Arizona to Bloomington:

“The adjustment’s been good. It’s just more time indoors which means equals more time in the gym. I’ve gotten along with all my teammates really well. They’re all really good guys. And all the coaches on the staff are really great. The school aspect is actually a little harder.”

On the benefit of playing in open gyms at IU:

“It’s really fun. It’s challenging, so that’s always fun. It shows me that basically I need to work on my strength because they’re way stronger. Other than that, it’s just fun playing with all of the IU guys and then watching them play during the season.”

On his relationship with Austin Etherington and Cody Zeller:

“Me and Austin have a really good relationship as do me and Cody. I try to Cody once a month maybe. This month I’ve talked to him more since I’ve been seeing him lately. We need a big man, he’s not just a strict big, but just a guy that size is so valuable. He can play really well. That’d be awesome if he came.”

On the fan support at Hoosier Hysteria after IU went 6-25 a season ago:

“I think they’re crazy. (Laughs.) I’m just kidding. It just shows how much everyone cares about the basketball there and it shows a lot when you can get that much support. As a player, you’ve just got to work hard. You don’t get that everywhere, at all. There’s not anywhere that I know of that would go on. For the fans to be that loyal, you’ve got to be loyal to your commitment to the program.”

On the keys to a successful season at Bloomington South:

“We just need to play to the best of our ability I think. Defense is huge, always. And rebounding. If we can play to the best of our ability, we’re going to be tough to hang with. There’s a lot of other good teams out there that if they play to the best of their ability, they’re really good too. It will be a fun year.“

“It was awesome,” the Hamilton Heights junior guard said. “It’s one of the first times I’ve been to Assembly Hall when it’s been that packed and it showed what the fans are like and how much Indiana basketball is loved. It was pretty crazy.”

Coming off a 6-25 season, Indiana drew a crowd of more than 13,000 for Friday night’s opening practice. Etherington, ranked the No. 68 recruit in 2011 by Scout.com, said the big turnout speaks to the tradition of the program.

“It just goes back to the tradition that Indiana has from back in the day,” he said. “People who have loved Indiana basketball are always going to love it no matter if they’re winning or not. It just shows that the fans have your back and that they’ll always be there for you.”

The Hysteria visit was the second trip to Bloomington in recent weeks for the 6-6 guard, who averaged 16 points and seven rebounds in 15 games as a sophomore. He missed the first eight games rehabbing from knee surgery.

“I went down last week and played at open gym with Cody Zeller, Matt Carlino and the rest of the team,” Etherington said. “It was good to play with all of the players. I’m trying to play with Matt more and make our relationship better.”

Etherington and Carlino are Indiana’s two commitments for 2011 and both are working on trying to get a third — Zeller.

“I actually text Cody quite a bit now and I know Matt’s doing the same thing trying to get him to come play with us.”

With his decision behind him, Etherington’s focus will shift to his high school season, which tips off on November 25 against Lebanon.

“We’ve been working out for a couple months now,” he said. “It’s going really well just getting a lot of shots up and playing afterwards. Then I’m playing in a couple of leagues right now too so I’m playing quite often.”

As for his future team in Bloomington, Etherington said he’s expecting a much different story than a season ago.

“I know they’re going to surprise some people. I think a lot of people know it’s going to be a lot different than last year. They have a chance to have some big wins this year.”

Let’s have a rundown of the night that was Hoosier Hysteria, shall we?

+ Martha the cleaning lady is back: Well, not the original Martha. But a suitable replacement. One of the evenings loudest ovations went to Sheila Stephen, who Crean gave credit to the wife of former Herald-Times sports editor Bob Hammel for helping bring to Hysteria.

+ Bring in the sub for Straight No Chaser: In the midst of a scrimmage between the team and Bloomington based a cappella group Straight No Chaser, Crean called for a sub. (Straight No Chaser won, by the way.) Jared Fogle, everyone’s favorite Subway spokesperson, was happy to oblige and met Crean decked out in Indiana gear with a sub in hand.

+ Meet Wes Hovis: The most memorable moment of the night was Crean’s comments about 82-year old Muncie resident Wes Hovis. Despite recently being diagnosed with stomach cancer and asked by his doctor not to attend Friday’s festivities, Hovis showed up and Crean told his story which drew a large round of applause. “Wes Hovis is in this building with the program that he loves,” Crean explained. “And that is why it’s Indiana, Wes, that’s why it’s Indiana.”

+ 3-point shootout, dunk contest and scrimmage results: Matt Roth took the 3-point shootout and walk-on Steven Gambles won the dunk contest. The red team, led by 10 points from Devan Dumes, edged the white team 22-21 in a 15-minute scrimmage. There wasn’t much flow and not a lot was learned from what was essentially a pick-up game. If anyone stood out, it was Dumes, Verdell Jones and Jeremiah Rivers.

+ Recruits, recruits, recruits: Here’s a list of recruits that attended based on what I saw and reports from the Herald-Times, Hoosier Nation, The Indiana Daily Student and Peegs:

• 2010: Victor Oladipo
• 2011: Austin Etherington, Matt Carlino, Spencer Turner
• 2012: D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera, Hanner Perea, Kenny Kaminski, Jared Drew, Jeremy Hollowell, Kellen Dunham, Kellon Thomas, Peter Jurkin, Ron Patterson
• 2013: Darryl Baker, Darryl Hicks

+ Open practice: There will be an open practice at 4PM today at Assembly Hall.

+ Announced attendance: The crowd, based on an estimate because tickets were not sold, was 13,321.

+ Video: A few clips from the scrimmage filmed by yours truly and player introductions and Crean speech are available below from IU Athletics:

Update: Tom Crean spoke to 13,000 + fans shortly after the Hoosiers took the floor in Assembly Hall for the first time in 2009-2010. His comments are available below:

Smith-Rivera arrived just before 9:00 EST wearing a red sweatshirt and took a seat beneath the basket on the north side of Assembly Hall.

Update: Creek also talked after Hoosier Hysteria and here are his comments:

2010 class

• Victor Oladipo, DeMatha (MD), IU verbal
• Ge-Lawn Guyn, Scott County (KY)

2011 class

• Austin Etherington, Hamilton Heights (IN), IU verbal
• Matt Carlino, Bloomington South (IN), IU verbal
• Spencer Turner, Bloomington South (IN)
  

2012 class

• Hanner Perea, Birmingham Central Park Christian (AL)
• Jared Drew, Lawrence Central (IN)
• Jeremy Hollowell, Lawrence Central (IN)
• Kellen Dunham, Pendleton Heights (IN)
• Kellon Thomas, Southport (IN)
• Peter Jurkin, Charlotte United Faith Christian (NC)
• Ron Patterson, Broad Ripple (IN)

2013 class

• Darryl Baker, Jeffersonville (IN)
• Darryl Hicks, Shelby County (KY)