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Nick Williams will not return next season

by in Media | April 15th, 2009

The scholarship situation in Bloomington is starting to sort itself out. A couple of weeks ago, the Hoosiers were oversigned by a scholarship and speculation grew on players considering a transfer. First, it was Malik Story. And now, his roommate and fellow freshman Nick Williams has also decided to leave the program.

Our friend Chris Korman of The Herald-Times/Hoosier Scoop was first to report the transfer:

“After the season, Nick expressed displeasure with his role this year and also shared concern with members of our coaching staff about his future role in the program, ” said Crean.  “He is a fine young man and we have enjoyed our relationship with him over time.  He played hard and did some very good things for us and we wish him the best.”

The decision by Williams is a curious one considering he originally signed with Marquette and then followed Crean to Bloomington last spring. But when you consider that Maurice Creek is coming into the program, Devan Dumes commands his share of looks and Verdell Jones came into his own down the stretch, Williams, like Story, would likely have taken a tumble down the depth chart. As of right now, IU will enter next season with 12 scholarship players. There is, however, a possibility that another player could be added to the 2009 class as the staff continues to evaluate talent this spring.

Korman’s story also reported that walk-on Broderick Lewis has left the team. The complete release from IU, with more comments from Crean and a quote from Williams, after the jump.

(Photo credit: Indianapolis Star)

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The Palestra wraps up the IU season

by in Video | March 14th, 2009

… And we’ll be back Monday to begin breaking down the season that was in Bloomington as well as the NCAA Tournament.



Losing streak halted: Hoosiers drop Hawkeyes, 68-60

by in Recaps | February 4th, 2009

The 11-game losing streak is over.

In a game that looked eerily similar to earlier contests the Hoosiers haven’t been able to close out down the stretch, Tom Crean’s club reversed the trend and fended off Iowa 68-60 in front of 14,247 fans in Assembly Hall. The win was the first since December 10 for the Hoosiers.

“It was a great win for us,” Indiana coach Tom Crean said. “As I said to the players late in the game and I said in the locker room, this will be the toughest win that they ever get. And it wasn’t just because it was game night, it was because we haven’t won in a while and I’m really proud of them.”

Indiana (6-15, 1-8 Big Ten) led by 13 at halftime and enjoyed a 20-point lead with 11:58 remaining. The Hoosiers, however, saw the gap close to 63-60 with 44 seconds remaining on a Jeff Peterson layup.

Crean then called for a timeout and Iowa fouled Verdell Jones, who hit 1 of 2 free throws to make it 64-60. IU forced turnovers on Iowa’s final two possessions on steals by Devan Dumes and Nick Williams. A layup by Malik Story and a pair of free throws by Dumes sealed the victory.

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Roth’s shooting display not enough; Hoosiers drop 11th straight

by in Recaps | January 31st, 2009

It was a record setting Saturday in Assembly Hall. Matt Roth tied a school record with nine 3-pointers made and Indiana tied a school record with their 11th consecutive loss, 93-81 to Ohio State.

The Hoosiers (5-15, 0-8 Big Ten) haven’t won since December 10 against TCU and Saturday’s 11th straight loss tied a record set by the 1943-1944 team.

“We knew it was a matter of time with him,” Indiana coach Tom Crean said of Roth. “He has been spending so much more time in the gym on his own. He is an excellent shooter and sometimes when you’re really good at something you can take it for granted once in awhile. He hasn’t done that.”

Roth finished with 29 points on 9 of 11 shooting from behind the arc and two free throws, but his remarkable display was overshadowed by Indiana’s inability to contain Evan Turner, William Buford and Jon Diebler.

“It’s really a hard situation there because they have so many guys that can score,” Crean said. “Like I said, they have four perimeter (players). I think you can make a case for this throughout the country but Turner is hard a matchup as there is.”

Turner scored 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Buford added 24 and Diebler 21. The Buckeyes (15-5, 5-4) shot 63 percent, including 10 of 17 3-pointers, and hit 25 of 30 free throws.

Besides Roth, two other Hoosiers reached double figures: Devan Dumes (13) and Nick Williams (11). Indiana shot 47 percent and hit 12 of 18 free throws.

Up next: The Hoosiers host Iowa on Wednesday night at 6:30 PM ET on the Big Ten Network.

Record tying performance: Roth’s nine 3-pointers made tied the mark set by Roderick Wilmont on February 28, 2007 at Northwestern.

Good, Bad and Ugly: Illinois

by in Good Bad Ugly | January 10th, 2009

THE GOOD (HEY, WE HAD TO LIST SOMETHING, RIGHT?):

Nick Williams. That pretty much sums it up. On a day when the Hoosiers came out with far less fight than needed to win in a hostile environment, Williams was the guy who tried to keep it respectable early. He scored 10 points in the first 13 minutes before disappearing until the 7:00 mark in the second half.

IU won the rebounding battle 35-23, but Illinois hardly missed so there weren’t many boards to corral.

THE BAD AND UGLY:

The injury to Devan Dumes. The one player Indiana can ill-afford to lose didn’t start the game (reportedly after he missed the team bus to Assembly Hall) and played just two minutes before injuring his right ankle. Dumes had to be carried off the floor by Tijan Jobe and Steven Gambles and returned to the bench during the second half on crutches. For all of his faults, Dumes is the one Indiana player that can create his shot consistently, even if he is streaky. Not. Good.

The lack of intensity. In a start that looked eerily similar to the Kentucky game last month, Indiana fell behind 21-2 and never matched the energy of Illinois. Perhaps it was a hangover from the Michigan debacle or maybe Illinois is just that much better than the Hoosiers, but it was discouraging nonetheless.

The turnovers are back. After cutting down on the turnovers the previous three games against Lipscomb (13), Iowa (11) and Michigan (16), Indiana was once again sloppy with the ball, coughing it up 18 times.

Defending the 3-pointer. Illinois hit 13 from behind the arc including seven from Trent Meacham and three by Dominique Keller, who had only hit four all season going into the game. Most of the looks were of the “nobody within four feet of the shooter” variety.

Hoosiers lose heartbreaker in OT, 72-66

by in Recaps | January 7th, 2009

Indiana head coach Tom Crean couldn’t have drawn it up any better.

After a head scratching home loss to Lipscomb to close out 2008 and a road loss to Iowa in the Big Ten opener, the Hoosiers returned to Assembly Hall for a meeting with Michigan, who hadn’t won in Bloomington since 1995.

And with a 44-24 lead with 18:26 remaining, it appeared Indiana was on its way to a win over a team that was ranked in the top 25 as recently as last week with wins over UCLA and Duke.

But in this season of rebuilding, the upset wasn’t in the cards. Michigan closed the second half by outscoring the Hoosiers 35-15 to send the game into overtime and won 72-66 in front of 11,044 fans.

“There are no moral victories,” Indiana freshman guard Verdell Jones said. “We are all competitors and a loss is a loss whether you lose by 30 or you lose by one. We don’t want to feel like this again.”

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