With the start of college basketball season on the horizon, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next month. Today, we look at freshman Noah Vonleh. For the third ...
With the start of college basketball season on the horizon, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next month. Today, we look at freshman Devin Davis. Friday’s Hoosier Hysteria ...
The Inside the Hall Mailbag is a collection of questions tweeted to us via Twitter (@insidethehall) and sent to us via our Facebook page. Submit your questions and we’ll answer as many as we can. Aaron Miller writes: Hey guys, love the site and appreciate all your hard work. I wanted to get your take on the attitude of this year's team compared to last year's. I absolutely loved Hulls, Watford, Zeller and Oladipo leading last year's team and they will all be revered as all-time great Hoosiers, but did you ever get the feeling that they were almost too nice? All four were very stoic during games, and it occurred to me that the more aggressive and outspoken attitudes of this year's leaders, Sheehey and Yogi, could bring a beneficial edge to the entire unit. Thoughts? Thanks for the question. I don't agree that the four players you mentioned were stoic, but maybe some perceived it that way because of on court personalities. All four were intense competitors who really helped transform the program's culture back into one of winning. Their body language might have been different from a guy like Will Sheehey, but it's not fair to say that Cody Zeller was stoic just because he was quiet at times on the court. That's just his personality. I just don't buy the narrative that any of the four guys you mentioned could be considered "too nice."
With the start of college basketball season on the horizon, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next month. Today, we continue our look at the Big Ten with the Wisconsin Badgers. The brand of basketball in Madison may not always be easy on the eyes, but the results cannot be called into question. Over 12 seasons at Wisconsin, Bo Ryan has two Big Ten championships and the Badgers have never finished outside of the top four in the conference standings. That's consistency. Of course, that begs the question: Is this finally the year Wisconsin falls into the middle of the pack in the league? A quick survey of preseason prognostications says no. That optimism is centered largely around the upside of Sam Dekker, pictured above, and a solid nucleus of returning players in the backcourt. Dekker, one of four true freshman to start under Ryan, appears poised for a huge year. Ryan Evans is no longer going to take minutes from Dekker and his elite athleticism, motor and ability to shoot from the perimeter make him one of the more exciting players to watch in the league. As a freshman, he shot nearly 40 percent on 3-pointers and posted an offensive rating of 116.7, the highest mark among regulars in Wisconsin’s rotation.
With the start of college basketball season on the horizon, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next month. Today, we continue our look at the Big Ten with the Michigan Wolverines. After a improbable run to the national championship game that ended in defeat to Louisville, Michigan is once again back on the national scene despite losing national player of the year Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. to the NBA. That's largely because of the two guys pictured above, Mitch McGary and Glenn Robinson III. Both turned down spots in the first round of June's NBA Draft in favor of returning to Ann Arbor. Whether returning to school was the right decision was the right call for either guy with a monster 2014 draft looming is a debate for another day. The story for now is that Michigan has one of the best young duos in college basketball. McGary's monster NCAA tournament has landed him on plenty of preseason All-American lists despite an otherwise underwhelming freshman campaign. Over the season's final six games, McGary averaged 14.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game and his presence transformed Michigan from a trendy upset pick to a national runner-up. Robinson, meanwhile, was one of the nation's most efficient offensive players as a freshman. His offensive rating ranked 10th nationally and he shot 65.2 percent on 2-point field goals. Robinson has work to do in terms of making his game more consistent from the perimeter, but there's no questioning his elite athleticism.
Class of 2014 guard Robert Johnson is off the board. The 6-foot-3 combo guard from Benedictine College Preparatory in Richmond, Virginia, announced that he’ll attend Indiana in a ceremony this afternoon in his school’s library. Johnson, the No. 79 recruit ...
After announcing a list of five schools earlier in the week, class of 2014 Lincoln (N.Y.) guard Isaiah Whitehead ended the recruiting process in a press conference on Thursday afternoon at his high school. The five-star guard announced that he'll play for Seton Hall next season. Whitehead, the No. 17 player in the 247Composite, also considered Indiana, Minnesota, Pittsburgh and St. John's. The 6-foot-4 guard took an unofficial visit to Bloomington in late August.
On Friday afternoon, Florida State, Indiana, North Carolina and Virginia will learn where class of 2014 guard Robert Johnson will play in college. Johnson, a senior at Benedictine College Preparatory in Richmond, Virginia, will announce his intentions at 3:30 p.m. ET in the school library. Here's our primer for the announcement with everything you need to know: The Essentials Guard, 6-3, 190-pounds, Benedictine College Prep (VA), Boo Williams 247Composite: 4-star (79); ESPN: 4-star (NR); Rivals: 4-star (42); Scout: 4-star (54) Schools: Florida State, Indiana, North Carolina, Virginia Official visits: Indiana, Virginia, North Carolina, Florida State The Primary Contenders Johnson has four finalists and he's taken official visits to each school in the last month. Publicly, he's spoken positively about each experience, but most believe Indiana and North Carolina are the primary contenders with Virginia as a potential wildcard.
With the start of college basketball season on the horizon, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next month. Today, we continue our look at the Big Ten with the Iowa Hawkeyes. For the first time in the Fran McCaffery era in Iowa City, there are expectations for the Iowa Hawkeyes. After landing on the wrong side of the NCAA tournament bubble a season ago and then making a run to the finals of the NIT, the Hawkeyes have the pieces in place to field a very good team in 2013-2014. Nine of Iowa's top 10 scorers are back including junior Aaron White and senior Roy Marble, one of the better tandems in the Big Ten. White is a bit unheralded nationally, but is one of the best frontcourt players in the Big Ten. Last season, he attempted 258 free throws and had a free throw rate (FTA/FGA) of 86.3, the highest mark of any Big Ten player. He was also one of just four Big Ten players to average at least 12.8 points and 6.2 rebounds, joining Zeller, Victor Oladipo and Deshaun Thomas.
Two class of 2014 prospects who had announced intentions to take official visits to Bloomington this fall - Ahmed Hill and Stephen Hurt - will not see Indiana's campus. Hurt (pictured), who was visited by Indiana at Northwest Florida College on Tuesday night, decided on Wednesday night that he would not visit Indiana after concerns about fitting into Indiana's up tempo style of play, according to a source. The 6-foot-10, 280-pound big man is expected to choose between Kansas State, Miami (FL) and Wichita State. He's already taken official visits to all three schools.
Class of 2014 guard Isaiah Whitehead is ready to announce his college decision. The Lincoln High School (N.Y.) standout will make his destination known on Thursday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. in a press conference at his school. Whitehead shared his plans for a Thursday announcement on his Twitter account and Inside the Hall's Jordan Littman confirmed those plans with his high school coach, Tiny Morton. He'll choose from five schools: Indiana, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Seton Hall and St. John's.
Five publications - Athlon Sports, Blue Ribbon, Lindy's Sports, Sporting News and USA Today Sports - are out with preseason college basketball preview magazines this month or early next month. Each has a projected top 25, as well as a projected finish for the Big Ten. Indiana is No. 20 nationally in Lindy's Sports, No. 23 in USA Today Sports, No. 25 in The Sporting News and unranked by Athlon Sports and Blue Ribbon. But more interesting is the vary opinion on how the middle of the pack in the Big Ten could potentially shake out. While more than one publication can agree on the top three and bottom four, the middle five teams have produced a wide range of predictions.
With the start of college basketball season on the horizon, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next month. Today, we continue our look at the Big Ten with the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Despite reaching the 20-win plateau five times and the NCAA tournament three times over six seasons, Minnesota relieved Tubby Smith of his duties on March 25 and immediately began a search for a new head coach. Nine days later, after whiffing on its top choices, Norwood Teague hired 30-year old Richard Pitino, who had just completed his first season as a head coach at Florida International. Whether or not Pitino works out in Minneapolis, his hiring was a bit of a reality check for a program that had the belief that it could nab an elite young coach like Shaka Smart. As Pitino gets settled into his first major head coaching job, the reality of the task that lies ahead is beginning to sink in. Three elite talents from Minnesota in the class of 2014 — Tyus Jones, Rashad Vaughn and Reid Travis — are likely to leave the state. And the graduation of Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams left the Golden Gophers relatively bare in the frontcourt for the upcoming season.
Via BallisLifeEast on YouTube:
Several class of 2014 prospects being recruited by Indiana will be making official visits this weekend and our latest recruiting notebook takes a look at those campus trips as well as other notes from the first week of the fall recruiting period: · Goodluck Okonoboh, one of IU's top targets in the 2014 class, will make his first official visit this weekend and Bloomington is the destination. The Hoosiers have long been considered one of the favorites to land Okonoboh and getting him on campus is the next logical step in making that happen. It's been well documented, but the relationship between Okonoboh and current IU freshman Noah Vonleh is a very good one and this weekend provides Okonoboh the opportunity for his first up close look at the Indiana campus. · Lourawls Nairn hosted Tom Crean for an in-home visit earlier in the weekend, but the major development for Nairn this week was the addition of Michigan State to his list of three finalists. Nairn had been considering a final three of Indiana, Minnesota and Oklahoma, but the Spartans are making a late push with Tyler Ulis seemingly headed to Kentucky. Nairn will be in East Lansing this weekend and then Indiana will host him for an official visit next weekend.
Indiana completed its 2013-2014 schedule on Thursday evening when it announced a pair of exhibition games that will be played at Assembly Hall. Here are the complete details, per a release from media relations: Indiana University men's basketball coach Tom Crean has announced that the Hoosiers will host the University of Southern Indiana at 7 p.m., Saturday, October 26, and Hillsdale (Michigan) College at 7 p.m., Monday, November 4 in exhibition games.