2/23/13
Ben Fishman
Welcome to the last Saturday in February folks! Next Saturday is go time. Why? It’s March, the best month of the year. With 15 days until the final day of the regular season, let’s take a look around America.
Southern Miss at #19 Memphis FSN 1:00 p.m.
This is a rematch of a game from two weeks ago that put Memphis back in the polls. Since then, the Tigers have kept winning, extending the nation’s longest winning streak to 17. Southern Miss on the other hand, has won three in a row and kept an RPI in the top 40. This is a must win on the road for the Golden Eagles to assure themselves of an at-large bid. Memphis dominated the first game, controlling the pace and will do so again at home.
Memphis 81 Southern Miss 71
#11 Georgetown at #8 Syracuse CBS 4:00 p.m.
Remember when it was Jim Boeheim vs. John Thompson III? Those were the days. Now, as Syracuse prepares to leave for new conference land, and Georgetown plans to join its six best friends, we see the end of a great rivalry. Much like Kansas-Missouri last year, expect this game to be full of emotion and full of everything that makes us love college basketball. Otto Porter is my key for Georgetown today, if he has a big game, and the rest of the Hoyas can shoot around Syracuse’s zone, then it’ll be a fun day in New York. I like the upset.
Georgetown 65 Syracuse 62
Stanford at #23 Oregon PACN 8:00 p.m.
What about the season the Ducks are having? Oregon is putting together quite a campaign for the Pac-12 title, and it needs to win tonight to stay in contention. The Ducks were knocked off by Cal earlier this week, and must regroup. They’re still in a tie for first place with Arizona, but three teams are all within one game. The finish out West might be as good as any other conference in America.
Oregon 75 Stanford 63
Missouri at Kentucky ESPN 9:00 p.m.
John Calipari’s Kentucky squad got a much needed victory earlier this week against a scrappy Vandy club at home. It was a game too close for comfort, and Coach Cal hopes this one isn’t much of the same. Missouri comes in 1-5 on the road in SEC play, but upset Florida at home on Tuesday. Kentucky needs this win to stay alive in the quest for an at-large bid. After this battle, UK gets Mississippi State, road games at Arkansas and Georgia, and then another big game at home against Florida. They need this one tonight, though. Or it may be NIT.
Missouri 69 Kentucky 63
Illinois at #7 Michigan ESPN 1:00 p.m Sunday
Michigan needs a win to stay in contention in the Big Ten race, and can still win the regular season title. The Wolverines get road games against Purdue and Penn State before Indiana on March 10th, but now find themselves 2.5 back of the league leading Hoosiers. Illinois is looking for another big victory to boost its at-large chances, and desperately wants to work up to a top 4 seed in Chicago. Going to Michigan is never easy, and I expect the Wolverines to be clicking ahead a quick two game road trip, in preparation for IU.
Michigan 73 Illinois 67
Michigan State at Ohio State CBS 4:00 p.m. Sunday
Want to see a huge game on Sunday? Look no further. Michigan State, fresh off its defeat Tuesday to Indiana, gets to travel to Ohio State this weekend. OSU gets its third straight CBS Sunday game, and they hope this one goes better than the last two, losses to Indiana and at Wisconsin. Neither team can afford a loss today and these two games will go a long way towards deciding who gets Thursday off in the Big Ten tournament, and who will have to win four games in four days. At the moment Ohio State is 5th in the conference, just half a game back of Michigan. Sparty is still in second place, but a loss Sunday could be bad.
Michigan State 62 Ohio State 59
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Friday, February 22, 2013
Contender or Pretender? Miami
2/22/13
Ben Fishman
If you had Miami, yes the one in South Beach, being undefeated in the ACC heading into the last week of February at the beginning of the year, raise your hand. Very few of you, okay. If you had Jim Larranaga as your Coach of the Year, please, raise your hand. None of you, that’s better. The reality is that nobody could have predicted this sort of outburst from Miami’s other team. The Hurricanes enter the last weekend of February at 12-0 in the ACC and 22-3 overall.
So the question now becomes, contender or pretender?
For Miami, it’s a very simple offense but one that is pretty efficient. They love to clear the way for their talented guards Durand Scott and Shane Larkin who are averaging 26 points between them. When they’re locked down, Miami has a beast inside named Reggie Johnson, who is averaging 9.4 points and 8.3 rebounds good for 6th in the conference. Alongside him is Kenny Kadji. To borrow a quote from Moneyball, he’s the Greek God of efficiency, except he’s from Cameroon. Kadji is your do it all guy, someone you can count on throughout the whole game. He averages 12.8 points, shoots 48% from the field and isn’t horrible from beyond the arc, shooting 36%. The three seniors, Larkin is a sophomore, do a great job of carrying Miami. But that’s about where it stops.
Miami is a team that isn’t going to kill you with its athleticism or its depth. Miami probably goes about seven deep, not great for a team competing to win a national championship. The Hurricanes top seven guys, and that’s really it, average between 6.6 and 13.1 points per game. Comparing that to a team like Indiana, the Hoosiers top 6 guys average 71.7 points per game, while the Hurricanes need their entire rotation to get to 70.7. Miami is a team that clearly lacks the star power of an Indiana or a Michigan State.
What Miami does do well is rebound. The Hurricanes are one of the better rebounding squads in America at check in at just over 36 per game, using their size and strength inside to bully other teams around. They also win and not only win, but they find a way to survive and grit out wins. Larranaga’s team has won eight games within ten points and three games within one possession.
Now time for what Miami doesn’t do so well. Where to begin? The Hurricanes are a team that don’t share the ball well. They average a mediocre 11.7 assists per game which is good for 261st in the country. Miami averages less than 70 points which checks them in at 140th in America and five times this year have failed to crack 60 points.
Miami takes good care of the ball, coming in at 20th in the country, but they don’t force many turnovers. The Hurricanes 176th in the nation in steals per game, meaning when they aren’t taking care of the ball, they can’t rely on their defense to get easy points.
Finally, Miami isn’t a team that is going to beat you with the deep ball. The Hurricanes come in shooting just over 35% in three point field goal percentage. A team can drop to a zone and have their way with Miami’s shooters if they wish, which is what a Syracuse would do should they run into the Hurricanes in March.
So back to the original question. The scoring isn’t always there for Miami. In their last two games they’re averaging 49.5 points per game, in two games they probably should have wound up losing. The bench isn’t great, but it isn’t horrible either, it’s just not deep as they only have seven players that contribute. Miami isn’t a team that is going to wow you with their star power either.
For example, if a Michigan comes out, you’re immediately going to be drawn to Tim Burke or Tim Hardaway Jr., just the way you’d be drawn to Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry at Duke. Miami doesn’t have those type of guys on their roster.
Miami though is a team that could very easily be 25-0. They lost to Florida Gulf Coast without Durand Scott. They lost to Indiana State and Arizona without Reggie Johnson. But they had the full collection against Duke, the game that showed the nation that Miami had arrived. In a 27 point thrashing of the Blue Devils, Miami slowed the pace and stepped up the defensive intensity. Don’t forget that Duke didn’t have Ryan Kelly though, a player that Duke desperately needs back. But if that Miami team shows up every night, then Miami will be tough to beat.
The problem is that their are way too many question marks on this Miami team. They don’t defend as well as some of the better teams in the country, and their low assist rate is pretty troubling. Add to that the fact that they only go seven deep is very concerning. They lost each of their games missing one of their top four guys. What’s the end result if that happens in March? Not good.
This is a Miami team that will likely get Duke two more times, once in early March, and again in the ACC Tournament. If they drop those games, as well as any other contest, it’s clear to say that Miami will lose its shot at a #1 seed. For me, they’re a two seed, and for me, they’re a team you won’t be seeing very much of in March.
Miami = Pretender
Ben Fishman
If you had Miami, yes the one in South Beach, being undefeated in the ACC heading into the last week of February at the beginning of the year, raise your hand. Very few of you, okay. If you had Jim Larranaga as your Coach of the Year, please, raise your hand. None of you, that’s better. The reality is that nobody could have predicted this sort of outburst from Miami’s other team. The Hurricanes enter the last weekend of February at 12-0 in the ACC and 22-3 overall.
So the question now becomes, contender or pretender?
For Miami, it’s a very simple offense but one that is pretty efficient. They love to clear the way for their talented guards Durand Scott and Shane Larkin who are averaging 26 points between them. When they’re locked down, Miami has a beast inside named Reggie Johnson, who is averaging 9.4 points and 8.3 rebounds good for 6th in the conference. Alongside him is Kenny Kadji. To borrow a quote from Moneyball, he’s the Greek God of efficiency, except he’s from Cameroon. Kadji is your do it all guy, someone you can count on throughout the whole game. He averages 12.8 points, shoots 48% from the field and isn’t horrible from beyond the arc, shooting 36%. The three seniors, Larkin is a sophomore, do a great job of carrying Miami. But that’s about where it stops.
Miami is a team that isn’t going to kill you with its athleticism or its depth. Miami probably goes about seven deep, not great for a team competing to win a national championship. The Hurricanes top seven guys, and that’s really it, average between 6.6 and 13.1 points per game. Comparing that to a team like Indiana, the Hoosiers top 6 guys average 71.7 points per game, while the Hurricanes need their entire rotation to get to 70.7. Miami is a team that clearly lacks the star power of an Indiana or a Michigan State.
What Miami does do well is rebound. The Hurricanes are one of the better rebounding squads in America at check in at just over 36 per game, using their size and strength inside to bully other teams around. They also win and not only win, but they find a way to survive and grit out wins. Larranaga’s team has won eight games within ten points and three games within one possession.
Now time for what Miami doesn’t do so well. Where to begin? The Hurricanes are a team that don’t share the ball well. They average a mediocre 11.7 assists per game which is good for 261st in the country. Miami averages less than 70 points which checks them in at 140th in America and five times this year have failed to crack 60 points.
Miami takes good care of the ball, coming in at 20th in the country, but they don’t force many turnovers. The Hurricanes 176th in the nation in steals per game, meaning when they aren’t taking care of the ball, they can’t rely on their defense to get easy points.
Finally, Miami isn’t a team that is going to beat you with the deep ball. The Hurricanes come in shooting just over 35% in three point field goal percentage. A team can drop to a zone and have their way with Miami’s shooters if they wish, which is what a Syracuse would do should they run into the Hurricanes in March.
So back to the original question. The scoring isn’t always there for Miami. In their last two games they’re averaging 49.5 points per game, in two games they probably should have wound up losing. The bench isn’t great, but it isn’t horrible either, it’s just not deep as they only have seven players that contribute. Miami isn’t a team that is going to wow you with their star power either.
For example, if a Michigan comes out, you’re immediately going to be drawn to Tim Burke or Tim Hardaway Jr., just the way you’d be drawn to Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry at Duke. Miami doesn’t have those type of guys on their roster.
Miami though is a team that could very easily be 25-0. They lost to Florida Gulf Coast without Durand Scott. They lost to Indiana State and Arizona without Reggie Johnson. But they had the full collection against Duke, the game that showed the nation that Miami had arrived. In a 27 point thrashing of the Blue Devils, Miami slowed the pace and stepped up the defensive intensity. Don’t forget that Duke didn’t have Ryan Kelly though, a player that Duke desperately needs back. But if that Miami team shows up every night, then Miami will be tough to beat.
The problem is that their are way too many question marks on this Miami team. They don’t defend as well as some of the better teams in the country, and their low assist rate is pretty troubling. Add to that the fact that they only go seven deep is very concerning. They lost each of their games missing one of their top four guys. What’s the end result if that happens in March? Not good.
This is a Miami team that will likely get Duke two more times, once in early March, and again in the ACC Tournament. If they drop those games, as well as any other contest, it’s clear to say that Miami will lose its shot at a #1 seed. For me, they’re a two seed, and for me, they’re a team you won’t be seeing very much of in March.
Miami = Pretender
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Hey, NCAA, Fix This, Too
2/21/13
Ben Fishman
During Tuesday night’s clash between two Big Ten titans on ESPN, the game was at a turning point. The top ranked Indiana Hoosiers had relinquished the lead to #3 Michigan State in East Lansing.
As Michigan State took its biggest lead of the night, a four point cushion in front of a frenzied crowd, the officials stopped play. The play in question? Apparently Michigan State forward Derrick Nix was trying to get to know Cody Zeller a little better, and referee Tim Valentine quickly blew the whistle. Whatever side you are on as it pertains to who was at fault between Zeller and Nix, I think they both were, you have to see what the stoppage in time did. Sparty was making its run. The Izzone was rocking and the top ranked Hoosiers chances at a Big Ten regular season title were at stake. Then the officials halted play. Their response? No call.
It was ridiculous really. The officials stopped play here for several minutes just to decide that they couldn’t do anything, when video evidence clearly showed something happened. At the very least somebody should have received a technical or a flagrant foul. But nothing happened, even though earlier in the game the refs awarded a technical foul to Christian Watford for making a routine drive and making contact with his elbow above the shoulders of a Spartan defender. Instead what we got was an obvious stop in momentum.
This is a prime example of what is wrong in college basketball. I agree, there is no place in basketball for these actions, but we are giving officials way too much power during the course of a game. At seemingly any moment, an official can stop play to check any number of things. They can check if a 3 point basket was a 2, they can check on the clock, they can go back in time on video and call fouls they missed in the first place. Why not wait until the next time out?NCAA officials are what’s bad for the sport right now. I’ll go as far as saying that next to injuries, the officials are having the second worst impact on the game.
The NBA officials are just that, officials. When the NBA officials are done with their games, they hop on a plane and head to the next city to ref the next game. When NCAA officials are done, they go home. They go to their day jobs. NCAA officials are part time guys, meaning when their not stopping games in pivotal moments, they’re selling you insurance, or they’re working in an office somewhere. That is ridiculous. Let’s say official A comes into your arena. Official A drove six hours to get here. He’s tired. His family wants him home but he knows that when he’s done officiating this game, he has to get back in his car and drive six hours to open up at his real estate firm. Think his head is in the game?
Now take an NBA official. He’s fresh, he’s ready to ref this game. He saw his family two days ago and gets to see them tomorrow morning when he flies back home. Wouldn’t you rather have this guy? The NCAA needs to fix this. And it’s not just the fact that they’re part time officials.
The NCAA official has too much control over the pace and the course of a basketball game. During Wednesday night’s game between Kansas and Oklahoma State, the words “Official Review,” were as prevalent on the ESPN telecast as the score at the bottom of the screen.
How about earlier this season in a game between Arizona and Colorado. The Buffs had just hit what looked to be a game winning three, knocking off Arizona at home and sending them from the ranks of the unbeaten. The refs, obviously, went to go to the monitor to check the last second shot, probably the only thing they get right. If you haven’t seen the still image of this shot go look it up. It went in, and it was clearly out of Sabatino Chen’s hands before time ran off the clock, but the officials said it was no good. And Colorado lost in overtime. Even when they get it right, the officials by rule had to review the play, they get it wrong.
This isn’t sour grapes by any means. The officials regularly do a good job, but in the recent years we’ve seen several suspensions of officials and several egregious calls by guys who should be working at your local Mercedes Benz store. It’s sad that the NCAA, with its never ending budget can’t hire full time officials. Of course, the NCAA is dealing with the bundling of the Miami case at the moment, so we should cut them some slack while they’re being investigated by themselves.
But the NCAA needs to do something about this. It’s not this bad in football is it? The stoppages are so prevalent in the sport that it’s becoming ridiculous to sit down and just enjoy a game. When they’re not stopping time, they’re blowing their whistle too much. People pay to see the best players play, not sit on the bench.
So this is an open plea to the NCAA. When the summer meetings commence in Indy, if you guys haven’t been dragged through the street by Frank Haith and Jim Larranaga yet, set some time aside to address these problems, because they are getting old, very fast. Hey, how ironic.
Ben Fishman
During Tuesday night’s clash between two Big Ten titans on ESPN, the game was at a turning point. The top ranked Indiana Hoosiers had relinquished the lead to #3 Michigan State in East Lansing.
As Michigan State took its biggest lead of the night, a four point cushion in front of a frenzied crowd, the officials stopped play. The play in question? Apparently Michigan State forward Derrick Nix was trying to get to know Cody Zeller a little better, and referee Tim Valentine quickly blew the whistle. Whatever side you are on as it pertains to who was at fault between Zeller and Nix, I think they both were, you have to see what the stoppage in time did. Sparty was making its run. The Izzone was rocking and the top ranked Hoosiers chances at a Big Ten regular season title were at stake. Then the officials halted play. Their response? No call.
It was ridiculous really. The officials stopped play here for several minutes just to decide that they couldn’t do anything, when video evidence clearly showed something happened. At the very least somebody should have received a technical or a flagrant foul. But nothing happened, even though earlier in the game the refs awarded a technical foul to Christian Watford for making a routine drive and making contact with his elbow above the shoulders of a Spartan defender. Instead what we got was an obvious stop in momentum.
This is a prime example of what is wrong in college basketball. I agree, there is no place in basketball for these actions, but we are giving officials way too much power during the course of a game. At seemingly any moment, an official can stop play to check any number of things. They can check if a 3 point basket was a 2, they can check on the clock, they can go back in time on video and call fouls they missed in the first place. Why not wait until the next time out?NCAA officials are what’s bad for the sport right now. I’ll go as far as saying that next to injuries, the officials are having the second worst impact on the game.
The NBA officials are just that, officials. When the NBA officials are done with their games, they hop on a plane and head to the next city to ref the next game. When NCAA officials are done, they go home. They go to their day jobs. NCAA officials are part time guys, meaning when their not stopping games in pivotal moments, they’re selling you insurance, or they’re working in an office somewhere. That is ridiculous. Let’s say official A comes into your arena. Official A drove six hours to get here. He’s tired. His family wants him home but he knows that when he’s done officiating this game, he has to get back in his car and drive six hours to open up at his real estate firm. Think his head is in the game?
Now take an NBA official. He’s fresh, he’s ready to ref this game. He saw his family two days ago and gets to see them tomorrow morning when he flies back home. Wouldn’t you rather have this guy? The NCAA needs to fix this. And it’s not just the fact that they’re part time officials.
The NCAA official has too much control over the pace and the course of a basketball game. During Wednesday night’s game between Kansas and Oklahoma State, the words “Official Review,” were as prevalent on the ESPN telecast as the score at the bottom of the screen.
How about earlier this season in a game between Arizona and Colorado. The Buffs had just hit what looked to be a game winning three, knocking off Arizona at home and sending them from the ranks of the unbeaten. The refs, obviously, went to go to the monitor to check the last second shot, probably the only thing they get right. If you haven’t seen the still image of this shot go look it up. It went in, and it was clearly out of Sabatino Chen’s hands before time ran off the clock, but the officials said it was no good. And Colorado lost in overtime. Even when they get it right, the officials by rule had to review the play, they get it wrong.
This isn’t sour grapes by any means. The officials regularly do a good job, but in the recent years we’ve seen several suspensions of officials and several egregious calls by guys who should be working at your local Mercedes Benz store. It’s sad that the NCAA, with its never ending budget can’t hire full time officials. Of course, the NCAA is dealing with the bundling of the Miami case at the moment, so we should cut them some slack while they’re being investigated by themselves.
But the NCAA needs to do something about this. It’s not this bad in football is it? The stoppages are so prevalent in the sport that it’s becoming ridiculous to sit down and just enjoy a game. When they’re not stopping time, they’re blowing their whistle too much. People pay to see the best players play, not sit on the bench.
So this is an open plea to the NCAA. When the summer meetings commence in Indy, if you guys haven’t been dragged through the street by Frank Haith and Jim Larranaga yet, set some time aside to address these problems, because they are getting old, very fast. Hey, how ironic.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Michigan from a Cheerleaders Perspective
2/20/13
Ben Fishman
It’s 7:00 AM on February 2nd. It’s early but about two blocks from our Bloomington apartment, a crowd is gathered outside of Assembly Hall for a long and memorable day. Last night our coaching staff changed our arrival time to 9:00 AM instead of 8:00 AM, but it didn’t really matter, we were excited.
As we walked into the softball locker room downstairs in Assembly Hall, which is our makeshift locker room during basketball season, we had the TV tuned into the live feed from outside. Our excitement was peaked quickly as we saw several sections filled with “eager” students waiting to be seen on national television.
There was no ordinary schedule for a game at 9:30 AM as we finally made our way out of the tunnel and were ushered around Assembly Hall by ESPN production crews, all who were as professional and kind as they could be. By this time Digger Phelps, Jay Bilas, Jalen Rose and Rece Davis had all made appearances ahead of the 10:00 AM show on ESPNU.
When the show went live at 10, both teams were ushered behind the desk. For the next hour there was a ton of smiling and lots of laughs as the hosts talked about the huge matchup between Indiana and Michigan, as well as all the other great games from around America. The fans cheered loud for images of Victor Oladipo and Cody Zeller and booed for Nerlens Noel and Duke. As the morning came to an end I couldn’t miss out on an opportunity for a photo op. (See below.)
Growing up in Memphis, Tennessee meant several things for me. First, I have a soft spot for sweet tea and BBQ. Second, I’ve been in love with sports since I can remember. I attended my first Memphis Tigers game when I was 6. Since then it’s been all basketball. I remember traveling with the team from 2005 to 2008 once they made it to the NCAA Tournament. This led to places like Little Rock, New Orleans and Houston. Then I came to Indiana and it was a whole new level of love.
So coming into the February 2nd, Indiana vs. Michigan game, I had only been to probably two games that rivaled the enormity of this one. Those games were both in 2008. The first being #1 Memphis vs. #2 Tennessee, and the second being the Elite Eight game vs. Texas in Houston. It took all of about fifteen seconds on the night of Saturday, February 2nd, to realize that these games weren’t even close.
That afternoon, after the College GameDay tapings, a few of us went to Yogi’s to kill some time. Our report time for the main attraction on this Saturday was 7:15 PM to Assembly Hall. Yogi’s is a typical place to go to if you wanna see nothing but sports. We were sat down and quickly surprised that today was even bigger. The enormity of this game, and the way people felt about it on Saturday afternoon can be described simply as magical. It was on every TV you could find, from replays of the GameDay telecast to commercials hyping the nights action. But before all of that, our team, and I mean all of our members, needed one thing: A nap.
As we strolled into Assembly Hall a little after 7:00, we quickly saw that the students had ramped it up and were going crazy in the GA line. Knowing that their doors were about to open only made them more antsy. We quickly rushed into our locker room downstairs and began suiting up, the softball locker room becoming filled with the now suddenly recognizable smell and haze of hairspray. Guys were throwing tape around the room, lacing up shoes and putting on their uniforms. At 7:30 we made our way under the arena to Cook Hall. For anyone that has never strolled into Assembly Hall and explored, this is fun. Directly under the 1940 National Championship banner, beneath the student section, there is a hallway that leads away from the arena. At the end of this hallway is a door, usually locked by key card access. Through this door is a long, narrow tunnel with the words, “Indiana Hoosiers Basketball,” lining it. This is the hallway that your Hoosiers stroll down every night from their Cook Hall locker room.
The pep rally at Cook Hall was quick as usual. It offers the opportunity to mingle with the big spenders and boosters at IU and on February 2nd, it was Indiana University Hall of Famer Landon Turner who gave the coaches talk. Following his talk we went straight to the men’s court in Cook Hall to go over warm ups.
For about half an hour we go over every timeout and pyramid that we might do during the game, a process that can drag on, keeping us from making our final preparations and heading out to Assembly Hall. But tonight everything flowed smoothly. Our coaching staff pulled us together, reminding us of how big of a game this was, telling us that we need to be “Hoosier fans” first tonight.
At 8:35 it was finally go time. As we sit in the locker room for the next five minutes, our coach runs us through the timeouts we will do during the game. Usually differing each game between such things as Wipeout and Zombie. For the next half hour we started cheers, interacted with fans and watched warm ups. My personal favorite moment here is my high five from Remy Abell every game. Following Coach Crean’s talk and the National Anthem comes the tunnel. As we form our tunnel and the band and students reach full throat one last time before the game starts, we sit and take in the surroundings, something that we rarely have a chance to do during the game.
As the team runs out and the lights turn on, we know it’s time. Everything we do for the next two hours is scrutinized and closely viewed, but it’s also the most incredible time of our lives. For two hours we get to cheer on the #3 (eventual #1) team in America, in a game of two top three teams, in the best atmosphere in basketball. For two hours, we are in heaven.
The game was amazing. The Hoosiers and Wolverines played a battle that goes down as the best game of basketball I have seen in person. It’s been amazing. By the time the William Tell overture starts, I’m more excited than ever to hoist my teammate up in the air. By the time the clock runs down to all zeroes, nobody is more excited than our squad. As the celebration continues outside of Assembly Hall, it’s just starting in our locker room. It begins with me hoisting up our coach and ends when everyone is gone, another quality night in the books.
On February 2nd, 17,000 plus packed into Assembly Hall to watch a game between two teams ranked in the top 3 in both polls. On February 2nd,#3 Indiana beat #1 Michigan 81-73 to regain the top spot. This has been a recap of that day from the views of a member of the Indiana Cheerleading squad. Being in Assembly Hall this season, and not just that day has been magical. There’s no real answer as to why we do what we do. Maybe when it’s all over after four years, we’ll have an answer. Maybe we won’t find out anything. But we’ll step back out there on that court again for the next game, because we know the view from there is, amazing.
Ben Fishman
It’s 7:00 AM on February 2nd. It’s early but about two blocks from our Bloomington apartment, a crowd is gathered outside of Assembly Hall for a long and memorable day. Last night our coaching staff changed our arrival time to 9:00 AM instead of 8:00 AM, but it didn’t really matter, we were excited.
As we walked into the softball locker room downstairs in Assembly Hall, which is our makeshift locker room during basketball season, we had the TV tuned into the live feed from outside. Our excitement was peaked quickly as we saw several sections filled with “eager” students waiting to be seen on national television.
There was no ordinary schedule for a game at 9:30 AM as we finally made our way out of the tunnel and were ushered around Assembly Hall by ESPN production crews, all who were as professional and kind as they could be. By this time Digger Phelps, Jay Bilas, Jalen Rose and Rece Davis had all made appearances ahead of the 10:00 AM show on ESPNU.
When the show went live at 10, both teams were ushered behind the desk. For the next hour there was a ton of smiling and lots of laughs as the hosts talked about the huge matchup between Indiana and Michigan, as well as all the other great games from around America. The fans cheered loud for images of Victor Oladipo and Cody Zeller and booed for Nerlens Noel and Duke. As the morning came to an end I couldn’t miss out on an opportunity for a photo op. (See below.)
Growing up in Memphis, Tennessee meant several things for me. First, I have a soft spot for sweet tea and BBQ. Second, I’ve been in love with sports since I can remember. I attended my first Memphis Tigers game when I was 6. Since then it’s been all basketball. I remember traveling with the team from 2005 to 2008 once they made it to the NCAA Tournament. This led to places like Little Rock, New Orleans and Houston. Then I came to Indiana and it was a whole new level of love.
So coming into the February 2nd, Indiana vs. Michigan game, I had only been to probably two games that rivaled the enormity of this one. Those games were both in 2008. The first being #1 Memphis vs. #2 Tennessee, and the second being the Elite Eight game vs. Texas in Houston. It took all of about fifteen seconds on the night of Saturday, February 2nd, to realize that these games weren’t even close.
That afternoon, after the College GameDay tapings, a few of us went to Yogi’s to kill some time. Our report time for the main attraction on this Saturday was 7:15 PM to Assembly Hall. Yogi’s is a typical place to go to if you wanna see nothing but sports. We were sat down and quickly surprised that today was even bigger. The enormity of this game, and the way people felt about it on Saturday afternoon can be described simply as magical. It was on every TV you could find, from replays of the GameDay telecast to commercials hyping the nights action. But before all of that, our team, and I mean all of our members, needed one thing: A nap.
As we strolled into Assembly Hall a little after 7:00, we quickly saw that the students had ramped it up and were going crazy in the GA line. Knowing that their doors were about to open only made them more antsy. We quickly rushed into our locker room downstairs and began suiting up, the softball locker room becoming filled with the now suddenly recognizable smell and haze of hairspray. Guys were throwing tape around the room, lacing up shoes and putting on their uniforms. At 7:30 we made our way under the arena to Cook Hall. For anyone that has never strolled into Assembly Hall and explored, this is fun. Directly under the 1940 National Championship banner, beneath the student section, there is a hallway that leads away from the arena. At the end of this hallway is a door, usually locked by key card access. Through this door is a long, narrow tunnel with the words, “Indiana Hoosiers Basketball,” lining it. This is the hallway that your Hoosiers stroll down every night from their Cook Hall locker room.
The pep rally at Cook Hall was quick as usual. It offers the opportunity to mingle with the big spenders and boosters at IU and on February 2nd, it was Indiana University Hall of Famer Landon Turner who gave the coaches talk. Following his talk we went straight to the men’s court in Cook Hall to go over warm ups.
For about half an hour we go over every timeout and pyramid that we might do during the game, a process that can drag on, keeping us from making our final preparations and heading out to Assembly Hall. But tonight everything flowed smoothly. Our coaching staff pulled us together, reminding us of how big of a game this was, telling us that we need to be “Hoosier fans” first tonight.
At 8:35 it was finally go time. As we sit in the locker room for the next five minutes, our coach runs us through the timeouts we will do during the game. Usually differing each game between such things as Wipeout and Zombie. For the next half hour we started cheers, interacted with fans and watched warm ups. My personal favorite moment here is my high five from Remy Abell every game. Following Coach Crean’s talk and the National Anthem comes the tunnel. As we form our tunnel and the band and students reach full throat one last time before the game starts, we sit and take in the surroundings, something that we rarely have a chance to do during the game.
As the team runs out and the lights turn on, we know it’s time. Everything we do for the next two hours is scrutinized and closely viewed, but it’s also the most incredible time of our lives. For two hours we get to cheer on the #3 (eventual #1) team in America, in a game of two top three teams, in the best atmosphere in basketball. For two hours, we are in heaven.
The game was amazing. The Hoosiers and Wolverines played a battle that goes down as the best game of basketball I have seen in person. It’s been amazing. By the time the William Tell overture starts, I’m more excited than ever to hoist my teammate up in the air. By the time the clock runs down to all zeroes, nobody is more excited than our squad. As the celebration continues outside of Assembly Hall, it’s just starting in our locker room. It begins with me hoisting up our coach and ends when everyone is gone, another quality night in the books.
On February 2nd, 17,000 plus packed into Assembly Hall to watch a game between two teams ranked in the top 3 in both polls. On February 2nd,#3 Indiana beat #1 Michigan 81-73 to regain the top spot. This has been a recap of that day from the views of a member of the Indiana Cheerleading squad. Being in Assembly Hall this season, and not just that day has been magical. There’s no real answer as to why we do what we do. Maybe when it’s all over after four years, we’ll have an answer. Maybe we won’t find out anything. But we’ll step back out there on that court again for the next game, because we know the view from there is, amazing.
Three Observations from Tuesday 2/19
2/20/13
Ben Fishman
Ben Fishman
- Indiana is the best team in America. The Hoosiers went to Michigan State, a place where they hadn’t won since 1991, and grabbed a huge victory. The Hoosiers now control their own destiny in the Big Ten title race, with four games remaining. Indiana controlled the tempo in this one from start to finish and when Michigan State got the fans into it and looked like they would come back and win by five or more, the Hoosiers remained calm. Michigan State hadn’t lost at home this year and Indiana is proving that they’re just as good on the road, as they are in Bloomington. They’ve dropped just one road game to Illinois and have remaining contests at Minnesota and Michigan. The Hoosiers bench might be of concern scoring wise, but the second rotation more than held its own on defense. Don’t be surprised if these two teams meet again in Chicago on March 17th.
- Miami is letting national pundits begin to doubt their rise to the #2 ranking in the country. In their last two games, both scary wins, the Hurricanes are averaging a dismal 49.5 points per game. They’ve won their last three games by an average of 4 points. The question now becomes, “Did we think too highly of Miami?” They beat Duke by 27 without Ryan Kelly and then hung on for wins against N.C. State, FSU, Clemson and Virginia. They’ve still got Duke on their schedule one more time and then likely again in the ACC Tournament, so we’ll see if the luck has run out on Miami. But after seeing IU-MSU II then Miami-Virginia right after it, it’s clear that Miami is not close to being in the league of a team like Indiana or Michigan State.
- How crazy is college basketball? Forget the classic in East Lansing, what about Missouri upsetting Florida? The Tigers came back from 13 down to upset the 5th ranked Gators. The knock on Missouri? When will the Missouri team we see in Columbia, be the Missouri team we see everywhere? They’re 1-5 on the road in the SEC, but haven’t lost at home. Something’s gotta give eventually. St. Louis picked up a huge win over VCU and suddenly the Billiken’s are 20-5. The late great Rick Majerus has gotta be loving it. And UNC is finally looking like a team that is putting it together. They won’t be a great threat in the tournament, but they’ll be in it. That’s something defending national champion Kentucky might not be able to say in three weeks.
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Keys to IU-MSU II
2/19/13
Ben Fishman
For Indiana
For Michigan State
I expect a close game. This one will be back and forth all night long and at the end of the night I think we will have a team that really deserves to be in sole possession of first place. Call me a homer, but that team is gonna be Indiana. The way the Hoosiers played on the road against Ohio State two Sunday’s ago was huge and went a long way towards proving to them that they can win anywhere. If they want to win in Atlanta, better yet, if they want to win in Indy before Atlanta, then they must pick up this win tonight.
I like Indiana 79 Michigan State 72
Ben Fishman
For Indiana
- Indiana must remain poised. The Hoosiers are 5-1 on the road in the Big Ten and need this one to prove that the Illinois game was a fluke. The Ohio State game was huge and went a long way towards paying dividends in regards to the perception the Hoosiers face when they leave Bloomington. But all that can go away if the Hoosiers come out flat in East Lansing.
- Feed the post. The big man has got to eat. Cody Zeller had a rather pedestrian time with Michigan State on January 27th in the Hoosiers 75-70 victory. Zeller finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds, not terrible numbers against the massive front line of Michigan State, but rather average numbers nonetheless. Indiana needs a big effort from their Player of the Year candidate tonight and needs Christian Watford to continue his consistent play throughout the Big Ten.
- Play your game. Indiana is perhaps the best offensive team in transition and needs to focus on pushing the pace against Tom Izzo’s Spartans tonight. The Hoosiers lead the Big Ten in 3-point shooting coming in at 43.3%. They must defend the Spartans shooters as well as Gary Harris who went off in Bloomington last month on his way to 21 points. Defending the Spartans hot shooting guards well will go a long way towards determining who comes out on top tonight.
For Michigan State
- The Spartans have to relax. They made play after play in Assembly Hall last month and had they not settled for too many long shots, they might’ve beaten Indiana. Tonight to beat the Hoosiers they need to not get rattled by the big time atmosphere. They weren’t picked to finish in the top 3 of the Big Ten this pre season and now here they are tied at the top. They’ve done enough to get here, and they can do enough to stay here. But it’ll all be for naught if they let Indiana come in and control the game right away.
- Pick your spots. Sparty got it to the free throw line just six times in the first matchup of these two teams, playing right to the Indiana mindset. Indiana gets to the free throw line more times than anybody in the country and have shot 132 more free throws than their opponents this year. Sparty needs to fix that tonight by attacking the Hoosiers and taking the right shots. They went 11-23 from beyond the arc in the first matchup, not bad, but if the Spartans start hoisting up 20 plus threes tonight while not getting to the line, then it’s the same old game as January 27th.
- Let the game come to you. Gary Harris scored 21 points in the first game, mostly because he was trying to prove a point to Indiana fans that they should be missing him this year. The former Mr. Basketball will have to slow the pace tonight and not let his emotions get the best of him in this tightly contested matchup. Harris is the best at driving and attacking and he must do that tonight. He had four of the six free throws for MSU in the first game and needs to double that to be effective at home.
I expect a close game. This one will be back and forth all night long and at the end of the night I think we will have a team that really deserves to be in sole possession of first place. Call me a homer, but that team is gonna be Indiana. The way the Hoosiers played on the road against Ohio State two Sunday’s ago was huge and went a long way towards proving to them that they can win anywhere. If they want to win in Atlanta, better yet, if they want to win in Indy before Atlanta, then they must pick up this win tonight.
I like Indiana 79 Michigan State 72
Monday, February 18, 2013
Monday Thoughts in America
2/18/13
Ben Fishman
Thoughts from around the block on this Monday.
Ben Fishman
Thoughts from around the block on this Monday.
- It’s the Road to Selection Sunday. And we’re on it. In four weeks time we will have selected all 68 teams and placed them into their respective brackets. Four weeks from tomorrow the opening round games will tip off in Dayton, Ohio. VCU went from the First Four to the Final Four in 2011 so who knows what the Dayton rounds will bring.
- How about Miami? The Canes keep gaining ground on Indiana in the polls and could pop up to #1 if Indiana loses at Michigan State Tuesday night. More on that one later. Miami has a tough one this week against Virginia, right after IU-MSU II.
- Wisconsin has proven itself once again. The Badgers ran Ohio State out of the building yesterday in Madison, staking claim to third place in the Big Ten. They now own victories over Ohio State, Indiana, Minnesota and Michigan and get another shot at Sparty on March 7th.
- Minnesota is in free fall mode after an embarrassing road loss to Iowa. Iowa on the other hand has won three in a row and could win four of their last five games, with the one loss coming March 2nd at Indiana.
- Gonzaga is up to #3 in both polls and deservingly so. The Bulldogs scored a huge win over St. Mary’s last week on ESPN and looked impressive doing so. St. Mary’s now has to beat Creighton to assure themselves of a spot in the Big Dance.
- Things won’t get easier for Duke. They have two ACC bottom feeders before getting another crack at Miami as well as a road game at Virginia. If this team has no Ryan Kelly the rest of the way you could see Duke dropping to a 2 or 3 seed.
- Louisville is doing a nice job of hanging around while flying below the national radar. The Cardinals get Syracuse and Notre Dame still on their Big East slate before the league tournament in Madison Square Garden which is always fun. Before the year started I had UL-IU in the title game.
- Michigan could still win the Big Ten regular season title. The Wolverines host Illinois, Michigan State and Indiana all over the last three weeks of the season while also getting home games against Penn State and Purdue. Michigan could very easily win out and get the #1 seed in Chicago.
- Memphis jumped six spots in the Coaches Poll today, probably surprising the entire fan base. The coaches who were relatively down on Memphis since dropping them out of the polls in the Fall, bumped Memphis past Marquette, Notre Dame and VCU. Watch out for Memphis. If they keep winning and keep climbing, it’ll be very hard for the committee not to award them a top 5 seed.
- Injuries really ruin the game of basketball. Victor Oladipo missed the second half of Indiana’s walloping of Purdue Saturday with a sprained ankle. Ryan Kelly missed another Duke loss. Rutgers leading scorer Eli Carter is out for the year now. Seton Hall’s Brandon Mobley will have season-ending surgery next week. And Nerlens Noel has already begun his pre-surgery preparations in Lexington. Pray that nobody gets hurt in the first couple weeks of March ala Kenyon Martin.
- Arizona better get it together fast if they intend to win the Pac-12 and more. The Wildcats got back to their winning ways last night against Utah. But it was a game too close for comfort against a team that came in with a 3-10 record in the league. Zona is now one game back of Oregon. And when they put it together, they’re as good a team as anyone in the country.
- I like Pittsburgh tonight against Notre Dame at home. Kansas State should handle West Virginia at home as well.
- I’m excited to hear Dick Vitale and Magic Johnson call a game together tomorrow night in East Lansing. Magic is as good as it gets when talking about basketball royalty, and Dick Vitale is, well Dick Vitale.
- If Kentucky is gonna make its run, it is gonna be this week. They host Vanderbilt on Tuesday then have a BIG game Saturday at home against Missouri. Coach Calipari better have his troops ready or it’ll be NIT time in Big Blue Nation.
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