Indiana 74, Pittsburgh 64: Hoosiers handle Panthers in best win of the Crean era.

by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Dec 9, 2009 12:19 AM EST Comment 8 comments

IU fans have known NCAA championships, Final Four appearances, undefeated seasons, and Big Ten titles galore. No, I'm not going to say anything stupid. I'm not going to suggest that Indiana's 74-64 win over Pitt at Madison Square Garden in any way compares to the accomplishments above. Still, in terms of sheer cathartic relief, it's hard to recall many more satisfying, or maybe relieving is the right word, regular season wins. This one comes with a number of caveats: this isn't the Pitt of the last eight seasons; IU seemed to get "the bounces" during this game; after expanding the lead to 17, it shrunk to 6, and the ball handling after the final TV timeout looked like that of the 2008-09 Hoosiers. Still, on a neutral court, against a top-notch program with an excellent coach, IU played hard and smart for the vast majority of the 40 minutes and clearly was the better team, at least tonight. This team appears to be coming together, and while a sub-.500 season may be in the cards, Big Ten teams that expect IU to be an automatic win might reconsider for now.

I'll post more tomorrow about the game. For now, let's savor the best win of the Crean era so far.

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So now we have to worry about you guys now, too?

Aww, hell.

(Great win.)

"Do not cheat your team or your teammates. Know your plays. Block. Protect. Add to what we are trying to do."
The Only Colors

by LVS on Dec 9, 2009 12:35 AM EST reply actions

Well, probably not you guys. And probably not Purdue (grumble). Maybe the middle of the pack teams. And maybe we can get revenge on Michigan for that bounced-in three last year.

The Crimson Quarry, SB Nation's Indiana Hoosiers blog

by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Dec 9, 2009 12:39 AM EST up reply actions

thems fightin words for this upper-middle of the pack team

but seriously, I am really enjoying the depth of the league this year. good win.

Hailtotheorange.com

by Joe Kutsunis on Dec 9, 2009 1:32 AM EST up reply actions

Shame

I had to miss this one. Sounds like a real great one. Nice to wake up to this.

by goodlucksaturday on Dec 9, 2009 5:17 AM EST reply actions

Great Game

except the sloppiness at the end. It’s freakin’ great to see a Hoosier team with hustle AND talent…

by beckmania on Dec 9, 2009 10:49 AM EST reply actions

oh

and it was pretty awesome that Bob Knight pretty much ignored Digger when he wanted to talk about the first game and kept switching back to analyzing IU.

by beckmania on Dec 9, 2009 11:01 AM EST reply actions

That was the cherry on top

for me last night. Good IU basketball and RMK heaping praise upon them. Almost too much for me to handle.

by hoosierdaddynow on Dec 9, 2009 11:02 AM EST up reply actions

Yep. I think some thought he was intentionally changing the subject away from IU in the pregame, but he changed the subject to IU at halftime. I didn’t see his postgame comments on ESPNU, but heard he was complimentary. I was hoping for a locker room visit, but my hope is that just being in the same building as IU might have been an important step.

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by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Dec 9, 2009 11:23 AM EST up reply actions

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