Indiana 2012 - preseason #1

[Jimmy Chitwood]

it's amazing how far Tom Crean has brought Indiana basketball in just 5 years ... taking over a program that was in shambles due to poor decision-making by their athletic director (hiring Mike Davis and Kelvin Sampson as head coaches?!? wtf?!) and the consequent debacle that was their recruiting (and cheating), which resulted in not only a terrible team of poor-playing black thugs but also extreme NCAA sanctions.

now, the Hoosiers are the Preseason pick as the #1 team in the nation.

they return all five starters and 11 letter winners from a year ago, led by Player of the Year candidate Cody Zeller, an extremely athletic 7-footer, and playmaking point guard Jordan Hulls. Indiana will also likely start the high-flying and versatile Will Sheehey, as well as bring the physical presence of post players Derek Elston and Tom Pritchard and the sharp shooting of sniper Matt Roth off the bench.

it will not be unusual to see 4 White men on the court at the same time for long stretches, which is "weird," considering how hard it must be for a bunch of over-achieving, blue collar, hustling, gym rats to be ranked #1 in the country ...

of course, the preseason ranking doesn't mean a thing, but it's nice to see a team led by dominant White athletes getting some recognition.

 

[Liverlips]

This is great news. I may actually watch some college basketball this year then.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

the Hoosiers tip off against Georgia from the SEC in less than half an hour (4:30 Central) on ESPNU.

if you like to watch high-flying White men play hoops, Indiana has a couple of them.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

the Hoosiers got off to a VERY poor start against a very poor Jacksonville team, but fortunately Jordan Hulls showed up to prevent a potential upset.

IU missed four shots and had four turnovers on their first eight possessions and were only up 21-15 ten minutes into the game. that's when Hulls took over. he scored 17 points in the remaining ten minutes of the half, including three-straight threes in the final 90 seconds, to help the Hoosiers finally pull away. Hulls would finish with 20 points (on 6 of 9 shooting, all from long range) on the night.

after Hulls began heating up, Oladipo and Sheehey woke up, as well. Oladipo finished with 14 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 assists, and 2 steals. Sheehey added 14 points, 5 boards, 2 assists, and 2 blocks, and ZERO turnovers.

Cody Zeller, arguably the nation's top player, was in foul trouble most of the evening, and only played 19 foul-plagued minutes. he still managed to score 16 points, block 2 shots, and snag 6 rebounds, however.

for Jacksonville, wing Dylan Fritsch (the White man for the Dolphins) scored a team-high 15 points.