Indiana Upsets Iowa, 93-86, Behind 30 from Will Sheehey

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, February 27, 2014

It was a night for upsets, Thursday in college hoops.

Unranked Indiana (16-12, 6-9) overturned #20 Iowa, 93-86, in Indiana, getting a career-high 30 points from 6'7" senior forward, Will Sheehey.

Sheehey was just 2-for-7 from beyond the arc, but deadly inside it, hitting 11-of-13 two-pointers to go with four rebounds, three assists and a steal. The Hoosiers, eighth in the Big Ten, aided their post-season cause, but probably are too far removed from even bubble status to be considered for the NCAA tourney. Look for them in the conference tourney and probably the NIT.

Elsewhere, Penn State downed #22 Ohio State, 65-63, Houston toppled #21 Memphis, 77-68, Arkansas needed overtime to stop #17 Kentucky, 71-67, and, Dusquesne, 4-10 in the A-10, dealt #10 St. Louis their first conference loss, 71-64.

The only Top 25 team to record a victory was #7 Louisville, easily handling Temple, 88-66, behind 24 points from Russ Smith.

Indiana Drops Michigan as Yogi Ferrell Nails Seven 3-Pointers

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, February 2, 2014

Indiana has struggled this season in the Big Ten, but they got a huge victory Sunday afternoon, as point guard Yogi Ferrell found his range and helped deliver a stunning, 63-52, victory over visiting #10 Michigan.

Ferrell, a home-grown favorite in Indianapolis, made seven of eight from three-point range en route to scoring 27 points, carrying the Hoosiers to victory. Ferrell was 8-for-10 overall and made four of six at the foul line. He added a pair of rebounds, two assists and a steal as the Hoosiers out-shot Michigan, 54-40% and out-rebounded them, 31-22.

Ferrell was just one of two Indiana players in double figures. Forward Noah Vonleh had 10 points and 12 rebounds.

The Hoosiers improved to 4-5 in conference play, while the loss dropped Michigan to 8-1, tying them with Michigan State atop the Big Ten.

Indiana may be able to make some headway in the conference. Their next three opponents are Minnesota, Penn State and Purdue.

NCAA Tourney: Sweet 16 Thursday Previews; East, West Regions

East Region

7:15 pm EDT: (2) Miami Hurricanes vs. (3) Marquette Golden Eagles - The total of the seeds here - 5 - is tied for the lowest with Kansas vs. Michigan in the South region, Duke vs. Michigan State in the Midwest and Inianda and Syraucse in the East, meaning this should be one of the more competitive games of the tournament.

Miami relies heavily upon its defense, holding its last two opponents (Pacific and Illinois) to 49 and 59 points, respectively, and on the duo of point guard Shane Larkin and the inside-outside play of Kenny Kadji.

Marquette will counter with their own pressure, relentless ball hawking and accuracy from the field (.467), due to taking mostly good shots after lots of passes in the offensive zone. The Golden Eagles have won their last two games by a combined three points, against high level competition - Davidson and Butler. Jamil Wilson and Vander Blue have been clutch down the stretch. This one may not be very pretty, as both teams contest everything, but it should be highly entertaining.

9:45 pm EDT, (1) Indiana Hoosiers vs. (4) Syracuse Orange - Syracuse has been sporadic, sometimes looking world-beating, but often sluggish and without any offensive direction. Of course, they have one of the best in the business, coach Jim Boeheim, on the bench, so they are able to change on the fly.

The Hoosiers showed plenty of heart in their last win, a 58-52 victory over Temple. Indiana boasts nice stats: 3rd nationally in scoring (80 ppg), 7th in FG% (.486) and 24th in rebounds (38.6). Cody Zeller will have plenty of company on the boards and in the paint, as the Orange are long and tall up front. Victor Oladipo is the real wild card here. If he can slice and dice Syracuse's 2-3 zone, the Hoosiers will advance. If not, Syracuse stands a chance at the upset.


West Region

7:47 pm EDT, (2) Ohio State Buckeyes vs. (6) Arizona Wildcats - Arizona has shot 55% from the field through its first two games, the best mark in the remaining tournament field, but they did it against so-so competition (Belmont, Harvard), so they should not expect shots to be as easy to come by against the Buckeyes.

Deshaun Thomas will provide most of the offense, and Aaron Kraft is a pesky defender with quick hands and a special knack for the big play, be it a three-pointer like the one he delivered against Iowa State to win the game or a pass to an open teammate.

The buckeyes are riding a 10-game winning streak, currently the longest in the nation, which is a very big plus at this juncture.

10:17 pm EDT, (13) La Salle Explorers versus (9) Wichita State Shockers - This piece of the bracket was busted when LaSalle took out #4 seed Kansas State and in the next round, as the Shockers dumped #1 Gonzaga.

Both teams are playing their best basketball of the season at the right time and each represent the last stand for their conferences - LaSalle from the Atlantic 10; Wichita State from the Missouri Valley. Nice to see two teams from mid-majors advance this far. Besides them, the only other team remaining in the field not from a Big Six conference is Florida Gulf Coast.

Look for plenty of tempo as both teams can light it up. La Salle averages 72.4 ppg, Wichita State, 69.4. The Shockers' Cleanthony Early, if he gets it going early on, can really light it up and take over a game.

NCAA Tourney: Saturday Third Round Early Games; Buckeyes, Hoosiers Advance

West Region

(2) Ohio State 78 (10) Iowa State 75 - The scored knotted at 75, Ohio State's Aaron Craft stepped up to the three-point line with time running down and swished it, leaving upset-minded Iowa State with only 0.5 seconds left. It was not enough for the Cyclones to get off a quality shot, sending the Buckeyes into the round of 16, where they will meet the 6th-seeded Arizona Wildcats.

Ohio State seemed to have the game in hand when LaQuinton Ross scored ten straight points over a 2:34 span to put the Buckeyes up by 11. A few moments later the lead was 13, but the resolute Cyclones went on a 21-5 run to take a 75-74 lead with 2:22 left. A Craft free throw tied the game and after a Sam Thompson steal and a missed shot by Craft that the Cyclones pushed out of bounds, the stage was set for Craft's heroic moment.

Deshaun Thomas led the Buckeyes with 22 points and five rebounds.

East Region

(1) Indiana 58 (9) Temple 52 - Demonstrating incredible resolve and perseverance under pressure, Indiana scored the final ten points of the game to oust Temple from the tournament and advance to the next round.

Temple's Khalif Wyatt scored a game-high 31 points, but Victor Oladipo, who drew Wyatt as a defensive assignment for most of the game, came up with the decisive shot when it counted, nailing a straight-on three-pointer with 15 seconds left to put Indiana up by four. Christian Watford made a pair of free throws, after a missed attempt by Temple, to seal the deal.

Oladipo led Hoosier scorers with 16 points on 7-for-12 shooting to go with eight rebounds. The Hoosiers meet Syracuse in the round of sixteen.

Cody Zeller Leads Indiana to Big Ten Title in Win over Michigan

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, March 10, 2013

Indiana scored the last six points of the game to capture the Big Ten championship with a 72-71 win over Michigan.

After Glenn Robinson III made one of two free throws to give the Wolverines a five-point lead with 1:03 to play, Indiana took advantage of two missed front ends of one-and-one free throws by Michigan - one each by Tim Hardaway Jr. and by Trey Burke - scoring on each of their final three trips down the floor.

The win gave the Hoosiers the outright regular season title in a hotly contested Big Ten, with a 14-4 record. With a win tonight against Northwestern, Michigan State can finish tied with Ohio State for second place at 13-5.

With the loss, Michigan fell to 12-6, tied with Wisconsin for fourth place.

Cody Zeller tallied a game-high 25 points to go with ten rebounds, four on the offensive end. Victor Oladipo also had a double-double with 14 points and 14 boards.

Zeller was 10-for-19 from the field and 5-for-8 from the foul line.

Indiana May Retain #1 Ranking off Victor Oladipo's 26 in Win at Ohio State

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, February 10, 2013

After Thursday's last-second loss at Illinois, the Indiana Hoosiers weren't about to let another game go down to the wire, so they took out their frustrations at Ohio State, taking a 41-33 lead into half time en route to an 81-68 laugher.

6'5" Victor Oladipo took the game to the Buckeyes, his 26 points good for a share of the high-scoring honor with Ohio State's DeShaun Thomas. A match-up nightmare, Oladipo - too quick for big men and too big for smaller guards - made eight of 10 from the field, none of 10 from the foul line and helped out on the boards with eight rebounds. He added three assists and two steals in 33 minutes of playing time.

Indiana took the lead early and were never seriously threatened, cruising to their 21st win against three losses, tying Michigan State for the top spot in the Big Ten, at 9-2. Michigan and Wisconsin are a game back at 8-3, the loss sending the Buckeyes down to fifth place, with a 7-4 mark.

When the new poll is released on Monday, the Hoosiers may retain their number one ranking despite their loss earlier in the week, in part because Illinois continued their winning way on Sunday, topping #18 Minnesota, 57-53. Also, #4 Duke barely squeaked by Boston College, winning, 62-61, at BC.

Elsewhere, the Cal Golden Bears got 31 points out of Allen Crabbe and knocked off #7 Arizona, 77-69, and James Southerland returned to the Syracuse lineup after a six-game academic absence to score 13 points as the #9 Orange manhandled St. John's, 77-58.

Indiana Tops #1 Michigan, 81-73, Behind Cody Zeller's 19 Points

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, February 2, 2013

Michigan may have been #1 for a week, but that week ends Sunday, and, along with it, their short stay atop the college hoops rankings.

Finding few ways to counter the front line of the #3 Hoosiers' Cody Zeller, Christian Watford and Victor Oladipo, the Wolverines fell at Indiana's Assembly Hall, 81-73, and with that, another team - most likely either Indiana or #4 Florida - will assume the position of the nation's top team... for a while.

For the first five weeks of the season, the Hoosiers were ranked #1, but a loss in mid-December boosted Duke to the top spot for four weeks, until Louisville got the nod on January 14. Duke took it back on the 21st, relinquishing it to Michigan this past Monday. If there anything for certain, nobody knows which team is the best at this point.

In their win over Michigan, the Hoosiers took back first place in the Big Ten, posting a record of 8-1 in the conference, but they are by no means alone. The Wolverines, along with Michigan State and Ohio State are all just a game back, at 7-2, and Indiana still has two games with the Buckeyes and one each with the two Michigan teams before the regular season ends.

What the Hoosiers have, however, is possibly the best front line in the country, emphatically proven in their win over Michigan. Cody Zeller had one of his finest games, scoring 19 points on 8-for-10 shooting, with 10 rebounds (his 7th double-double of the season) and two blocked shots in 34 minutes. Watford pitched in 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Mr. Do-it-all, Oladipo, had 15 points, two boards, two assists and a pair of steals.

Despite 16 turnovers, the Hoosiers dominated the rest of the game, hitting at a 52% clip with seven three pointers. They also out-rebounded the Wolverines, 38-29. Most telling was the free throw line. Indiana went to the stripe 25 times, making 22 (88%), while Michigan was only 6-for-7.

NOTABLE: #2 Kansas will not be elevated to the #1 spot come Monday, as they suffered their second loss of the season in an 85-80 loss to Oklahoma State. Markel Brown led the Cowboys with 28 points. #14 Miami won their ninth straight, topping #19 NC State, 79-78. Pitt topped #6 Syracuse, 65-55, #10 Oregon lost at Cal, 58-54, #15 Wichita State fell at Iowa State, 57-52, and #22 San Diego State dropped a 70-67 decision at Air Force.

Hossiers Looking at #1 after Cody Zelller Leads Win at Northwestern

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, January 20, 2013

The #2 Indiana Hoosiers invaded Welsh-Ryan Arena, in Evanstown, Illinois, on Sunday and wasted little time dictating play to the host Northwestern Wildcats, running off to an early lead off hard-nosed defense to forge a 31-17 lead at intermission.

The Hoosiers relied on their All-American candidate, Cody Zeller, to provide scoring and rebounding in their 67-59 win.

Zeller finished with 21 points and 13 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season. He was 6-for-11 from the field and made nine of 10 free throws.

Improving to 16-2, the Hoosiers are tied with Michigan and Wisconson for second place in the Big Ten. The trio trails 5-1 Michigan State by 1/2 game.

With #1 Louisville losing on Saturday to Syracuse, the Hoosiers should get the nod for #1 from the pollsters when the new Top 25 results are posted on Monday.

Conference Tourneys UPDATE: Key games, 3/8/2012

Big Ten: Indiana 75 Penn State 58 - While the Hoosiers won this one easily, it was not all fun and games as senior guard Verdell Jones crashed to the floor, screaming and clutching his right knee with 5:45 left in the first half. Team officials say Jones suffered a sprained knee, but it sure looked worse than that. Will update as better information becomes available.

Big 12: Kansas 83 Texas A&M 66 - The #4 Jayhawks got 26 points from Elijah Johnson, built a 12-point lead at the half and expanded it in the second. The Jayhawks, ranked 3rd nationally, will face #12 Baylor on Friday at 7:30 pm ET.

Big East: Cincinnati 72 Georgetown 70 - Yancy Gates led all scorers with 23 points and had eight rebounds as the Bearcats eliminated the #13 Hoyas and will face #2 Syracuse in a semi-final game at 7:00 pm ET Friday.

Mountain West: San Diego State 65 Boise State 62 - The #18 Azetcs weren't supposed to be tested in the opening round of their conference tournament, but they managed to squeak past Boise St. on Jamaal Franklin's buzzer beating three-pointer as time expired. Franklin finished with 19 points. Teammate Chase Tapley led all scorers with 20, on 8 of 14 shooting with four threes. San Diego State shot 51% to Boise's 43%, but were out-rebounded 31-22.

Career High 26 for Cody Zeller Leads Indiana to 103-89 Win over Iowa

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, January 29, 2012

Things may be changing in the Big Ten. At least, for one day, the style was unrecognizable in Indiana.

Usually the conference known for rugged defense and scores in the 50s, when the Hoosiers put up 54 points in the first half against Iowa, en route to a 103-89 home win, the usual grind turned into a sprint and freshman center Cody Zeller put on a dunking exhibition, scoring a career high 26 points on 11-for-12 shooting, with four free throws in six attempts, four rebounds, four assists, three steals and a blocked shot.

The Hoosiers led 54-37 at the break, but Iowa shot 79% in the second half to no avail to make the game at least look close. It wasn't. Even though the Hawkeyes shot 63% for the game, Indiana hoisted 13 more shots, many of them off offensive rebounds, of which they had 20. Overall, Indiana dominated the boards, out-rebounding Iowa, 37-22.

Indiana shot 55% for the game, the first conference contest in which they scored more than 100 points since 1995.

The 103 points were the second-most the Hoosiers scored this season. Back in December, they pasted Howard University, 107-50, but it was easily the highest score in a Big Ten game for them this season; their previous high was 88 in a win at Penn State.

The 16th-ranked Hoosiers still have plenty of work to do. The win got their overall record to 17-5, but they are just 5-5 in the Big Ten, good for sixth place in the conference led by Ohio State, at 7-2, with their more Big Ten-like, 64-49, win over Michigan.

Cody Zeller Leads Indiana over Penn State with 18 Points

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, January 22, 2012

The three Top 25 teams that did not play on Saturday were given their chance on Sunday, though two of them wish they had performed better.

Number 15 Virginia lost at home to in-state rival Virginia Tech, 47-45, and #22 Illinois was upended by surging Wisconsin, 67-63. The unranked Badgers have won four straight and stand alone, at 5-3, in 4th place in the Big Ten, behind the trio of Michigan State, Ohio State and Michigan, all 5-2.

The one Top 25 winner from Sunday was also from the Big Ten, as #11 Indiana held serve at home, dropping Penn State, 73-54. While Penn State fans were dealing with the death of long-time football coach Joe Paterno, the Hoosiers were making life for the basketball team a little more miserable with a clogging defense that held the Nittany Lions to just 34% shooting.

Besides the stifling defense, Indiana shot 53%, including a 7-for-8 effort by freshman center Cody Zeller, who led all Hoosier scorers with 18 points. Zeller also collected four rebounds, four blocks, and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe.

Tim Frazier led Penn State with 21 points, though he was only one of two players in double figures for the Lions.

Indiana improved to 16-4 overall and 4-4 in the rough and tumble Big Ten. Next up for the Hoosiers is a trip to Wisconsin on Thursday.

Jordan Hulls and Matt Roth Lead Hoosiers to 88-82 Win Over Penn State

College Hoops Player of the Day for Sunday, January 8, 2012

A few days ago, it was duly noted here how Indiana's Cody Zeller and Christian Watford were dominant inside players. On Sunday, the Hoosiers went out and proved that they had dead-eye shooters on the outside as well.

In their 88-82 struggle over Penn State, Jordan Hulls and Matt Roth popped for a combined 50 points, missing just three shots from the field as the 12-ranked Hoosiers improved to 15-1 and are certain to move up in the rankings when the new poll is released Monday.

Hulls, a junior guard, led all scorers with 28 points, going 7-for-9 from 3-point range and the same from the free throw line. The only two shots he took from inside the arc were misses, but his teammates were more impressed with his career high scoring effort.

Roth, a 6'3" senior guard, missed just once, going 5-for-6 from 3-point range and made all seven of his free throws for 22 points. The duo was a combined 12-for-15 from beyond the arc, accounting for 36 points on 12 of the Hoosiers' 16 3-point makes. Zeller and Watford each scored 10.

The win snapped Indiana's 16-game Big Ten road losing streak that dated back to late January, 2010. They've come a long way since then and have raised eyebrows around the country after going 12-20 last season.

NOTABLE: It isn't often that a player - none less a senior - sets career highs in two categories, but that's exactly what Yale's Greg Mangano did in the Bulldogs' 101-86 victory over St. Joseph's of Long Island. Mangano scored 35 points, making 14 of 26 shots, including 3-for-6 on 3-pointers. He also hauled down 22 rebounds as the 6'10" Yalite dominated the boards. Mangano is averaging a double-double this season, with 19.9 points and 10.6 rebounds per game. Yale is 10-4 and opens Ivy League play on January 14 against Brown University.

Christian Watford, Cody Zeller Lead Indiana Over Mighigan, 73-71

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, January 5, 2012

Tom Crean is building a champion at Indiana.

Crean's 12th-ranked Hoosiers won for the third time this season over a ranked opponent with a 73-71 home win over #16 Michigan, improving their record to 14-1 and 2-1 in the Big Ten.

The Hoosiers, already victorious over then-#1 Kentucky and #2 Ohio State, are becoming a force to reckon with both inside and out of the rugged Big Ten conference. Thursday night's win over the Wolverines was a testament to the power of their inside-outside game, wherein forwards Cody Zeller and Christian Watford dominated inside, scoring 18 and 25 points, respectively, with Watford grabbing high-scorer honors for the game. Watford also grabbed seven rebounds and had four assists.

Indiana led for most of the game, taking a 39-32 lead into the break, but the Wolverines fought back in the second half to tie the game and briefly lead in the final moments, but Zeller and Watford were simply too much to handle and the Hoosiers held on for the win.

Watford, a 6'9" junior forward from Alabama, hit on eight of 11 shots from the field and had three 3-pointers in four attempts, while freshman Zeller - who's older brother Tyler plays for the North Carolina Tar Heels - was eight for 10 and displayed moves in the paint that belied his tender age.

The Hoosiers finished last season with nine straight losses and did not play in any post-season tournaments past the Big Ten. This season, with the addition of Zeller as a complement to Watford inside, they appear to have their sights set on a lengthy run beyond the regular season.

Thomas Robinson, Christian Watford Lead Kansas, Indiana Past #2 Ohio State, #1 Kentucky

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, December 10, 2011

With only the Army-Navy game and some Division 1 playoff games on tap Saturday for college sports fans, attention turned to college hoops as ESPN presented back-to-back "road test" games featuring the two top teams in the AP Poll, #1 Kentucky and #2 Ohio State.

In the first match-up, the Buckeyes were overwhelmed by an aggressive Kansas team which led from the opening tip to the final buzzer and handed Ohio State its first loss of the season, 78-67.

Paced by junior forward, Thomas Robinson's 21 points, the Buckeyes had few answers inside as their star player, Jared Sullinger, sat out the contest with a foot injury.

Robinson's 21 points tied Will Buford's total for Ohio State for game-high honors, though Robinson was much more deadly in the lane and around the hoop, going 7-for-9 from the field and nailing 7 of 8 free throws while ripping down seven rebounds.

In the second game, unranked Indiana remained unbeaten at 9-0, knocking off the #1 Kentucky Wildcats, 73-72, on Christian Watford's buzzer-beating three-pointer that sent players and fans streaming onto the court like the Hoosiers had just captured the national championship.

The game was a statistical oddity, in that Kentucky outshot Indiana, 56%-43%, but the Hoosiers made hay outside the three-point line, hitting nine of 15 attempts, easily outshining the Wildcats' 2-for-9 effort from beyond the arc.

At one point in the second half, the red-hot Hoosiers made seven straight threes to build their lead to 10 points, but Kentucky continued to play hard inside and eventually take a two-point lead with just 5.7 seconds remaining on Doron Lamb's free throw.

Watford, a 6'9" junior with range, led all scorers with 20 points, made 8 of 15 shots from the field, going 4-for-6 from three-point range, including the clutch game winner.

With upsets to the top two teams in the polls, #3 Syracuse, an easy, 85-50, winner over George Washington went to 10-0 and will likely be the nation's #1 team when the new poll comes out on Monday. Indiana will surely be ranked, how high they go and how low Kentucky and Ohio State fall is a matter left to the voters.

No matter what, the Wildcats and Buckeyes each took home failing grades from their early-season road tests.

Illinois Cruises Past Hapless Indiana, 65-52.

The last time the Illini and Hoosiers met, Illinois stormed out to a 22-1 lead, eventually winning that January 10 contest, 76-45. Since then, Indiana had lost 7 of 8, while Illinois was winning 6 of 9 for a 20-5 record and a national ranking at #22.

This time, playing at home, the Hoosiers didn't look much better through much of the game. Illinois pulled ahead 34-13 with 2 1/2 minutes left in the first half en route to a 65-52 win.

Indiana only made four field goals in the first half, and had seven shots blocked by relentless Illinois defenders. The Hoosiers finished with an 8-4 run, but still trailed 38-21 at the break, on 6-23 shooting (27%).

The Hoosiers made a game of it in the second half, executing better on offense and forcing Illinois into a number of turnovers. Indiana closed to within 6 points with 5 1/2 minutes remaining, but the Illini resisted and held on for the road win.

Though Illinois runs a 3 guard offense, their scoring leaders were their two front court starters, Mike Tisdale and Mike Davis, both of whom led the scoring with 16 apiece. Tisdale's points came on 8 of 12 shooting; Davis registered a double-double, hauling down 12 rebounds.

Indiana's season is a lost one, with only one win (over Iowa) in the Big 10 and a 6-18 record overall, but it can pin its future hopes on sharp-shooting freshman, Matt Roth, who led the Hoosiers with 13 points, including 3 of 6 from 3-point range.

Illinois improved to 9-4 in the conference and 21-5 overall. They trail 10-2 Michigan State by 1 1/2 games in the Big 10 standings.

A New Year and a Good Knight

It took a little longer than Bobby Knight might have liked, but Monday afternoon the Texas Tech - and formerly Indiana and Army - coach finally got the win that pushed his career total past North Carolina's legendary Dean Smith.

The Red Raiders beat New Mexico 70-68, for Knight's 880th college basketball Division 1 win against 354 losses, a winning percentage of 71%. Knight, who is 65, is not even considering retirement, so a run at 1000 wins is possible. At 20 wins per season (below his average), it would take Knight just six years to surpass that milestone.

The next marks for Knight, besides getting his Texas Tech team through the grueling Big 12 conference schedule and into the NCAA tournament in March, are the 925 wins recorded both by Tennessee Volunteers women's coach Pat Summitt and by Harry Statham of NAIA McKendree College, who holds the record for the most men's wins at a 4-year college.

Knight won the NCAA national championship three times as coach of the Indiana Hoosiers, in 1976, 1981 and 1987, and coached the 1984 Olympic team to the Gold Medal.

While some may decry Knight's methods as too harsh or too demanding, nobody can deny the results.