Hoosiers wait for NCAA seed

The IU women's basketball team might have to accomplish a little more success before Hollywood gets rights to portray coach Kathi Bennett and company in a feature-length film.\nWhen asked what actress would play her, Bennett said, "We've got to get to the Final Four first."\nThe Big Ten tournament-champion Hoosiers (17-13) can figure out how much longer their fairy tale might last when the NCAA announces tournament selections at 5 p.m. Sunday on ESPN, which will go live with the Hoosiers.\nThe coaches assigned the players homework this week to predict IU's seed. Bennett said she'd like a seventh-seed, but an eight or nine might be more realistic.\n"They're definitely not done playing," associate head coach Trish Betthauser said. "They want to extend this, and they're not happy with just being an NCAA-tournament team."\nThe Hoosiers won their last six games after major adversity. Bennett survived a near-fatal car accident Feb. 8 that broke the second vertebra in her neck and confines her to an eight-pound halo device for another three to nine weeks. \nPrior to that, the Hoosiers had to rework their offensive scheme this season after point guard Kristen Bodine tore her ACL in the third game. Senior Heather Cassady, who played at the point position most of her IU career, filled Bodine's spot without a backup.\nIn fact, Cassady played every minute of the Big Ten tournament -- 125 minutes in three games -- en route to winning the Big Ten tournament's Most Outstanding Player award.\nBennett said the team's progress began before the final seven games, noting an 85-72 victory at Ohio State Jan. 31 and a 67-55 win over Michigan State in Bloomington Feb. 3. \nPerhaps IU's most disappointing loss was a 68-55 defeat by Michigan Jan. 20, in which IU led for 30 minutes. That loss sparked a rallying of teammates and a 70-63 upset of then-No. 8 Wisconsin Jan. 24, Bennett said. \nThe Hoosiers' 73-63 upset of then-No. 15 Minnesota Feb. 17 in particular sparked a turnaround, guard Jill Hartman said.\n"We all looked at each other and said, 'This is it,'" Hartman said. "Especially the seniors, this is their last run. We all pulled together… Feeling that success has made us want it more."\nBennett said the accident united the team, but crediting only that as the Hoosiers' cause of improvement isn't accurate.\n"All the hard work we've put in, we've always had good defensive play," Bennett said. "It isn't fair to say this is a direct result of the accident. I definitely felt their love for me. You could only play on emotion and passion for so long, but you have to be a good basketball team."\nAnd the Hoosiers have played good basketball during the last week. In upsets over the tournament's fourth-seeded Iowa, top-seed Purdue and second-seed Penn State, the Hoosiers shot 39.7 percent, averaged 69.3 points per game and hit 40.3 percent of three pointers.\nDuring the regular season, the Hoosiers shot 41 percent from the field, averaging 67.5 points per game and nailing 32.7 percent of three pointers.\nBennett said she credits her assistants, improved guard play and a new sense that the Hoosiers can overcome the Big Ten's elite teams.\nAs for the rest of the field, Connecticut, Duke, Oklahoma and Stanford could lock up the top seeds, with Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Baylor and Purdue lingering behind. In the Big Ten, Minnesota and Penn State look like at-large bids, while Iowa and Wisconsin could miss the boat.