After 2 injury-filled years, Kline ready to make impact

During his freshman year, Sean Kline threw Assembly Hall into a frenzy with a between-the-legs slam that won him the Hoosier Hysteria dunk contest.\nIn his junior year, Kline threw Assembly Hall into a frenzy of a different sort -- one of heckels and boos.\nNow in his fifth and final season with the Hoosiers, Kline will start tonight's game against Nicholls State University back on Branch McKracken court. And with the past behind him, Kline is ready to redefine himself -- again.\n"I've got a different mentality," he said. "This is the last year. It's no holds barred -- this is it. If you don't get it done now, you're never going to get another opportunity."\nKline starts tonight at forward in place of injured sophomore D.J. White, but fans shouldn't expect to see the same player that incited jeers last season. The fifth-year senior lost weight in the offseason, bringing his playing weight back to a more suitable 233 pounds. Several teammates cited Kline's quickness and agility as the most visible difference between this year and last.\nA season-ending knee injury marred Kline's sophomore season, and the effects carried into last year. So with the team struggling and Kline still recovering, senior guard Marshall Strickland feels the IU faithful took much of their frustration out on the forward. \n"He was kind of the scapegoat," Strickland said. "People picked on him, but we all rallied around him. We had his back even when he was playing bad and I think that has really paid off because he's a better player and a stronger person."\nIU's No. 23 played in 18 games last season, starting only three. The knee injury hindered his playing time in December and January, shortly after he recorded eight points and three rebounds in a start against Charlotte University. But oddly enough, the hampering knee opened more playing time for the then-freshman forward White. With the roles now reversed, it will be Kline looking to take advantage of increased playing time due to White's broken left foot.\n"I think he can just come in and play his game," Strickland said. "He's not going to be looked on to be a star... He doesn't have to come on the floor and be Karl Malone."\nIt's easy to forget that five years ago Kline came to IU as a highly touted all-state player. He graduated from Huntington North High School as the school's all-time leading scorer, rebounder and shot blocker, and regularly put up more than 20 points and 10 rebounds on any given night. \nBut even though most of the IU student body wasn't around for those days, there are still those around the Big Ten that remember.\n"I still like Kline," Iowa coach Steve Alford said. "He's a blue-collar kid that's just tough as hell."\nStrickland and Kline, the only two players at IU with four years of experience, sat down at the start of the season to discuss their wide-ranging times and emotions at IU. The conversation gave the seniors a scope for their upcoming senior season. \n"We realized it's our turn to take this over," Strickland said. "Sean has the right mindset right now that he wants to lead this team and wants to leave a winning legacy."\nThe formation of that legacy begins at 6 p.m. tonight in Assembly Hall.