Hoosier Hysteria: From a player's perspective

Adam Ahlfeld\nIt seems like Hoosier Hysteria gets better each year. The amount of people attending keeps getting larger, as Friday's attendance was more than 14,000, and the atmosphere was electric as always.\nI think my teammates will agree with me when I say that the coolest part of the night was the introductions at the beginning of the event. Each player got to choose the song that played while he was introduced, and it gave us a chance to showcase any dancing ability that we have -- or do not have, in my case. I thought it was a lot of fun doing the "Cha Cha" with you all and the cheerleaders. I thought (junior guard) A.J. (Ratliff's) intro song, "SexyBack" by Justin Timberlake, and subsequent dance moves were pretty entertaining, while (junior forward) D.J. (White's) introduction might have produced the largest roar from the crowd. Then again, the ovation that coach (Kelvin) Sampson received might have topped them all. It's really great as a player to see everyone coming together and supporting both of our teams. We've put in a significant amount of work with conditioning, weight training and court workouts, and the support the fans provided Friday was a terrific motivator for us to continue to work so we can make them proud of us. \nAll in all, I'm really glad that so many people were there to support both IU basketball programs. I know all the players appreciated everyone who came out to support us Friday and also to those who will be making Assembly Hall one of the toughest places to play in this year!\nCarrie Smith\nHoosier Hysteria was so awesome! I had such an amazing time. We had to be at the gym at 8:15 p.m., and there were already huge crowds outside the door -- I love our fans. I think they might be the best fans anywhere. Everyone came out to support us. My favorite fans are the ladies who wear those awesome sweaters -- they rock the cream and crimson like nobody else can. \nSo anyway, when I got down to the locker room, everybody was getting dressed. The freshmen were really nervous. I remember what it was like the first time I was in Hoosier Hysteria. I was really nervous, too. I didn't want to make a fool of myself in front of all those people. It's probably worse now for our freshmen since they installed the new scoreboard, and the whole place can see everything. \nThis year I was more sad than nervous. This was the last time I would ever run out on that court to start a season, but I'm so excited for this year. I got even more excited when we got to sign autographs for the fans. It was so cool having everyone wishing us good luck for the year.\nAfter signing autographs, we hung out in the locker room for a bit, getting anxious about the competitions, making sure our hair looked just right, putting the finishing touches on handshakes and practicing dance moves.\nTo tell you the truth, I didn't hit a single shot in warm ups, I slipped on a cable one of the television guys left out on the court and I forgot the steps to the "Cha Cha" slide. Maybe -- even in my old age -- I was nervous just like the freshmen. Can you blame me? Running out in front of 14,000 people with the spotlights on you, everyone cheering, seeing those banners hung up, the traditions that have been made here on our court -- when I think about those things, I get chills. I think that's what Hoosier Hysteria is all about. Now that it's over, I can't wait to get this season going. I'm hyped, and judging by Friday night, our fans are hyped, too!