Winners ready for shootout finals

IU has developed a reputation for being strong from behind the three-point line this season, and several students plan to show this reputation extends past the basketball team’s roster.\nDuring the halftime periods of the intramural basketball championship games in Assembly Hall, the Intramural Sports Council will host the 3-point shootout championships.\nThe first round of the shootout was held Feb. 20 in the Wildermuth gymnasium. Participants were given five balls to shoot, four of which were worth one point and the last being worth three points. The top six males and females were chosen to continue on to the championship rounds. \nThe ISC works closely with RecSports, is a division of the Student Recreational Sports Association and is “the voice of intramural participants,” according to the Web site. \n“The ISC is kind of like the governing body of intramural sports,” Graduate Assistant for Intramurals Eric Kammeyer said. “If you had an idea for a new sport, you would bring a proposal to them.”\nThe ISC decided to create the 3-point shootout two years ago with the hope of adding more diversity to the programs offered by intramurals. \n“On the means of being diverse, I am talking about giving more students a chance to compete in something they could excel in,” ISC president Matt Stoltz said. “Some students are not talented in organized basketball, but many like to play for fun and are good shooters. This gives them a chance to shine.”\nThe 3-point shootout was originally scheduled to take place on Feb. 13 but was pushed back a week due to several intramural games being postponed as well as the IU men’s basketball game against Purdue. Despite the scheduling difficulties and inclement weather, about 85 participants showed up to the shootout. This number was down from roughly 120 participants last year. \nKammeyer believes the weather may have encouraged some participants to stay home. \nTwelve students advanced to the finals in Assembly Hall. One of those participants is senior Kendra Lower, who played intramural basketball and participated in the 3-point shootout last year. She was also a three-year varsity player on her high school’s basketball team. This is the second year Lower will be advancing to the championship round. \n“I shot (at) Assembly Hall last year, and it was really exciting,” Lower said. “It seems a lot bigger when you are actually on the court playing.”\nThe shootouts will take place at the halftimes of the six intramural championship games on March 4 and 5. The winners of the men’s and women’s shootouts will each win a basketball signed by IU basketball coach Kelvin Sampson as well as a RecSports T-shirt. \n“The 3-point shootout is improving in its second year,” Stoltz said. “Last year the winners only got a T-shirt that showed they were an intramural champion.”