Hoosiers poised for upsets this season

Call it the first honest look at IU basketball – the first time Tom Crean was forced to turn over his cards and prove what kind of poker player he’s been the last seven months.

He underbet his hand.

Don’t get me wrong, this team won’t make any tournament for which they are not already slated. The Hoosiers probably won’t win 12 games.

But they will – yes, you may write this down – pull a few surprise upsets, and they will make things sweaty for their less-than-prepared opponents.

There is quiet enthusiasm surrounding these Hoosiers; they play instinctively, and they hustle. I also have to admit I was impressed by their rough but effective offensive execution, considering such a thing was nonexistent a week and two days ago.

There were also some elements of Saturday’s scrimmage that actually revealed what kind of team the Hoosiers hope to become.

No one seems all that bothered by the deeper 3-point line, which will be necessary for extending defenses and opening the lane, considering IU’s lack of an experienced post presence.

Players really brought pressure defensively, at times over-committing on passes and getting burned with easy buckets or fouls. The discipline will have to improve, but the mentality is clearly one meant never to let teams get comfortable in offensive sets.

Perhaps most important is that these Hoosiers did what last year’s team sometimes struggled to do – play within themselves.

“That’s one thing coach Crean has talked about – no individuals,” said guard Verdell Jones, who led all scorers with 30 points. “Put each of our parts together, it will make a big puzzle.”

Please don’t mistake me for a Hoosier apologist – this team will not break .500 this season. They are too young, too raw, too lacking in fluidity and size to make an honest run at anything other than eighth in the Big Ten.

Evidence supporting the low expectations that have trailed the Hoosiers since April was on display Saturday as well.

There were too many turnovers – 35 between the two squads too many, to be precise. Offensively, things broke down too often, and there was the aforementioned tendency to get burned looking to create pressure and turnovers on the defensive end.

Crean also thought fatigue set in at times, something he said his young team will have to combat both in practice and in games all year.

“They’re tired all the time, because we’re pushing them,” Crean said, before detailing a rather daunting practice schedule. “We want it to be that way. We want to fatigue them and have them try to learn to play through that.”

This team can run, too, a breath of fresh air into the stale, defensive Big Ten. If all that offseason conditioning and intensity Crean’s been talking about for months can stick, this team is built to spoil.

They won’t beat disciplined teams (of which there are too few these days) or teams with vastly greater talent levels (of which there are too many to count right now).

But there exists a medium in college basketball between where IU currently finds itself and where, say, top 25 teams reside, and most of the Big Ten falls right in the middle.

IU can’t match the likes of Ohio State or Purdue, but they’ll give a game to anyone who isn’t prepared adequately and can’t close out down the stretch (I’m looking at you, Illinois).

The key for Crean and the Hoosiers is how they improve through the season. Iron out some bad habits and find some defensive consistency, and they’ll increase Advil sales all over the conference. Don’t learn and improve with regularity, and this season will be nothing more than what it’s already expected to be – a footnote.

“Right now,” Crean said after the scrimmage, “I’m looking for a spirit. I’m looking for an energy. I’m looking for us to excite our fans.”

See you next week.