IU crosses border for 1st rivalry game of season

The times, they have a-changed for the Hoosiers. Aside from candy-striped pants and Branch McCracken Court, almost everything is different about the men’s basketball team since it last played its border rival, Kentucky.

A little more than a year ago, Kelvin Sampson was still manning the reins. The Hoosiers were ranked No. 15 in the country and had an offense built around two future NBA players. 

Deafening chants of “Jor-dan’s bet-ter” rang throughout Assembly Hall as Jordan Crawford exploded for 20 points against his older brother Joe, leading the Hoosiers to a 70-51 victory.

On Saturday, the Hoosiers face essentially the same Kentucky squad.

The Wildcats, on the other hand, face an IU team that doesn’t return a single player who scored against Kentucky in last year’s rivalry matchup.

But Saturday’s game (4 p.m., CBS) marks a new era in the IU-Kentucky series. For the first time, IU coach Tom Crean will lead the Hoosiers against one of their most bitter rivals.

“One of the greatest thrills of being able to come (to Indiana) is being a college basketball fan for as long as I have been and knowing what Indiana basketball has been all about,” Crean said Thursday at a press conference. “Certainly, rivalries are a part of it. Indiana-Kentucky, Indiana-Purdue – those are some phenomenal rivalries, and those are exciting.”

Crean guessed that the young players on his team might not grasp what the rivalry means between the two schools, with the exception of senior forward Kyle Taber and players who grew up in the state.

“There’s no doubt at about 4:07 p.m., or whenever tip-off is, they’ll get a feel for it,” he said.

Crean praised Kentucky’s second-year head coach Billy Gillispie, whom he has faced before. A little over nine months ago, Crean and Gillispie squared off in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, with Crean’s Marquette squad coming out on top, 74-66.

On Thursday, Crean described Gillespie as a worthy adversary.

“He gets his players to compete and to challenge the other team, and they are as well-prepared as I have faced,” he said. 

In addition to being well-prepared, the Wildcats have talent. Crean anointed Wildcats guard Jodie Meeks, averaging 22.9 ppg, as one of the best two guards in the country.
 
In the post, Kentucky features sophomore big man Patrick Patterson. The 6-foot-9, 235-pound forward has six double-doubles through nine games and is averaging 18.2 points while shooting 72.5 percent from the field.

After facing star big men like Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody and Gonzaga’s Josh Heytvelt, Crean said that Patterson still stands out amongst the trees.

“He’s as tough as a post-up as I’ve seen on film,” he said.

Crean said Patterson uses his body well and demands the ball in the post.  
“There is no way we can expect one guy to guard that good of a player,” he said.
When watching Patterson on film Thursday, Crean said he was “amazed” at how well the Kentucky sophomore moves his feet on defense.

“He guards like a guard,” he said.

But despite their talent, the Wildcats have suffered their share of setbacks this season. 

After their well-publicized loss to Gardner-Webb in 2007, the Wildcats opened this season on the wrong end of another big upset: a 111-103 loss to Virginia Military Institute.  

But Kentucky has rebounded to win six of their last seven, and Crean said that when the Hoosiers enter Rupp Arena Saturday, they will be playing in one of the best venues in the college basketball landscape.

“It promises to be a great atmosphere,” Crean said. “I don’t know if it’ll be an outstanding game; we’ll have to play pretty well to make it that way.”