IU keeps energy alive

March is synonymous with many things in college.  

But for college basketball, March means only one thing: madness.   

IU coach Tom Crean and his Hoosiers (6-24, 1-17) are looking to write their own chapter of madness starting tonight. IU will travel north to Indianapolis as the lowest seed in the Big Ten Conference Tournament.

After taking Monday off, IU got back to work Tuesday – and Crean said despite his team losing 20 out of its last 21 games, the level of excitement is as high as it has ever been. 

“I love that about them,” Crean said. “And this time of year, for them to be as excited as they are and to continue to improve the way they have is really kind of a microcosm of the whole season.”

As long as the Hoosiers stay alive they’ll be underdogs, but Crean knows he doesn’t want tonight to be this year’s last game. 

”Maybe I’m learning again how much I love coaching. I don’t think I ever forgot, but I enjoy coaching this team a lot,” Crean said. “There’s no off-season focus right now. It’s totally focused on how we get ready to win on Thursday.”

IU will need a miraculous run to extend its season past the Big Ten Tournament. But freshman Verdell Jones said earlier in the season that the team can defeat anyone in the conference if it brings it all together. 

“We got to tie 40 minutes together,” Jones said, “and if we do that I think we can beat any team in the country.” 

Standing in the Hoosiers’ way is Penn State (21-10, 10-8). The Nittany Lions went 2-0 against IU this season – the last on Feb. 28 when the Hoosiers fell 61-58 on Penn State’s Senior Night. 

If IU is to make its third time a charm, the Hoosiers will need to find a way to slow down sophomore Talor Battle. As a first team All-Big Ten pick, Battle leads the conference in scoring and his team in assists.

Crean said IU can’t be conventional when trying to stop Battle. 

“I think we have to be creative,” Crean said. “I think we have to continue to move people around. He’s a very hard matchup, but he’s a hard matchup for anybody.”
Another potential advantage for IU is the desperation Penn State, a bubble team, might be feeling. 

The Nittany Lions are coming off a 75-67 2OT loss to No. 10-seeded Iowa in the regular season finale. Thursday might be a must-win if Penn State hopes to get an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament.

“Where do you play a little looser sometimes?” Crean asked. “You play a lot looser when you’re down.”

Let the madness begin.