Young Hoosiers will make their mark – sort of

Well, folks, it’s time to say goodbye.

It’s been a pleasure writing to you these last 12 months, and looking back at the ground we’ve covered, it occurs to me I ought to say thank you for not punching me silly at Kilroys for some of the lunacy I’ve put in this space.

Seriously, a heartfelt thanks to all out there who not only read this column but pick up the paper each day. It’s a tough, tough time in our business, and it’s you who keep us going every day.

With my last column, I’d like to lend my last opinion to what’s in store for the next year of IU men’s basketball. Without further ado and avoiding as many personal pronouns as I can, here we go with a last prediction:

IU coach Tom Crean, done recruiting the 2009 class, sets about polishing what finally resembles a Big Ten team for the first time since mid-February 2008. Hoosier Hysteria 2009 takes place in front of a sold-out crowd, thirsty for the season to start, like grabbing for more peanuts just as you’ve eaten a rotten one to drive away the bad taste.

The non-conference season, while easier than last year’s bloodletting, still gives the young Hoosiers trouble. They look better on the court in Puerto Rico than they did in Maui, but the win-loss record is relatively the same.

A tight win over Maryland at home buoys the program into the conference season, despite a second-straight loss to Kentucky.

IU enters Big Ten play with a record close to .500 But it’s in conference where the Hoosiers will find their legs. Crean’s consistent efforts to pinpoint his best lineups in the preseason have kept everyone relatively fresh, so shifting into an extra gear in the Big Ten proves easy.

The Hoosiers, young as they are, still stand head-and-shoulders above several conference foes – perennial underdog Northwestern and a flailing Iowa team. IU is also on par with several others, including young-but-tough Wisconsin and Penn State.

Home court advantage almost put the Hoosiers near the top of their standings last year when young men with names like Nick Williams, Devan Dumes, Matt Roth, Tom Pritchard and Verdell Jones had to lead.

Now, with support from the likes of Jeremiah Rivers, Christian Watford, Bobby Capobianco, Derek Elston and Maurice Creek, the Hoosiers are finally a basketball team again and will find their identity in the Big Ten season.

A still-small Jordan Hulls begins to discover his basketball legs, freeing up Jones to play away from the point guard position, while a mixture of Elston, Watford, Dumes and Creek start to put points on the board at impressive clips in Crean’s open offense.

It’s not all roses – defensive necessities don’t come easy for the Hoosiers, who struggle at times to keep good players in front of them and give up easy fouls.

The road still hinders a team too young to be accustomed to the hostilities of Big Ten arenas far away from 17th Street.

Home court, where the Hoosiers lose just three times, is good. But their road output is modest at just two wins, giving them an 8-10 conference record and putting them one game above .500 for the season.

An NIT berth awaits, and IU, now possessing a roster filled with hearty-but-tired legs, finds its way through two rounds before crashing out to, of all teams, the same Maryland Terrapins the Hoosiers dispatched just months earlier.

Specific, aren’t I?

See you in the funny pages.