Crean’s new team to start season at Hall tonight

When Tom Crean stepped out on the floor for the first time last year, fans didn’t know what to expect.

This year, they still don’t.

Wednesday’s exhibition game against Grace College will be Crean’s first game since IU’s 66-51 loss to Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament in March. Since that game, hype has grown for this season.

Crean has added a six-freshman recruiting unit that is ranked in the top 10 nationally.
Junior guard Jeremiah Rivers, who sat last season after transferring from Georgetown,
will make his debut at IU. The new Hoosiers will make up a team that barely resembles last year’s squad.

The team will compete against Grace College of Winona Lake, Ind., the first matchup between the two in the schools’ history. Last year the Lancers advanced to the elite eight of the NAIA Tournament. Crean said he expects the game to challenge the Hoosiers.

“We’ve spent a lot more time on what they do concept-wise versus who they all are individually,” he said.

Rivers and sophomore guard Matt Roth will play tomorrow. Both had full contact practices this week. Roth will still be wearing a face mask while he recovers from a broken nose.

However, senior guard and last year’s leading scorer Devan Dumes, recovering from a sore knee, and junior guard Brett Finkelmeier will not play.

Because of team injuries, Crean said tomorrow’s starting lineup will not be a good indicator for the rest of the season.

“It’s not like everybody has to play tomorrow night,” Crean said. “I don’t believe exhibitions are made for that.”

The exhibition game will be the first of two before the regular season starts Nov. 13 against Howard. Last year’s team won both of its preseason games, but won only half of the season’s first 10 games.

Both exhibition games this season are against state schools, something Crean said he doesn’t expect every year.

“You know you’re going to get an opportunity to play against teams that it really matters to,” Crean said. “It’s going to be really special for their players to come into Assembly Hall.”

Roth, one of eight returning players, said Wednesday’s game will be eye-opening for the freshmen.

The team had a crowd of more than 13,000 at Hoosier Hysteria, the first time this season fans were able to see the players in action.

“I think they’re ready for it as much we are,” Roth said.

Sophomore forward Tom Pritchard said he’s ready to start a new year and begin a different trend for IU.

“Last year’s in the past,” Pritchard said. “It’s a season we’re going to forget about.”

Student season ticket sales have already sold better this year compared to last year, Athletics Director Fred Glass said. Only 4,000 student season ticket packages were sold last year, while almost 7,000 have been sold this year.

“They’re going to expect a lot more from us,” Pritchard said. “They stuck with us last year, and we got to deliver for them this year.”