Why is Indiana U still considered a top basketball school?

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GoGophers2005

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Just curious what peoples thoughts are. I've read in a few posts lately that people think that the best jobs in the Big Ten are MSU, Illinois, and Indiana (then the U).
Sure, they are pretty much in the middle of some good high school basketball talent. But why would a kid not attend Louisville or Purdue over Indiana? Their arena is probably the worst in the Big Ten next to Northwestern and they currently do not have a practice facility as of yet.
They had a nice run in the 80's with Bobby Knight, but I think its going to be very very difficult for them to have any sort of success like that again.
Probably a dumb post, but just want to see you're thoughts.
 

The fact that they were packing that old arena in a six-win season does say something ... huge, loyal fan support is a reason why it is still considered a top job. Is it a top school? That's a different question, but if Crean brings wins and top finishes, then yes.
 

Because it's practically the home of basketball. Basketball in Indiana is a religion (even more so than Kentucky or Kansas).

Texas is the football Mecca of the US. For basketball, it's Indiana. The whole state worships the Hoosiers. Their state high school tourney is flat out insane. Regular season high school games pack 6-8k.

Not to mention Bloomington is a great college town. I believe Indiana is 3rd or 4th in NCAA championships too. The basketball team has the facilities, town, and most important, backing of the entire school and state.

It's like Kentucky, without the whackjobs sending you hate mail telling you to transfer if you went 3-10 from the field.
 


They had a nice run in the 80's with Bobby Knight, but I think its going to be very very difficult for them to have any sort of success like that again.
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They are going to be a huge force in the Big Ten very soon. Next year they will probably be that team no one wants to play, especially down the stretch when their freshman are starting to click. Crean is bringing in 6 players that make up a top 10 class (rated ahead of ours). Crean is a great coach and a great motivator, he'll get the best out of any player. Indiana is going to be near the top of the Big Ten before you know it.
 


ShowinGoldyLove said:
Because it's practically the home of basketball. Basketball in Indiana is a religion (even more so than Kentucky or Kansas).

Texas is the football Mecca of the US. For basketball, it's Indiana. The whole state worships the Hoosiers. Their state high school tourney is flat out insane. Regular season high school games pack 6-8k.

Not to mention Bloomington is a great college town. I believe Indiana is 3rd or 4th in NCAA championships too. The basketball team has the facilities, town, and most important, backing of the entire school and state.

It's like Kentucky, without the whackjobs sending you hate mail telling you to transfer if you went 3-10 from the field.
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Not the WHOLE state. Most are Hoosier fans but plenty of Boiler fans, too.
 

State of IN:Basketball as State of MN:Hockey

I think Crean will have them in the upper 1/2 of the Big Ten in 2 more years, maybe less.
 

MadtownGopher said:
They are going to be a huge force in the Big Ten very soon. Next year they will probably be that team no one wants to play, especially down the stretch when their freshman are starting to click. Crean is bringing in 6 players that make up a top 10 class (rated ahead of ours). Crean is a great coach and a great motivator, he'll get the best out of any player. Indiana is going to be near the top of the Big Ten before you know it.
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Crean is riding his success with Dwayne Wade in the early 200's pretty far. Except for those couple of teams, his numbers are not spectacular.

He'll do well at IU but not remarkably so.
 

Friend Of Tubby said:
Crean is riding his success with Dwayne Wade in the early 200's pretty far. Except for those couple of teams, his numbers are not spectacular.
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I'd probably disagree. His numbers are pretty impressive. He averaged 20 wins a year at Marquette for 10 years in pretty good conferences in the Big East and C-USA, made 6 postseason appearances in those 10 years, including a Final Four. Career record of 191-100 isn't too bad, especially considering the competition.

He's not a Top 10 coach, but he is in the upper echelon of NCAA coaches.
 



GoGophers2005 said:
Just curious what peoples thoughts are. I've read in a few posts lately that people think that the best jobs in the Big Ten are MSU, Illinois, and Indiana (then the U).
Sure, they are pretty much in the middle of some good high school basketball talent. But why would a kid not attend Louisville or Purdue over Indiana? Their arena is probably the worst in the Big Ten next to Northwestern and they currently do not have a practice facility as of yet.
They had a nice run in the 80's with Bobby Knight, but I think its going to be very very difficult for them to have any sort of success like that again.
Probably a dumb post, but just want to see you're thoughts.
Click to expand...


not sure why 'we' minnesotans place so much emphasis on buildings, stadiums, arenas, locker rooms, practice facilities????

i doubt the orange bowl ever chased away a prospective 'cane...doubt pauley pavilion ever chased away a prospective bruin...doubt the coliseum ever chased away a future trojan...doubt assembly hall ever chased away a prospective hoosier...

in the overall scheme..certain things matter...other things, not so much (arenas, practice facilities, locker rooms, etc.)...but said 'things' can provide 'cover' for a coach wanting to move...or for a recruit who wants to say 'no'...or for a disgruntled fan base that is grasping for straws...:eek::eek::eek:
 

IU will always be considered a top tier job in the country, no question. This past year was an obvious aberration in light of the Kelvin Sampson scandal. As mentioned above, the Indiana has some of the most rabid fans you will find. They support their Hoosiers through the good years and bad. They travel extremely well. Indiana is naturally a hot bed for basketball, and you get so many kids dreaming of becoming Hoosiers some day.

History brings instant credibility to a program. Of course IU is rife with good history. With five national championships and a recent trip to the championship game, how can you not put IU as the top big ten job ( I would argue it is better than MSU )? Crean will have the Hoosiers back soon, if not next year. I do not see why they cannot rise to the top of the Big Ten year after year in the not too distant future.

By the way, Assembly Hall is an outstanding venue, if you have not seen a game there, I recommend doing so.
 

??

Didn't they play for a national championship just a few years ago? Or was it only a (surprising) Final Four run?
 

Question about IU for basketball history people. When is the last time they strung together 3 or 4 bad seasons? The reason I ask is I figure the Hoosier fan base will get a lot of credit for sticking with their team through "thick and thin" when it was just one bad year. I'd be interested to see how their fanbase does after 3 or 4 seasons. I'm guessing they wouldn't get as much credit.
 



Here's Indiana over the last ten years:
* In 2000, Bobby Knight's fired because of a confrontation with a student (after several years of questionable behavior on and off the court). Knight goes unhappily into the night (no pun intended) and near riots ensue in Bloomington with a few players (Dane Fife comes to mind) threatening to transfer.

* Assistant coach Mike Davis is named head coach following Knight's firing. Davis becomes a huge lightning rod for Indiana fans, many of whom still support Knight (who makes his displeasure for Davis quite known). Davis, despite leading the Hoosiers to a national title game in 2002, never gains the love of the Hoosier faithful. In 2003-04, Indiana has their first losing season in over 35 years and the following season they finish 15-14, barely making the NIT. Davis ends up resigning during the 2006 season, effective at the end of the year.

* Kelvin Sampson is hired, even though he's under investigation at Oklahoma for recruiting violations. He proceeds to burn down the house in two short seasons, underachieving with the likes of D.J. White and Eric Gordon while also bringing some questionable characters onto the team and once again engaging in recruiting violations. During the 2007-08 season, he is forced to resign, causing a near mutiny by some of the players and is replaced by Dan Dakich as interim coach. Between finishing eligibility, declaring for the NBA, transfers, and players getting kicked off the team, new coach Tom Crean has one returning scholarship player on the roster for 2008-09.

* Tom Crean brings in a bevy of freshman and a juco (or two) and Indiana has a nightmarish season, finishing 6-25, 1-17 in conference.

So, over the last ten years, Indiana has had four head coaches (five if you include Dakich), two head coaches resigning in mid-season, two separate cases of near player revolts, the most drastic roster turnover I can ever recall in college basketball, and two losing seasons, this most recent one, a historic one. I'd say Indiana fans have weathered some difficult times besides just this most recent season.
 

Miami Hurricanes? Orange Bowl? Have you noticed that they have regressed to being 3rd fiddle in the state over the past 5 years? Actually South Florida is probably passing them as we speak. The facilities at UM are notorious for being terrible, and giving up on the Orange Bowl is going to be the death of them.
Just watch...playing in Miami Dolphins stadium is going to push that program even further down, especially when Florida, Central Florida, FSU are putting millions and millions into their facilities.

And when it comes to facilities Minnesota should know better than anyone....not having their own football stadium has put this team 20 years behind the rest of the Big Ten.
 

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