When I was a college student at Indiana, half the fun of being a basketball fan was disliking opposing coaches, and the Big 10 during that era was full of coaches that were easy to dislike. Bill Frieder (Michigan), Lou Henson (Illinois), Eldon Miller (Ohio State), Dr. Tom Davis (Iowa) and Gene Keady (do I […]
Butler did the near impossible tonight. The Bulldogs out-executed and out-toughed Villanova. In his postgame press conference tonight, Butler coach Chris Holtmann said, “Players win games. Players win games. Players win games.” Yes they do – and yes they did. It had to happen eventually. Villanova’s reputation for grinding out wins possession by possession is […]
Yesterday, Butler University hosted a celebration for the life and legacy of former basketball player Joel Cornette. It was attended by a couple thousand of his closest friends. There were 13 speakers, and all told different versions of the same story. Passionate teammate whose level of belief in friends led to their rising to meet challenges on […]
Basketball is Indiana’s game, and rarely have we enjoyed a season across levels as competitive and fun as this one. Regardless of the level, basketball in Indiana has never given fans more reason for hope as the season heads toward its third act. The Pacers could win multiple playoff series, or miss the postseason entirely. […]
Tonight will be a great night of college hoops for those of us in central Indiana who view it as one of America’s four major leagues, and the scheduling gods have smiled on us again as the two big games don’t conflict with one another. Butler hosts Georgetown at 7p (FS1), and Indiana will take on […]
We take no joy in expecting coaches to be fired, but coaching is a profession that welcomes close scrutiny by fans and media and the direction of college programs and pro franchises are a big deal to many of us. Once the winds of change start blowing, they are very difficult to stop as Colts […]
by Kent Sterling I look at the mood swings of Chuck Pagano, the uncertainty surrounding Rick Pitino, and the constant din of criticism for Tom Crean, and I wonder whether being a coach is worth the money or sacrifice. It’s a tough life, even for a secure coach with a pristine record of winning and compliance. […]
by Kent Sterling The Final Four has been held in Indianapolis six times, and Duke has qualified for three of those celebrations of amateur basketball (1991, 2010, 2015). They have won the National Championship all three times. Yet, only 9.8% entrants in the ESPN Bracket Challenge guessed Duke would win. Idiots! Kentucky was supposed to […]
by Kent Sterling The college basketball season changes in the middle of February. Teams that appeared unbeatable in January are suddenly flawed, and those that couldn’t win earlier find the right combination of effort, experience, and talent to vanquish foes. Fans saw it last night as Syracuse beat Notre Dame in South Bend, Maryland upset […]