It's INDIANA...

Good morning!  Hope that you are doing well.  Just finished up a nice 4 mile run.  As the title of this blog post might indicate, it's going to be about my Hoosiers. 

Yesterday was an unbelievable day for my Indiana Hoosiers and it was a day we've all been waiting for since Tom Crean took over as our basketball coach in March of 2008 in the wake of the disastrous Kelvin Sampson scandal.  Plain and simple, Indiana was not going to lose that game yesterday.  The fans in Assembly Hall, the players, and the coaches weren't going to let it happen.  You could feel the energy in this state building all week and the atmosphere in Assembly Hall was like nothing I've ever encountered.  It was crazy.  It was nuts.  It was pure pandemonium.  And...it was like that an hour before the tip off and folks did not leave for 30 minutes after the game.  The Indiana Basketball Team and fans have been waiting for a game like this for many, many years.  I know that for those outside of the state of Indiana that we've been down, off the radar, and no one gave us a shot to beat Kentucky, a team with 6 McDonalds All-Americans and 7 future NBA players.  But...we've all watched this Indiana team play and this year it's a different team.  It's a team with all the necessary parts to win.  It's a team that plays with heart.  It's a team that plays to best represent the name across the front of the jersey:  INDIANA.  These players and our Coach, Tom Crean, understand what Indiana Basketball means to this state and to our fans.  They get it.  And that, more than anything, was why they weren't going to lose yesterday.  Not after working so hard to get back to where we could compete against a team like Kentucky.  Not after three consecutive losing seasons.  They weren't going to lose.  In the closing moments of the game when it looked bleak, I yelled to the fans around me, "get up, we're not going to lose this game, we're not going to lose this game, we're going to WIN!" 

After the game on the court

It was surreal as Christian Watford's shot swished through the net and the fans stormed the court.  It was a moment filled with disbelief, exuberance, elation, and shock.  It was a cathartic moment for all of us fans.  We've not seen anything like this since beating Duke in the Sweet 16 in 2002.  We've had little to cheer about in nearly a decade.  This game has been circled on my calendar since the date was released in August.  I knew we could be 8-0 heading into it, I knew UK would be 8-0 and #1, and I knew we would have a shot to win.  And...I'll be honest.  If this game was played in Rupp, then UK probably wins by 10 or more.  And...once Cal gets those talented players to play together, then they'll stomp nearly everyone.  But...yesterday we won and we took down a team that most thought would win by double digits.  It was special.  It was fun.  It was amazing. 

I don't think we'll go undefeated this season and we will have a couple bad losses I'm sure.  However, if yesterday is any indication, then this team is well on it's way to being back in the national spotlight once again.  Coach Tom Crean has recruited a bunch of young men who want to play for Indiana and they've all embraced our tradition.  We have a top 5 recruiting class coming in next year to join this team and we should be outstanding for years to come.  But...I'll never forget our seniors--Verdell Jones, Tom Pritchard, Matt Roth, Daniel Moore, Kory Barnett--who laid the foundation for this moment.  We've been 28-66 over a three year span and our seniors have gutted it out, kept working hard, and never quit.  Yesterday happened because of their hard work, their commitment, and their leadership.  It was a wonderful day and not one I'll soon forget.