Indiana University Athletics
Wright Leads Against Vanderbilt
12/9/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
December 9, 2002
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana University senior guard Tom Coverdale notified the media after Saturday's win over Illinois-Chicago that the Hoosiers' goal this season was to win every game they played. True freshman Bracey Wright said he just wanted to be a playmaker at Indiana.Well said, gentlemen.
On just two days rest, the No. 7 Hoosiers topped the Vanderbilt Commodores 73-56 Monday night, claiming the Hoosiers' 375th victory in Assembly Hall, and extending their record to a perfect 7-0.
Like a thoroughbred at the beginning of May, Wright and the Hoosiers stormed out of the gates early to an 8-0 lead in the first 4:49 of the game. Wright accounted for the Hoosiers' first eight points en route to a career-high 31 points, while grabbing five rebounds and dishing five assists along the way. A native of The Colony, Texas, Wright was a perfect 6-for-6 shooting with 16 points before missing his first basket at the 7:33 mark in the first. Wright would go on to finish the first half with 20 points, just one shy of his previous best, which he set against Virginia in the Maui Invitational championship game as well as against North Texas at Assembly Hall on Dec. 1.
"Bracey made great shots over and over again tonight," said Indiana head coach Mike Davis. "He just came out and made his shots."
Commodore head coach Kevin Stallings praised Wright and the Hoosiers, as his Vanderbilt squad fell to 5-2 on the season.
"Indiana got off to a great start. They are a great shooting team," Stallings said. "We didn't do much to defend Bracey Wright. He was better on offense then we were on defense. He is great offensively off the dribble and as a catch-and-shoot player. Even when we did guard him well, he still shot over us."
Wright netted his final basket with 53 seconds left in the game, marking the first time a Hoosier freshman has eclipsed 30 points in a game since A.J. Guyton scored 31 against Purdue on Feb. 18, 1997.
The young Texan has continued his run as he has scored in double figures every game this season. Wright admits that his 11-of-20 shooting carried over from pre-game warmup, where he hardly missed a shot.
"I was here two hours before the game, shooting around, shooting threes, free throws, all of that," Wright said. "In warmups, I felt it. I wasn't missing any shots in pre-game and it just carried over."
While experiencing an off night from the floor-just 2-of-10 for six points-Coverdale performed the role of playmaker as well, dazzling the crowd with sharp, precise passing. The Noblesville, Ind., product thrilled the crowd of 17,147 at the end of the first half, with a sensational coast-to-coast fingertip layup at the buzzer to lead IU into halftime, 43-29.
Coverdale, who admitted to feeling tired in the game, is quick to point out that this season's Hoosier squad picks up the slack when a player is having an off night.
"I definitely felt the 'old man legs' tonight," said Coverdale. "I think the nice thing about our team is if a couple of guys have off shooting nights, we have other guys to pick it up. Bracey carried us tonight. A couple of nights ago, Kyle was off and tonight it was me. The bottom line is we have to get the win. That is what we have been doing every single game, and that is all that matters."
Classmate Jeff Newton recorded his fourth straight double-double Monday, scoring 10 points while grabbing 13 rebounds. Newton is the first Hoosier to accomplish the feat since Jared Jeffries last year.
Fellow Hoosier big man George Leach struggled from the floor Monday, netting only two points, but snatched 14 rebounds, two off his career high, which he set back in the first game of the season against UMass.
"With George and Jeff, I think we have the two best-shot blockers in our conference by far," said Coverdale. "Whenever you have that type of presence down low, it is hard for the opponent to score inside. We don't have to double team like a lot of teams have to in the post and that is a big advantage for our defense."
The Hoosier faithful also caught a glimpse of senior Kyle Hornsby showing signs of coming out of his shooting slump. The Anacoco, La., native was 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, finishing with 12 points. But even Hornsby's performance could not escape the shadow of Bracey Wright.
"It's amazing how he is very fluent and takes things at his own speed. It also helps that he is athletically gifted," said Hornsby. "His own speed is a notch higher than everyone else's. That is a big reason why he is the way he is. He can flat shoot the lights out."
Monday's win marks the Hoosiers' best winning streak since IU won eight straight from Dec. 10, 1996 (a 74-57 win at DePaul) through Jan. 2, 1997 (a 77-65 triumph over Michigan State). Just before tipoff on Monday, the new Associated Press polls were released, ranking the Hoosiers seventh in the nation-Indiana's highest ranking in the poll since IU ended the 1992-93 season No. 1.
Indiana will travel to the state's capital, Indianapolis, Saturday to join the Hoosier women's basketball team faceoff against Purdue at the RCA Dome in the first annual "Duel in the Dome." The women's gametime was moved late Monday night to 5:30 p.m., however the men's tipoff against the Boilermakers remains at 8:00 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN Plus Local.
INDIANA GAME NOTES
• At No. 7, Indiana entered tonight's game with its highest ranking in the Associated Press poll since it ended the 1992-93 season in first place.
• The win is the 375th for Indiana in Assembly Hall. Head coach Mike Davis is 26-3 in games played in Assembly Hall.
• The victory tonight makes the Hoosiers 7-0 on the season, marking their best start since the 1989-90 season. IU reeled off 10 straight victories to begin that campaign.
• The streak of seven wins is the best since the Hoosiers picked up seven consecutive victories between Dec. 10, 1996, and Jan. 2, 1997.
• The Hoosiers took a 6-1 lead in the all-time series with Vanderbilt.
• Indiana held the Commodores to a season opponent low 56 points.
• Bracey Wright finished with 31 points tonight, the most by a Hoosier freshman since A.J. Guyton scored 31 against Purdue on Feb. 18, 1997.
• Wright fueled Indiana to an 8-0 lead in the opening minutes of the game. He made his first six shots from the field and posted 20 points in the first half alone.
• Wright has scored in double figures for the Hoosiers in each of his seven career games and has posted more than 20 points on three occasions.
• Wright's consecutive free throws made streak ended at 22. Wright was 4-for-4 in the first half, but missed his only attempt in the second half.
• Senior Jeff Newton posted his fourth straight double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds, tying Jared Jeffries, who was the last Hoosier to have four straight double-doubles. Jeffries' streak ran from Jan 19 to Jan. 31, 2002.
• Junior George Leach has blocked at least three shots in six of the seven games that he has appeared in this season. Leach finished with six rejections in tonight's game to tie his season high (Dec. 2 against Maryland) and needs just nine more to move into eighth place on the IU all-time list.
• Tom Coverdale dished out six assists, putting him tied with Steve Alford for ninth on Indiana's all-time list. He has 385 in his career.
• Senior Kyle Hornsby hit four three pointers tonight and now has 137 for his career. He needs one more to tie for seventh on the Indiana career three-point list.
• In the first half, the Hoosiers were 7-of-15 from beyond the arc while the Commodores were unable to convert a three-pointer in seven attempts.
• The Hoosiers are 9-2 all-time in games played on ESPN2.
• IU nailed 13-of-14 free throw attempts for a season-best .929 percentage.
• The Hoosiers tied a season-high with 10 blocks, a mark they also had against Maryland on Dec. 2
• Vanderbilt tied an IU opponent season low with one three-pointer (1-for-15). Illinois-Chicago also made only one three on Dec. 7.
•The Commodores' 3-for-7 effort from the free throw line was an Indiana season opponent low in both makes and attempts.
• Indiana has scored more than 70 points in all seven of its games this season.
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