Indiana University Athletics
Hoosier Hysteria Kicks Off Season Saturday
10/23/2015 9:32:00 AM | Women's Basketball
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana women's basketball is back.
The Hoosiers will take to Branch McCracken Court for Hoosier Hysteria at Assembly Hall for the first time in front of the public Saturday, unofficially kicking off the 2015-16 season. The doors open at 5 p.m., with the women taking the floor for a shootaround at 5:10 p.m.
Admission is free but fans are encouraged by IU Athletics to bring canned goods to donate to the Hoosier Hills Food Bank. Due to renovations on the south side, fans can use the north, southeast and southwest entrances to enter Assembly Hall.
"It's my most favorite event that we do," head coach Teri Moren said. "There's no other place like it. You talk about the atmosphere, you talk about the energy at Assembly Hall. You can describe it, but there's nothing really like being there in the moment."
Hoosier Hysteria is part open practice, part pep rally.
IU alumna and E! News co-host Catt Sadler will be the emcee at the event, which will also be the first collegiate sporting event streamed in virtual reality through the Cuban Center and BIGLOOK360.
The team will be introduced at 6:30 p.m. in typical Hoosier Hysteria fashion with each player taking the court to pre-selected music. Players normally take this time to choreograph dance moves and interact with the crowd, allowing them a chance to showcase their personalities in a way they normally wouldn't be able to on game days.
"It's definitely special," junior guard Karlee McBride said. "We get to show off our personalities a little more and actually how fun of a team we are. So that's exciting."
Later in the evening, competition ramps up with a 3-point contest featuring Amanda Cahill, Lyndsay Leikem, McBride and Jess Walter.
On paper, Walter would appear to be the early favorite. She connected on a team-best 41.7 percent of her 3-pointers last season, but all four are proven sharpshooters from beyond the arc. And with an event like Hoosier Hysteria, it's often hard to predict what types of things might happen.
"There's so much energy and enthusiasm at Assembly Hall," Moren said. "It's a great opportunity for us to invite some of our visitors to come in here and just see what Indiana basketball is all about."
Though mostly a relaxed evening, Hoosier Hysteria is a sign that the competition of basketball season is looming. The Hoosiers have already gotten in more than two full weeks of practice, and the early reports from Moren and her players are that things are slowly coming together as the Hoosiers work on some system changes in Moren's second season.
Indiana will return to Assembly Hall Nov. 8 to play Slippery Rock in an exhibition before beginning the regular season on Nov. 13 against Tennessee State in the opening round of the preseason WNIT.
"You sometimes forget how close the season really is," junior forward Alexis Gassion said. "Hoosier Hysteria, it means we're almost there. It's really exciting."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana women's basketball is back.
The Hoosiers will take to Branch McCracken Court for Hoosier Hysteria at Assembly Hall for the first time in front of the public Saturday, unofficially kicking off the 2015-16 season. The doors open at 5 p.m., with the women taking the floor for a shootaround at 5:10 p.m.
Admission is free but fans are encouraged by IU Athletics to bring canned goods to donate to the Hoosier Hills Food Bank. Due to renovations on the south side, fans can use the north, southeast and southwest entrances to enter Assembly Hall.
"It's my most favorite event that we do," head coach Teri Moren said. "There's no other place like it. You talk about the atmosphere, you talk about the energy at Assembly Hall. You can describe it, but there's nothing really like being there in the moment."
Hoosier Hysteria is part open practice, part pep rally.
IU alumna and E! News co-host Catt Sadler will be the emcee at the event, which will also be the first collegiate sporting event streamed in virtual reality through the Cuban Center and BIGLOOK360.
The team will be introduced at 6:30 p.m. in typical Hoosier Hysteria fashion with each player taking the court to pre-selected music. Players normally take this time to choreograph dance moves and interact with the crowd, allowing them a chance to showcase their personalities in a way they normally wouldn't be able to on game days.
"It's definitely special," junior guard Karlee McBride said. "We get to show off our personalities a little more and actually how fun of a team we are. So that's exciting."
Later in the evening, competition ramps up with a 3-point contest featuring Amanda Cahill, Lyndsay Leikem, McBride and Jess Walter.
On paper, Walter would appear to be the early favorite. She connected on a team-best 41.7 percent of her 3-pointers last season, but all four are proven sharpshooters from beyond the arc. And with an event like Hoosier Hysteria, it's often hard to predict what types of things might happen.
"There's so much energy and enthusiasm at Assembly Hall," Moren said. "It's a great opportunity for us to invite some of our visitors to come in here and just see what Indiana basketball is all about."
Though mostly a relaxed evening, Hoosier Hysteria is a sign that the competition of basketball season is looming. The Hoosiers have already gotten in more than two full weeks of practice, and the early reports from Moren and her players are that things are slowly coming together as the Hoosiers work on some system changes in Moren's second season.
Indiana will return to Assembly Hall Nov. 8 to play Slippery Rock in an exhibition before beginning the regular season on Nov. 13 against Tennessee State in the opening round of the preseason WNIT.
"You sometimes forget how close the season really is," junior forward Alexis Gassion said. "Hoosier Hysteria, it means we're almost there. It's really exciting."
Players Mentioned
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Forward
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