Indiana University Athletics
"The Fans Were Electric"
2/12/2016 4:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball
By: Tori Ziege, IUHoosiers.com | Twitter
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Tom Crean had someone he needed to thank.
He strode confidently to the southeast corner of Assembly Hall, facing the student section. He clapped his hands together, then pushed out his palms.
The fans had given Indiana all the praise it needed to upset No.4 Iowa. Now, it was his turn to push the praise back onto them.
He turned to each corner of the court, and did it again. And again. And again.
17,472 someones in attendance Thursday night. He made sure to thank them all.
"I think the decibel level was broken tonight," he said. "It was excruciatingly loud, and it was tremendous."
In the past five seasons, 18 ranked opponents have contested Indiana in Assembly Hall.
Only two have walked out victorious.
There's no easy way to explain Indiana's success in Assembly Hall, where the Hoosiers are a Division I best 6-1 against top-five teams since 2011-12.
But if there was, it starts with the home crowd.
"The fans were electric," freshman walk-on Harrison Niego said. "When they get behind us and we get rolling, it's a lot of fun to play. It's definitely a big reason why I decided to come here."
The Hoosiers haven't lost a home game in 343 days.
Collectively, the men's and women's teams are 25-0 in Assembly Hall, a statistic that was staggering a month ago — now, it's practically unheard of. They are one of three schools at the Division I level to have both men's and women's teams undefeated at home, joining Albany (19-0) and Princeton (17-0). But the Hoosiers win over No. 4 Iowa serves as Indiana's best achievement to date.
"They can just propel us to our ultimate goal, which is a Big Ten championship," senior guard Kevin "Yogi" Ferrell said. "We definitely want to win it outright."
Through every play in an up-and-down game, the crowd's energy, and by extension its confidence, never seemed to waver.
It's a confidence Crean brought to the huddle, where even after Iowa reversed a 16-point lead, he told his team they were going to win.
"He kept telling us, 'We're going to win this game, we're going to win this game,'" Ferrell said. "Looking around, guys believed. We basically carried that onto the court."
And when the Hoosiers did hang on for an 85-78 victory, it was validation for all the confidence Crean and a sell-out Assembly Hall had instilled.
"The crowd helped us, let's be honest," Crean said. "They stayed really strong with us. But I think these guys have been down
"They've earned their wins."
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Tom Crean had someone he needed to thank.
He strode confidently to the southeast corner of Assembly Hall, facing the student section. He clapped his hands together, then pushed out his palms.
The fans had given Indiana all the praise it needed to upset No.4 Iowa. Now, it was his turn to push the praise back onto them.
He turned to each corner of the court, and did it again. And again. And again.
17,472 someones in attendance Thursday night. He made sure to thank them all.
"I think the decibel level was broken tonight," he said. "It was excruciatingly loud, and it was tremendous."
In the past five seasons, 18 ranked opponents have contested Indiana in Assembly Hall.
Only two have walked out victorious.
There's no easy way to explain Indiana's success in Assembly Hall, where the Hoosiers are a Division I best 6-1 against top-five teams since 2011-12.
But if there was, it starts with the home crowd.
"The fans were electric," freshman walk-on Harrison Niego said. "When they get behind us and we get rolling, it's a lot of fun to play. It's definitely a big reason why I decided to come here."
The Hoosiers haven't lost a home game in 343 days.
Collectively, the men's and women's teams are 25-0 in Assembly Hall, a statistic that was staggering a month ago — now, it's practically unheard of. They are one of three schools at the Division I level to have both men's and women's teams undefeated at home, joining Albany (19-0) and Princeton (17-0). But the Hoosiers win over No. 4 Iowa serves as Indiana's best achievement to date.
"They can just propel us to our ultimate goal, which is a Big Ten championship," senior guard Kevin "Yogi" Ferrell said. "We definitely want to win it outright."
Through every play in an up-and-down game, the crowd's energy, and by extension its confidence, never seemed to waver.
It's a confidence Crean brought to the huddle, where even after Iowa reversed a 16-point lead, he told his team they were going to win.
"He kept telling us, 'We're going to win this game, we're going to win this game,'" Ferrell said. "Looking around, guys believed. We basically carried that onto the court."
And when the Hoosiers did hang on for an 85-78 victory, it was validation for all the confidence Crean and a sell-out Assembly Hall had instilled.
"The crowd helped us, let's be honest," Crean said. "They stayed really strong with us. But I think these guys have been down
"They've earned their wins."
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