[/i]Fixing Indiana will take time, patience
PUBLISHED 20 hours and 16 minutes ago
Mike DeCourcy SN Icon Sporting News

Sporting News’ Mike DeCourcy analyzes what Monday’s buzz means to college basketball.

Indiana’s 69-60 loss against Penn State to open Big Ten Conference play was the worst possible result for the Hoosiers. Weak opponent. Home game. Killer league schedule on the way.


A tough loss to Penn State is a reminder that the Indiana basketball program still has a long way to go in its rebuilding efforts, Mike DeCourcy says.
Slow build
If progress is coming too slowly for anyone, though, the blame should not be placed on the people trying to fix the program.

When Tom Crean and his staff got settled in 2008, there were no scholarship players left. These empty-gym situations are the worst for coaches who try to rescue the programs. It’s been that way for Mick Cronin at Cincinnati, and Oregon’s Dana Altman faces something like it. Everyone expects success because the teams always have been successful, and when it does not follow immediately the criticism does.

At IU, Crean started a program from scratch. The Hoosiers had elite tradition, a passionate following and productive in-state talent base, but there was no culture of success because there were no players left to pass it on.

Indiana hasn’t enough good players to function when some are injured, and it’s obvious Christian Watford and Maurice Creek are less than their best.

In time, IU will have enough players to manage. Crean has strong classes lined up for 2011, 2012 and 2014.

He didn’t create this problem. Fixing it will require time. And patience.


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