Tag: Indiana

Michigan State Basketball vs. Indiana game on Sunday postponed due to COVID-19 issues

MSU’s home game against Indiana, scheduled for Sunday, will now be postponed due to COVID-19 concerns within Michigan State’s program.

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On Wednesday, it was announced that Michigan State Basketball’s game against Iowa on Thursday was postponed due to COVID-19 issues within MSU’s program. On Thursday, another hit came when Jeff Goodman of Stadium reported that MSU’s game at home against Indiana will also be postponed.

Based on the information we have received, it seems as though at least three Spartans have now contracted COVID-19, starting with roommates Mady Sissoko and Steven Izzo. They were the first players in the program that we knew about to contract the illness. Of course, head coach Tom Izzo dealt with it back in November.

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The Big Ten has been postponing games, not canceling them, so these should be made up once the Spartans have a clean bill of health.

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All of 2021 March Madness To Be Held in Indiana

The NCAA made it official Monday by announcing that this year’s men’s basketball tournament will be held entirely in Indiana.

The NCAA made it official Monday by announcing that this year’s men’s basketball tournament will be held entirely in Indiana. This has been known for a while, but a detailed plan has not been revealed until now. Most of the tournament will take place in Indianapolis, including the Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium, and other games will be hosted in Bloomington and West Lafayette.

At 3-6 overall and winless through three ACC games, Notre Dame needs to turn it around fast if it hopes to make the field for this unique version of March Madness. The Irish almost surely would have to win the ACC Tournament at this rate, and that’s a long shot with five conference teams currently ranked and three more receiving votes in the latest AP poll. As difficult as it seems, Mike Brey teams have a penchant for surprising people. How do we know it can’t happen again?

Notre Dame Readies for Purdue in Annual Crossroads Classic

The Crossroads Classic has become an item for my bucket list. I won’t be able to cross it off this year, but the games must go on.

The Crossroads Classic has become an item for my bucket list. I won’t be able to cross it off this year, but the games must go on. What better way to celebrate the holidays in the Hoosier State by watching four of the most prominent colleges in the state compete in the sports it’s known for? This year, Notre Dame has drawn Purdue as its opponent, and Indiana will face Butler in the other game.

This is the 10th season of the event at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, and the Irish are looking to right the ship both with this season (2-3) and this event (4-5). Though they have a nice weapon leading ACC scorer Prentiss Hubb (19.4 points a game), they need more contributions from a bench that has provided very few early in the season. That could change now that Trey Wertz is in the rotation, and would help if Nikola Djogo, the only other substitute to log substantial minutes thus far, got something going. Otherwise, the starters could get burned out quickly, even if Mike Brey says they’ve been conditioned to play many minutes a game.

Lady Vols outlast Indiana, 66-58

Recapping Lady Vols’ victory over Indiana Thursday in Bloomington.

The Tennessee women’s basketball team picked up its first road win of the season against a top-25 team Thursday.

The Lady Vols outlasted Indiana, 66-58, in a midweek matinee in Bloomington.

Rennia Davis carried Tennessee (4-1) into the win column as she posted a double-double, scoring 19 points and grabbing 15 rebounds.

The Lady Vols led by as many as 16 points and held off a late surge from the No. 15 Hoosiers, who fell to 2-2 with the loss. Indiana, which lost to Kentucky earlier this season, has now dropped two games against Southeastern Conference foes.

Davis had her best offensive game and received plenty of help from her supporting cast.

Rae Burrell had 18 points for the Lady Vols, who led 34-24 at halftime and extended their advantage to 45-29 with 7 minutes, 50 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

Jordan Horston added 13 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished out six assists for Tennessee, which returns to action Sunday when it hosts Jackson State at Thompson-Boling Arena.

Tipoff is slated for noon EST.

Ali Petburg led the Hoosiers with 16 points.

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Kellie Harper previews Tennessee-Indiana

Tennessee plays at Indiana Thursday.

Tennessee (3-1) and No. 15 Indiana (2-1) will play at 4 p.m. EST Thursday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington.

The contest will be streamed on Big Ten Network Plus.

Ahead of the matchup, second-year Tennessee head coach Kellie Harper previewed the game and discussed it being added to the Lady Vols’ schedule.

Below is a transcript provided by the University of Tennessee.

On how the game against Indiana came about:
“At the beginning of the season when we put our schedule out publicly, we knew we were still one game short of a full schedule. We knew that we could add a game during the season. This was the week we wanted to try to add it. We had a game that Stanford was not able to come and play, so we wanted a really good opponent there. We’re very fortunate that Indiana had an opening there at the same time. We were able to get with them, communicate that and make this happen.”

On how the team has bounced back from traveling to Texas and having the game canceled so close to game time:
“It was actually a pretty big blow, to be honest. Players were getting taped. The coaching staff was getting ready. I think we had less than an hour before departing to the gym when we found out. That was tough. We were sitting on go. You build up and do everything leading up to game time. You’re getting ready to peak for game time, and then it doesn’t happen. That’s a big blow. Now, on the flip side, we’re all healthy. We had a safe trip out there. We had a safe trip back. At times like these, it’s easy to really dial in and look at that one little thing, but I think it’s important that we look at the big picture and realize that we’re OK. It’s just part of what we have to do. Honestly, it was a little somber coming home. The trip was a little quiet. At the next practice that we had, we had to get them geared back up and say, ‘This is part of it. That’s in the past; we’re moving forward and have to attack what’s in front of us.’ I think it’s important that we try to remember the big picture in these moments.”

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Tennessee adds road game to schedule against Indiana, statement on fan attendance

Tennessee adds road game to schedule against Indiana.

The Tennessee women’s basketball team has added a road game at Indiana to its schedule.

The Lady Vols (3-1) and No. 15 Indiana (2-1) will play at 4 p.m. EST on Thursday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington.

The contest will be streamed on Big Ten Network Plus.

Indiana University statement on fan attendance

Consistent with IU Athletics’ ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of students, coaches, staff, spectators and the local community, all men’s and women’s basketball games scheduled at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall will be played without fans indefinitely. IU Athletics’ decision is in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and is consistent with what has transpired on all Big Ten campuses during the 2020 football season.

IU Athletics will continue to work with local and state health officials, the Big Ten and campus leadership to determine if and when fans will be permitted to attend men’s and women’s basketball games at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall during the 2020-21 season.

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Notre Dame firmly behind No. 1 Alabama in latest Amway Coaches Poll

The latest Amway Coaches Poll sees a little movement inside the Top 10, but plenty later on.

Notre Dame concluded their first regular season as a conference member by going undefeated in the ACC, expelling all the chatter about how the Irish would do if they had to go through a conference schedule. The win 45-21 win against Syracuse might seem like a blowout, but the first half left plenty to be desired out of the remaining No. 2 team in the country according to the latest Amway Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports

In a week after the Irish gained ground in votes to No. 1 Alabama, they stayed exactly the same as last weeks poll.

Around the ACC, No. 3 Clemson struggled early against Virginia Tech, but eventually took over in the second half like the Irish did and won 45-10. They remained at No. 3 while No. 10 Miami, FL blasted Duke 48-0 and No. 17 North Carolina did the same to Western Carolina 49-9.

In other movement around the Top 25, No. 8 BYU lost to No. 14 Coastal Carolina, 22-17 in a thriller. Indiana got a huge win over No. 16 Wisconsin, one week after losing their star quarterback Michael Penix for the season, confirming the Hoosiers No. 11 ranking. Four more upsets, No. 15 Marshall,  No. 18 Oklahoma State, No. 20 Oregon and No. 23 Washington all lost to unranked opponents.

Here is the full updated Coaches Poll, with the ACC teams in bold and last weeks ranking in parenthesis.

1 Alabama (1)

2 Notre Dame (2)

3 Clemson (3)

4 Ohio State (4)

5 Texas A&M (6)

6 Florida (5)

7 Cincinnati (7)

8 Miami, FL (9)

9 Indiana (11)

10 Georgia (10)

11 Iowa State (12)

12 Oklahoma (13)

13 Coastal Carolina (14)

14 Northwestern (17)

15 USC (16)

16 BYU (8)

17 Louisiana-Lafayette (21)

18 Iowa (24)

19 Tulsa (22)

20 North Carolina (NR)

21 Liberty (25)

22 Colorado (NR)

23 Texas (NR)

24 NC State (NR)

25 Wisconsin (19)

Dropped out: No. 15 Marshall, No. 18 Oklahoma State, No. 20 Oregon, No. 23 Washington

The picks are in, ESPN’s College GameDay makes their selections for today’s games

The ESPN College GameDay crew along with special guest, Master’s winner and Coastal Carolina alum Dustin Johnson pick today’s winners.

It looked like Coastal Carolina would be facing Liberty early in the week, but due to COVID-19 issues within the Liberty program, the game had to be adjusted. Their replacement, was No. 13 BYU, setting up a Top 25 matchup. ESPN’s College GameDay had already decided they would travel to Conway, South Carolina and have Dustin Johnson, Master’s winner, who was an All-American at Coastal Carolina as their guest picker. Here are Johnson’s picks along with Desmond Howard, David Pollack, Kirk Herbstreit and Lee Corso’s winner for today’s games.

 

UCLA at Arizona State

Johnson – UCLA

Howard – UCLA

Pollack – ASU

Herbstreit – UCLA

Corso – UCLA

 

San Jose St. at Hawaii

Johnson – Hawaii

Howard – San Jose St.

Pollack – Hawaii

Herbstreit – Hawaii

Corso – San Jose St.

 

West Virginia at Iowa St.

Johnson – ISU

Howard – ISU

Pollack – ISU

Herbstreit – ISU

Corso – ISU

 

Texas at Kansas St.

Johnson – UT

Howard – UT

Pollack – UT

Herbstreit – UT

Corso – UT

 

Clemson at Virginia Tech

Johnson – Clemson

Howard – Clemson

Pollack – Clemson

Herbstreit – NO PICK

Corso – Clemson

 

Alabama at LSU

Johnson – Bama

Howard – Bama

Pollack – Bama

Herbstreit – Bama

Corso – Bama

 

Texas A&M at Auburn

Johnson – TAMU

Howard – TAMU

Pollack – TAMU

Herbstreit – Auburn

Corso – TAMU

 

Indiana at Wisconsin

Johnson – UW

Howard – UW

Pollack – IU

Herbstreit – UW

Corso – UW

 

Ohio State at Michigan State

Johnson – OSU

Howard – OSU

Pollack – OSU

Herbstreit – OSU

Corso – OSU

 

BYU at Costal Carolina

Johnson – Costal Carolina

Howard – BYU

Pollack – BYU

Herbstreit – BYU

Corso – BYU

Notre Dame stays at number 2 in CFP Rankings

The new College Football Playoff rankings are out and despite the top seven being unchanged, there is plenty of news.

The second edition of the College Football Playoff rankings are out and there is no change in regards to Notre Dame and overall there wasn’t a major shakeup in terms of likely playoff teams.

Notre Dame stayed at number two, trailing only Alabama for the second week in a row. 3-6 remained unchanged as well as Clemson, Ohio State, Texas A&M and Florida rounded out the top six.

The complete rankings went as follows:

1. Alabama

2. Notre Dame

3. Clemson

4. Ohio State

5. Texas A&M

6. Florida

7. Cincinnati

8. Georgia

9. Iowa State

10. Miami (FL)

11. Oklahoma

12. Indiana

13. BYU

14. Northwestern

15. Oklahoma State

16. Wisconsin

17. North Carolina

18. Coastal Carolina

19. Iowa

20. USC

21. Marshall

22. Washington

23. Oregon

24. Tulsa

25. Louisiana

Notre Dame has wins over the third and 17th ranked teams in the poll.  The only other member of the ACC ranked is Miami (FL) who checked in tenth.

Perhaps the most surprising takeaway from this week’s rankings is that Ohio State remains fourth in the rankings which feels like a clear sign that the Buckeyes will be in the College Football Playoff whether they play enough games to make the Big Ten Championship or not.

Fallout of Ohio State’s cancellation at Illinois

Who gains the most from Ohio State’s misfortunes? Three teams are probably a bit happier than any others after Friday night’s news.

News came out Friday night that No. 4 Ohio State would not be playing at Illinois on Saturday due to a COVID-19 outbreak on their team.

With the Big Ten getting to their season late and not allowing for any bye weeks it means that Ohio State will only have a maximum of six regular-season games in 2020, but that is certainly no guarantee which means the Buckeyes likely trip to the Big Ten Championship Game yet again is also hardly a certainty.

In order to be eligible for the Big Ten Championship Game a team must play at least six conference games this season.  Ohio State has had two of their eight canceled and with the way things are sounding in Columbus combined with the Big Ten guidelines for players being able to return to play, it’s anything but a guarantee that the Buckeyes will be ready to take on Michigan State next week.

So what does it mean and who then gains from this?

Factor in Oregon’s unlikely loss at Oregon State Friday night and with all due respect to Colorado, USC and Washington, its nearly impossible to see a Pac-12 team making the College Football Playoff, not that I thought it was likely before.

But what about Ohio State?

Say the Buckeyes get their final two games in and are eligible for and win the Big Ten Championship, I have trouble believing they don’t get in, even if I’d have a real issue with a team only playing seven games having done enough to prove itself compared to teams who have played 11 or 12.

But if Ohio State doesn’t get their six games in then there is probably nobody in college football happier than the folks in Evanston, Cincinnati and College Station.

Ohio State would still be eligible to play the Week 9 crossover game the Big Ten is doing this year and would likely face Wisconsin.  But assuming if there is an unbeaten Big Ten champ does that really matter?

Northwestern would get a chance to go to the Big Ten Championship Game unbeaten and play Indiana instead of Ohio State.  The Wildcats and their backers would have to be thrilled as they’ve lost 32 of their last 33 meetings with Ohio State dating back to 1971.  Northwestern has been able to do a lot since Gary Barnett turned their program around in the mid-nineties but compete with Ohio State is not one of them.

If the Wildcats win the Big Ten at 9-0 and you can’t leave Northwestern out of the College Football Playoff and you’re certainly not letting two Big Ten teams in.

Cincinnati fans have to be thrilled as well because they now have more than just an outside chance at the College Football Playoff.  The Bearcats sit at 8-0 and if they beat Tulsa next weekend will have wins over three teams that were ranked when they met.

For comparison, Ohio State has one.

The folks in College Station, Texas have to like these developments as well seeing as it’s virtually impossible to expect them to be able to catch Alabama after getting boat-raced by the Tide, but Ohio State potentially only having five wins is hard to sell.  If Northwestern were to get to the Big Ten Championship but fall to Indiana then Texas A&M and Cincinnati are very likely battling it out for a spot.

Now how does all of this affect Notre Dame?

It doesn’t guarantee anything but their wiggle room to get in even if they lose the ACC Championship Game certainly got bigger with today’s news and results.