Indiana began the season with 12 consecutive victories.But coach Tom Crean said IU is a better team now than they were after capturing that 12th straight victory Dec. 22 against Maryland-Baltimore County.The No.The schedule might say it’s a neutral site, but Indiana coach Tom Crean said the Hoosiers will be the visiting team when they meet Pittsburgh tonight at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
“It will seem like a road game,” Crean said Sunday. “There are probably two programs outside of New York right now that can turn the Garden into a home game: that’s Pitt and Duke.”
Indiana and Pittsburgh play in the nightcap of the 15th annual Jimmy V Classic. Butler faces Georgetown in the opener. It’s Indiana’s second time in the Classic; The Hoosiers defeated North Carolina 82-73 in East Rutherford, N.J., in the 1999 event.
The Panthers have won two Big East titles (2003 and 2008), advanced to the Big East tournament title game in seven of the last nine seasons, and amassed a 23-9 record at Madison Square Garden since the 2000-01 season. They have won 11 of their last 14 contests in the arena.
This is Indiana’s first appearance at Madison Square Garden since losing to Texas 70-58 in the Preseason NIT on Nov. 24, 2000.
“The fact that we’re in (the Jimmy V Classic), the fact that they wanted us to be in it, says a lot about Indiana’s value and at the same time how we feel about that,” Crean said.
“This is a national day for basketball. When you get a chance to play in that environment, take a team to New York City to play in that arena, that’s a really big deal.”
Crean is familiar with Pittsburgh from his days as Marquette’s coach. He is 5-3 all-time against the Panthers.
While the faces have changed, Crean says Pittsburgh’s style is the same.
“You can see the hand-me-down in this program,” Crean said. “In the sense of Sam Young and DeJuan Blair and Levance Fields handing down to these players what it takes to win, just like Ronald Ramon, Aaron Grey and Levon Kendall handed it down to those guys before.”
Pittsburgh (7-1) has won three in a row. The Panthers’ lone loss came Nov. 24 against Texas (78-62) in the CBE Classic in Kansas City, Mo. Pittsburgh beat New Hampshire 47-32 Friday after going into halftime leading 15-7.
Indiana (3-4) hasn’t played since losing 80-68 to Maryland on Dec. 1 as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Crean wants to see improvement on defense after the Terrapins shot 57 percent in the second half.
“(Practices have) been intense, challenging,” Crean said. “We just have to teach and demand every day. That’s what we’ve been doing. We’ve had a productive week.”
