Notes and Thoughts from Hoosier Hysteria – The Daily Hoosier

BLOOMINGTON – IU men’s and women’s basketball began their seasons on Friday at the Hoosier Hysteria at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

The full rosters and staff of both teams were introduced to the audience, followed by some on-field interviews, competitions and finally a brief battle with the men’s team. The annual pep rally gave fans their first look at the 2024-25 Hoosiers teams and motivated them for the seasons to come.

Here are some notes and thoughts from the celebrations.

Team introductions

• Sharnecce Currie-Jelks walked out with her baby, which drew a nice hand. She missed almost all of last season for a previously unknown reason, which she later revealed was that she was pregnant. She is now back in full use.
• Sydney Parrish and Chloe Moore-McNeil, the final two IU basketball players featured, received the loudest cheers of the entire team.
• There are no walk-ons in IU women’s basketball. The men’s team has seven. That was a noticeable difference in the team presentation.
• Between “Luuuke,” “Ouuu-mar,” and “Ren-eauuu,” expect a lot of noise from the audience that sounds like boos as the line-up is introduced this year – when these players are competing.
• The men’s team’s transfers – including scholarship players – were introduced first, followed by the key returnees. Oumar Ballo, Trey Galloway and Anthony Leal shouted the loudest. Ballo danced a little as he came out of the tunnel.
• Malik Reneau wore glasses as he walked out. It wasn’t clear if they were prescription or just for style, but they were a new look nonetheless.

Quote from Teri Moren from an interview in court

“We never put a number on how many games we want to win because I just never want to limit this group because I think we have so much great potential. So every year we go out and play one game at a time, but I can tell you this group is hungry. Last year we suffered a bitter loss to the national championship team in South Carolina. We haven’t forgotten it. But it motivates us every day and inspires us to get up the next day and try to just be a little better. Our goals are once again ambitious, our expectations for this program have always been high. That’s how it will always be. But I really love this team.”

Quote from Mike Woodson from an interview in court

On what he sees on this IU team: “A chance to win the Big Ten title. Thanks to my coaching staff and all the managers and GAs, my strength coach, everyone involved in my day-to-day work, and the front office staff, we were able to get started and put together a team for this season. And I love our basketball team. We have a lot of work. But I love our basketball team. I really do.”

Skill competitions

• These were originally supposed to be removed from the Hoosier Hysteria, but found their way back. There was a skills competition, a women’s 3-point competition and a big knockout game.
• Shay Ciezki can turn out the lights. She won the 3-point contest – which doesn’t necessarily mean anything, but she definitely has the “shooter’s touch.”

The crowd

• The Red Team’s starting lineup — Myles Rice, Kanaan Carlyle, Mackenzie Mgbako, Malik Reneau and Oumar Ballo — certainly feels like a group that could start for Indiana on opening night. Mike Woodson has many different combinations he could introduce.
• Ballo has the potential to become a great central defender. His length can cause major problems for opponents and he has the size to compete with pretty much any other center in the Big Ten.
• This is a preseason intrasquad scrimmage, so takeaways should be particularly moderate. But Indiana’s floor spacing looked much better here than it did last season.
• Langdon Hatton played well!
• Trey Galloway did not participate in the scrimmage, but told the crowd during an on-field interview that he had participated in live drills in practice and was getting closer to being fully ready for the season.
• Luke Goode could be a really important piece for this team. His shooting ability could be crucial no matter what role Woodson uses him. During the scrimmage, he practiced a few 3-point shots.

The Daily Hoosier – “Where Indiana fans gather when they’re not at the meeting.”

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