A confidence-boosting win over Kansas in Hawaii set the year off with a bang. ESPN’s post-game interview with Tom Crean on the court turned into a celebration, his players preening and pumping their chests as they tussled his hair.
This was a confident, maybe even cocky, bunch of Hoosiers with their eyes set on big things. The stage seemed set for a special year. This team looked deep and talented, maybe even the deepest and most talented of the Crean era.
He’d found another diamond in the recruiting rough in OG Anunoby. Crean may not have landed loads of five-stars, but he could certainly coach you into one.