Published: October 17, 2009 12:48 am         

ISU tips off hoops season with Big Blue Block Party

TERRE HAUTE — The Indiana State men’s and women’s basketball teams partied together at Friday’s Big Blue Block Party.

But once official practice began for both teams — Friday is the first day teams are allowed full practices by the NCAA — it was a study in contrasts.

The women’s team weren’t hesitant to play to the crowd. A 30-minute shootaround was followed by a short 3-point shooting contest and two halves worth of scrimmaging.

The men went straight to work. The public practice the Sycamore men had was not altogether different from practices they have throughout the season.

In the end, both men’s coach Kevin McKenna and women’s coach Jim Wiedie accomplished what they wanted.

“I guess I’m a little paranoid. I want everything in and I want to be totally ready for our first game, which is less than a month away,” McKenna said.

“The NCAA only allows two hours a week leading up to today, so you don’t get a whole lot of time in. And we have a lot of news players, but I thought they did a good job running our drills. We did do some up-and-down things we don’t normally do this early, because that’s how we want to be this year. They did a good job trying to execute,” McKenna added.

“I like this to give the fans an opportunity to see the team.

“You want to make a good impression, but you’re realistic as a coach to know it’s probably not going to be as pretty as you’d like it to be. And I like to use this to get the nerves out. Some of the freshmen were nervous, even some of the sophomores. It’s a good chance to play in front of people,” Wiedie said. “I like what I’ve seen. We have more height, depth and versatility than we’ve had in a long time.”

Ten players — five on each team — made their official ISU debuts. Three more — Koang Doluony and Dwayne Lathan on the men’s team and Chelsea Buher on the women’s team — practiced for the first time knowing they will play this season.

The Big Blue Block Party drew a decent crowd given unfavorable weather and about 500 fans stuck around to watch the practices as Hulman Center.

The man many came to see was ISU guard Jake Kelly. The Iowa transfer and one-time Marshall, Ill. native donned his No. 44 for the first time in ISU blue-and-white. He came as advertised, looking fluid on the floor and keeping defenders at bay with a smooth crossover and athleticism to get to the basket.

Kelly wasn’t the only local player in uniform for the first time. Logan and Lucas Eitel, both of Marshall, Rockville’s R.J. Mahurin and Terre Haute’s Jake Odum also took to the court.

So did Terre Haute’s Krista Smith, who is on the women’s team.

For all of the attention the local men’s players have received, Smith’s addition to the ISU women’s team has been somewhat overlooked in comparison. However, the former South standout is hoping to continue the tradition of ex-Braves who have made a major impact on the Sycamores’ fortunes — notably current assistant coach Melanie Boeglin as well as former guard Kristin Weddle.

“Mel’s been a very good mentor for me, and as a coach now, she’s been even better,” Smith said. “Being a part of both traditions is kind of amazing.”

Health was a theme that crossed over for both teams too. On the men’s side, everyone practiced, including center Isiah Martin, who has nursed a right knee injury that dates to last season. Josh Crawford also practiced in non-contact activities. McKenna said he should return to full practice action in the span of a week.

“I’m in shape and I can run well, the only thing is I feel like my athleticism isn’t all there yet,” Martin said. “That just means I need to think the game more. I’m getting better at that, so I’ll be good. Once that athleticism comes back … you never know.”

On the women’s side, the return of Kelsey Luna and Deja Mattox from torn ACL’s is a key to the Sycamores’ fortunes in 2010. Both players looked comfortable, especially Mattox, who scored a scrimmage-high seven points.

“I feel great. I’ve come such a long way. I went from not being able to walk to going up-and-down the court, cutting, doing what I normally do,” said Mattox, who took a tumble right at the end of the scrimmage and landed violently on her knee. She was OK.

In a productive practice, the only thing the men’s team conceded to the show was having McKenna miked up — NFL Films-style — through much of the session. His instructions to the team were relayed via the Hulman Center public address system.

“The people up top can’t really hear what’s going on, so we thought it would be a neat thing to do. I wanted people to know the terminology, how we talk,” McKenna said. “The bad thing about it was they couldn’t really hear me on the floor, but if I yelled too loud, it would’ve been too loud up there. I had to find a balance.”

Both teams have two weeks and change until they hit the hardwood in anger. The women play their first exhibition against Bellarmine on Nov. 1. The men play a much-anticipated game against Rose-Hulman on Nov. 3.