WASHINGTON — Tom Crean spoke with conviction about his players’ “edge” at his press conference on Wednesday. He described it as their willingness to go the extra mile and to get after it on the court with intensity.

Minutes later, the Indiana head coach showed where they get it from.

While Marquette head coach Buzz Williams and Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim spent much of their 50-minute practice periods catching up with CBS color commentator Bill Raftery as their teams enjoyed laid back shootarounds filled with carefree dunks and half-court shots, Crean raced around the Verizon Center court running a crisp practice. The Hoosiers’ “edge” was on display for their large contingent of fans as they continued to prepare for their Sweet 16 matchup with Syracuse on Thursday at 9:45 p.m.

“There is nothing wrong with having that edge as long as it’s channeled the right way,” Crean said. “Every once in a while will it get overstepped? Yeah, but so what?

“You’ve got to have guys that are not afraid of the big moments because they’ve practiced and prepared for those.”

That mentality is what took Indiana from a 10-21 record three years ago to a No. 1 seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament.

Crean said he saw it in senior guard and Bloomington, Ind., native Jordan Hulls, who has played more games (134) than anyone in the Hoosiers’ proud history. He saw it in junior wing Victor Oladipo, who went from unheralded recruit to All-American. And he saw it in 6-foot-7 forward Will Sheehey, who plays with a chip on his shoulder every time out.

Those three along with senior forward Christian Watford and sophomore big man Cody Zeller form the core of Crean’s impressive rebuilding of the college basketball giant. They put in the work when no one was watching, even during the 10-21 season in 2009-10 and 12-20 season in 2010-11, two forgettable seasons as the program continued to recover from NCAA sanctions doled out after violations by former head coach Kelvin Sampson.

And finally, last season, Indiana was back. The Hoosiers, boosted by the arrival of Zeller, posted a 27-9 record. Then, they were voted the No. 1 team in the nation in this year’s preseason poll.

“The vision of where you think you can go has got to be greater than the reality of where you’re sitting,” Crean said. “That’s where your energy comes from and if you’re doing that, then you’ve got a real great chance to keep moving forward.”

Indiana spent more time ranked No. 1 this season (10 weeks) than any other program. The Hoosiers won the Big Ten conference regular-season championship outright for the first time since 1993. Zeller and Oladipo have both been considered for national player of the year by various media outlets.

They lead a team that’s considered a Final Four and national title favorite. And that’s the expectation now, something that was clear even for the first 15 minutes of practice on Wednesday.

Crean barked out orders, reminding his players “Everything’s a great pass,” during the first drill and shouting out “Let’s pick it up,” during another. He zipped up and down the court, never standing in one spot too long as he oversaw everything.

His team was expected to be sharp. And the head coach ensured they kept that edge.

“The ones that lost it didn’t stay great,” Crean said, “the ones that built on it end up legendary.”

Published on March 28, 2013 at 1:57 pm

Contact Ryne: rjgery@syr.edu