State of Indiana and Basketball (Hoosiers)

[forkbeard3777]

I watched Hoosiers for the umpteenth time this weekend. I think it may be my all-time favorite sports movie. It takes you back to a much simpler, yet foreign (for me, at least) time.

Obviously, things have drastically changed in 2023. That being said, I just have a few questions regarding basketball and the state of Indiana.

• Is basketball undoubtedly the #1 sport in the state of Indiana? Is it head and shoulder's above football, baseball, and such?
• Hickory, Indiana obviously doesn't exist. Is the real town, New Richmond, ever worth visiting or making a detour for to check out?
• Is the movie's viewpoint somewhat accurate? For example, driving through rural Indiana towns, would you see kid's out playing basketball? Would the town essentially shut down for the local high school's basketball games?
  • I've personally witnessed this in a football fashion in Ranger, Texas. Basically, on Friday, you'd see younger kids tossing the football around, the band and pep rally through Main Street, and people/shop owners putting signs u stating that they are closed and headed to the Ranger Bulldog's football game).
• What are some real small, Indiana towns that, in your opinion, have similar aura and followings of basketball as "Hickory?" Are there any unique, really old gyms worth checking out?

 

[Reaper97]

Basketball is #1.

The real team is Milan and they did win the 1954 state title, beating powerhouse Muncie Central.
The real player was Bobby Plump, who won Mr. Basketball.
I played at a small high school and we were ranked in the top 20, routinely beating big schools, & that was in Single Class.
Indiana had only one class, for the entire state, in basketball, all the way until the 1996-97 season. That’s why it’s so famous.
I never played in classes. I only played single class basketball & it as great.
First game of the sectional, we played & beat a top 5 team, whose enrollment was 4 times ours. That was common in Indiana back then.

And yes, you could rob our town during games. Everyone was there. Our HS had around 550-600, our gym sat just under 4,000.

There are A LOT of historic gyms.

And Indiana used to have 14 of the largest 15 HS gyms in the country.

It’s not the same now as it was when I played, classes ruined a lot of the aura.

 

[BigHossBU]

• It's not like it was in the single class days, but it is absolutely the #1 sport still
• 
  
• The "real town" is Milan (movie is based off the Milan Indians), the movie is just shot in New Richmond. If you visited anywhere I would check out Milan where there is a small museum, or Hoosier Gym, which is in Knightstown, IN. This is Hickory's "home gym" in the movie. They sometimes host games for high school teams, and I believe it can be rented out.
• 
  
• It used to be this way in a LOT of places, and you still see it from time to time in the tournament. There will be MASSIVE crowds from Sectional through the State Finals if towns with strong support make a deep run. This has dwindled with the "class" system, as the casual fan has less interest, and you have fewer "Cinderella Stories".
• 
  
• 
  
• So many cool gyms, it's hard to narrow it down. Of course, there are some massive ones like New Castle (capacity ~9,000), Muncie Central, Washington, Seymour, and Southport, but there are also many small school gems as well. I'd recommend taking a look at the Twitter account called @HoosierTemples which has a rundown of all the gyms in Indiana.
• Some of the better community turnout during the tournament would be from Logootee, New Castle, Connersville, Kokomo, Plymouth, Warsaw, North Daviess, Barr Reeve and many others.

 

[INLaw]

Lots of southern ass indiana answers up in here

 

[Reaper97]

Lots of southern ass indiana answers up in here

I’m guessing you aren’t old enough to play in single class sports?
It was the same in northern Indiana too.
I played against Merrillville in the 90’s when they were legit.
Warsaw against Kevin Ault too, but he was younger than me.
One game away from Drew Bryce at Valpo.

 

[NDohio]

Also, if you are in Indianapolis swing by Butler University and visit Hinkle Fieldhouse. This is the home arena for the Butler basketball team. It is the arena that the actual game (Milan vs Muncie Central) was played in. It's a pretty cool building.

 

[INLaw]

I’m guessing you aren’t old enough to play in single class sports?
It was the same in northern Indiana too.
I played against Merrillville in the 90’s when they were legit.

No I agree with you on single class ruining the mystique. Graduated in 99 so got a little of both.

 

[Reaper97]

No I agree with you on single class ruining the mystique. Graduated in 99 so got a little of both.

I left Indiana in 1997.
When you played in 98 & 99, was that when they had the four class winners play in a tournament?
I heard that sucked?

 

[INLaw]

I left Indiana in 1997.
When you played in 98 & 99, was that when they had the four class winners play in a tournament?
I heard that sucked?

When I played lol I am sorry I gave you that impression I make it to 5’9” if I am lying on a tinder profile. But that sounds right.

 

[ab2cmiller]

Pretty decent documentary about Barr-Reeve's first State Championship Season back in 2015. The southern Indiana counties of Daviess and Martin counties are dotted with a lot of small 1A schools in which there really is only one "important" sport, and that's Basketball. Barr-Reeve, Loogootee and North Daviess all have pretty heated rivalries. There is only one thing to do on a Friday night with virtually the entire community showing up for a basketball game. You win the sectional, you get to parade through "town" that night on the fire truck. It really is kind of crazy. I lived down there for close to 4 years. Loogootee has a gym that holds 4,571 people (40th largest in the state). The town is only 2,600 people. The game between Barr-Reeve and North Daviess is called the "Buggy Bowl" because both schools have a large Amish and Mennonite presence.

Free stream on tubitv.

Kings of Indiana (2019)

In America's most basketball-crazed state, a team of Amish and Mennonite high school players embark on a new season, ready to battle the odds.

tubitv.com

Deep inside America’s most basketball-crazed state, in the heart of southern Indiana’s Amish/Mennonite country, stands Barr-Reeve High School. Despite being one of the state’s smallest remaining schools, Barr-Reeve’s hard-working Amish/Mennonite athletes have their program on the cusp of a championship. Led by a no-nonsense head coach, the Vikings embark on a new season with sights set on capturing their elusive first crown. Narrated by Grammy nominated CCM recording artist David Crowder, this inspirational documentary pays tribute to small town Americana.

 

[BleedBlueGold]

Born and raised in Indiana. Tons of family from New Castle. Basketball is king there, like most Indiana towns. I've been to most of the big gyms. I can't recall which one, but as a kid, I played pick up games in gyms similar to the one in Hoosiers (Knightstown).

2 quick Indiana basketball stories:

1) When I moved to Indianapolis, one of the first things I did was go to the boys sectional tournament (Carmel, HSE, etc). The very first play of the game, a kid took a couple dribbles and then jumped from just inside the freethrow line for a massive dunk. I looked him up, assuming he was a D1 level recruit. Nope, just a regular kid who's super athletic and plays bball, like every other kid in this state.

2) I've played in two different rec leagues around Indy. Once at a YMCA and the other at a church league. Both leagues had teams with at least one former D1 player. Some even had former NBA players (one had a former NFL player). The level of talent around this state is insanely deep. You better bring a five that includes some D1 talent or you're getting run out of the any gym....including churches.

 

[BeauBenken]

1. Basketball is still king especially among your rural communities that historically haven't had football teams. However the Colts (and Peyton Manning specifically) really did make football a much bigger thing throughout the entirety of the state.
2. Never been to Milan (as others mentioned this is the real town the team was from), but I went to Muncie Central. The Fieldhouse has had to undergo some rebuilding after damage to it a few years ago but it still stands as one of the largest high school basketball arenas and growing up its where you went whenever there was a game. New Castle 30 minutes away has I think the largest fieldhouse in the nation and also hosts the state's highschool basketball hall of fame (I don't know why it isn't in Muncie).
3. Things are not quite what they once were. Probably many reasons for it. But from stories from my parents and some of my memories as a little one, the Muncie Fieldhouse would be jam packed (which even after renovations have shrunk its seating capacity still sits at 6500+) every game night and ears were glued to the radio if they weren't there.
4. I couldn't recommend any specific towns but again if you care about the gymnasiums, many are still around that are historic and very large.

Some links that might interest you:

Hoosier hysteria - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

List of largest high school gyms in the United States - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Irish#1]

1. When I was in HS, sectionals were played during the day. All schools bused their kids to the sectionals which made an awesome experience.
2. Knightstown has the gym some of Hoosiers was filmed in. You can rent it for pick up games.
3. IIRC Indiana still has 8 out of 10 of the largest HS gyms. Sat in many a game at Southport.
4. I think it was in 68' or 69' that Oolitic, Holland and one other small school (Loogootee?) were in the same sectional. My recollection is a little foggy, but I think Oolitic and Holland were undefeated and the other only had a couple of losses. I don't remember who the other schools were but that was one hell of a sectional.
5. Anderson and Muncie weren't small schools but they had some classic games.
6. Hickory played against Duggar in the movie. Duggar is a small mining town where my Grandparents lived. I was rooting for Duggar when I watched Hoosiers. lol

Lots of good info posted in the other posts.

 

[BobbyMac]

1. When I was in HS, sectionals were played during the day. All schools bused their kids to the sectionals which made an awesome experience.
2. Knightstown has the gym some of Hoosiers was filmed in. You can rent it for pick up games.
3. IIRC Indiana still has 8 out of 10 of the largest HS gyms. Sat in many a game at Southport.
4. I think it was in 68' or 69' that Oolitic, Holland and one other small school (Loogootee?) were in the same sectional. My recollection is a little foggy, but I think Paoli and Holland were undefeated and the other only had a couple of losses. I don't remember who the other schools were but that was one hell of a sectional.
5. Anderson and Muncie weren't small schools but they had some classic games.
6. Hickory played against Duggar in the movie. Duggar is a small mining town where my Grandparents lived. I was rooting for Duggar when I watched Hoosiers. lol

Lots of good info posted in the other posts.

Didn't you borrow your Dad's DeSoto to attend the '57 Sock Hop at Knightstown? What are Pottsie and Ralph Malf up to these days?

 

[BobbyMac]

I played in the mid 80's with two Mr. Basketball's, three if you include AAU, against 4 others while in HS... 3 of them on the same day, 3 in college (two were my HS/AAU teammates), one was my ball boy in college and I've played pick up / summer league with 6 more. I've never put all that together, seems almost impossible.

And if I had to name a starting 5 for guys I've played with/against from Indiana, 3 of them weren't Mr Basketball's: Scott Skiles, Shawn Kemp and Calbert Chaney though Kemp & Chaney the HS players wouldn't have made my Top 5

 

[NDBoiler]

I played in the mid 80's with two Mr. Basketball's, three if you include AAU, against 4 others while in HS, 3 in college (two were my HS/AAU teammates), one was my ball boy in college and I've played pick up / summer league with 6 more. I've never put all that together, seems almost impossible.

And if I had to name a starting 5 for guys I've played with/against from Indiana, 3 of them weren't Mr Basketball's: Scott Skiles, Shawn Kemp and Calbert Chaney though Kemp & Chaney the HS players wouldn't have made my Top 5

Are you Steve Alford?

 

[BobbyMac]

Are you Steve Alford?

HELL NO! Too short & couldn’t jump… but that feathered helmet was glorious!

Definitely made the list. Played IU in ‘84 and played pick up with him a gazzilion times when I’d go to Bloomington

 

[MacIrish75]

Basketball remains king in places and areas where there aren’t a ton of other options and where families return to the same area generationally in order to create some lineage. This is especially true in southwestern Indiana, where basketball still looks a lot like it did in the single class days. During my undergrad at Indiana State when I was coaching I got to see places like Washington, Loogootee, Barr-Reeve, North Daviess, Jasper, Southridge, Bedford, Linton, etc. In these places, you still have those generational names that have been there for decades. Not a ton of new folks come to these areas…but a lot of folks never leave, or commute to college and stay home if they attend at all. There are some places like this in northern Indiana, but if you look at the population density in the state, the northern areas are much more heavily populated with many more larger towns/cities with close proximity. That Hoosier National Forest area might as well be in another state compared with Indy and north.

The other factor is the decline of the steel and auto industry. Basically all of the old NCC (8 of the largest gyms in the world were found in this conference) was decimated by GM bailing out. Kokomo got saved because Chrysler stuck around, but Marion, Richmond, and especially Anderson and Muncie are just absolute shells of their former selves. Anderson and Muncie both are down to one high school, when they each had three well into the 1990s. Kokomo had two at one point, also. Marion only had one, but they’re now a 3A school. A lot of flight has occurred in Marion, Muncie, and Anderson and you’ve got county schools with enrollment almost as high as the city schools these days.

Obviously in bigger cities/metro areas, people are going to have less ties to the area, so less of a reason to get invested into the local HS sports scene unless your kid is playing—unlike in the smaller community where you have some sort of connection to the kids on the team year in and year out for the most part.

 

[pumpdog20]

In 49 other states, it's just basketball...

 

[Blazers46]

1. Basketball is still king especially among your rural communities that historically haven't had football teams. However the Colts (and Peyton Manning specifically) really did make football a much bigger thing throughout the entirety of the state.
2. Never been to Milan (as others mentioned this is the real town the team was from), but I went to Muncie Central. The Fieldhouse has had to undergo some rebuilding after damage to it a few years ago but it still stands as one of the largest high school basketball arenas and growing up its where you went whenever there was a game. New Castle 30 minutes away has I think the largest fieldhouse in the nation and also hosts the state's highschool basketball hall of fame (I don't know why it isn't in Muncie).
3. Things are not quite what they once were. Probably many reasons for it. But from stories from my parents and some of my memories as a little one, the Muncie Fieldhouse would be jam packed (which even after renovations have shrunk its seating capacity still sits at 6500+) every game night and ears were glued to the radio if they weren't there.
4. I couldn't recommend any specific towns but again if you care about the gymnasiums, many are still around that are historic and very large.

Some links that might interest you:

Hoosier hysteria - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

List of largest high school gyms in the United States - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

i was just about to post this. 10 of the top 12 largest gyms for basketball are in Indiana!

I remember going to Elkhart Central basketball games at Northside Gym since I was a baby. My parents always had season tickets. I still remember names from the 90s like I remember going to Bulls games on the 90s. Casey Clapton, Ben Larson… I think Dean Foster was the head coach back then.

 

[BeauBenken]

The other factor is the decline of the steel and auto industry. Basically all of the old NCC (8 of the largest gyms in the world were found in this conference) was decimated by GM bailing out. Kokomo got saved because Chrysler stuck around, but Marion, Richmond, and especially Anderson and Muncie are just absolute shells of their former selves. Anderson and Muncie both are down to one high school, when they each had three well into the 1990s. Kokomo had two at one point, also. Marion only had one, but they’re now a 3A school. A lot of flight has occurred in Marion, Muncie, and Anderson and you’ve got county schools with enrollment almost as high as the city schools these days.

Obviously in bigger cities/metro areas, people are going to have less ties to the area, so less of a reason to get invested into the local HS sports scene unless your kid is playing—unlike in the smaller community where you have some sort of connection to the kids on the team year in and year out for the most part.

Mac kinda nailed this on the head. All the auto plants moving away doomed Muncie and Anderson. We're stuck waiting on Indianapolis urban sprawl to work its way back up here, but the damage is likely done and it likely will never return to what it was.

 

[Irish#1]

Didn't you borrow your Dad's DeSoto to attend the '57 Sock Hop at Knightstown? What are Pottsie and Ralph Malf up to these days?

I would have but I couldn't reach the pedals. I was only 4 1/2. lol

My acting career got cut short. We (wife and kids) were part of the spectators that rushed the court after he hit the final shot in Hoosiers. I'm still waiting for the director to give me a screen test.

 

[Irish#1]

In 49 other states, it's just basketball, but this is Indiana.

FIFY

 

[BleedBlueGold]

I played in the mid 80's with two Mr. Basketball's, three if you include AAU, against 4 others while in HS... 3 of them on the same day, 3 in college (two were my HS/AAU teammates), one was my ball boy in college and I've played pick up / summer league with 6 more. I've never put all that together, seems almost impossible.

And if I had to name a starting 5 for guys I've played with/against from Indiana, 3 of them weren't Mr Basketball's: Scott Skiles, Shawn Kemp and Calbert Chaney though Kemp & Chaney the HS players wouldn't have made my Top 5

One of my coaches growing up played against Kemp in high school. Had some all-time stories from those days, all of which ended with Kemp dunking over him (and he was no slouch at 6'5").

I've gone back to New Castle often to see family, and when I was younger, my parents would drop me off at the Y for a few hours. I got picked up for a team that was playing against Bruce Horan, Brandon Miller, and Darnell Archey. New Castle is somewhat of a feeder school to Butler because of these guys. None of which amounted to the much beyond college, but they could still ball.

One of my favorite games was against South Bend Washington when they had Darmetrius Kilgore (Purdue). Dude literally jumped over our starting PG for a monster dunk. We got beat by 30+ points, but I didn't care. "DID YOU SEE THAT DUNK?!" got me in trouble with the head coach and multiple seniors. haha.

Are you Steve Alford?

My mom graduated with Steve. My dad graduated with Kent Benson. He and my dad still chat occasionally.

 

[BobbyMac]

One of my coaches growing up played against Kemp in high school. Had some all-time stories from those days, all of which ended with Kemp dunking over him (and he was no slouch at 6'5").

I've gone back to New Castle often to see family, and when I was younger, my parents would drop me off at the Y for a few hours. I got picked up for a team that was playing against Bruce Horan, Brandon Miller, and Darnell Archey. New Castle is somewhat of a feeder school to Butler because of these guys. None of which amounted to the much beyond college, but they could still ball.

One of my favorite games was against South Bend Washington when they had Darmetrius Kilgore (Purdue). Dude literally jumped over our starting PG for a monster dunk. We got beat by 30+ points, but I didn't care. "DID YOU SEE THAT DUNK?!" got me in trouble with the head coach and multiple seniors. haha.



My mom graduated with Steve. My dad graduated with Kent Benson. He and my dad still chat occasionally.

I’m a year behind Steve & Tanya. My significant other and Tanya were in the same program at IU until my girl switched to dental. I graduated with Delray and IU AD Scotty Dolson and my HS girlfriend was at IU too soo I was over there once a month and Del and Scotty lived next to Alford, plus one of my Miami teammates was on his staff at UCLA with him.

I used to be really tight with Todd Jarvis who was on the ‘84 team that made the Final Four. He and I played AAU for Anderson ALAC and against each other in the North South All Star Series. I was actually the MVP of game two at New Castle.

 

[BobbyMac]

I would have but I couldn't reach the pedals. I was only 4 1/2. lol

My acting career got cut short. We (wife and kids) were part of the spectators that rushed the court after he hit the final shot in Hoosiers. I'm still waiting for the director to give me a screen test.

I was in Darren Fowlkes dorm room with Thad Matta and my friend from HS who was Butler’s RB when they were filming. I know a bunch of the guys both on hickory and the opponents. IU great (WR) Ernie Jones was a guard for South Bend.

 

[ab2cmiller]

70th Anniversary of the "Milan Miracle". Nice writeup in this article and a nice 20 minute video segment with interviews from some of the players and the director of Hoosiers. Some real game extended video footage as well.

The 18 seconds that changed Indiana high school hoops forever

It was a 'David vs. Goliath' moment, a feat that will never be accomplished again: This was the moment high school basketball turned legend in Indiana.

www.wcpo.com

 

[Irish#1]

Now I need to watch Hoosiers again.

 

[Punky]

I've lurked here for a long time, but I had to join because I keep hearing about Milan and the movie "Hoosiers" from you guys, and I've gotten tired of the short shrift Illinois high school basketball gets around here. Growing up in rural Illinois back in the 60s when it was single class, we had the Green Giants of Hebron (enrollment of 98, a smaller school than Milan, and a team that only had 5 players), and won the single class state title at the old Huff Gym at U of I beating perennial state power Quincy in 1952, so 2 years before Milan did. We also had the Cobden Appleknockers of 1964, who almost did the same thing as Hebron, but lost in the final game. The term 'March Madness' was actually coined by a newspaper writer covering Illinois boys basketball back in the 1940s. The local newspapers would publish the poem "The Basketball Ides of March" on the front page every year when the tournament started, and students at the local schools would always be allowed to go the school library to watch the tournament quarter and semi finals Thursday and Friday afternoons on their lunch periods. Now I will agree that in the last 30 years or so basketball frenzy has faded a bit in the Land of Lincoln, but back in the single class days, here on the prairie we could go toe-to-toe with anything going on next door.........

Hebron State Title 40th Anniversary 1992

IHSA March Madness History

 

[Irish#1]

I've lurked here for a long time, but I had to join because I keep hearing about Milan and the movie "Hoosiers" from you guys, and I've gotten tired of the short shrift Illinois high school basketball gets around here. Growing up in rural Illinois back in the 60s when it was single class, we had the Green Giants of Hebron (enrollment of 98, a smaller school than Milan, and a team that only had 5 players), and won the single class state title at the old Huff Gym at U of I beating perennial state power Quincy in 1952, so 2 years before Milan did. We also had the Cobden Appleknockers of 1964, who almost did the same thing as Hebron, but lost in the final game. The term 'March Madness' was actually coined by a newspaper writer covering Illinois boys basketball back in the 1940s. The local newspapers would publish the poem "The Basketball Ides of March" on the front page every year when the tournament started, and students at the local schools would always be allowed to go the school library to watch the tournament quarter and semi finals Thursday and Friday afternoons on their lunch periods. Now I will agree that in the last 30 years or so basketball frenzy has faded a bit in the Land of Lincoln, but back in the single class days, here on the prairie we could go toe-to-toe with anything going on next door.........

Hebron State Title 40th Anniversary 1992

IHSA March Madness History

Good memories.