Terre Haute Tribune-Star. Jan. 6, 2021.
Editorial: Indiana up to the NCAA challenge. No state better equipped to handle college tourneys
March Madness is no stranger to Indiana. Actually, college basketball s big dance feels quite at home in the Hoosier state.
The hoops sport, at every level, holds a significant spot in the state s heritage, and yet another niche is about to be added.
The high school game s Milan Miracle happened here in 1954, along with Oscar Robertson and the legendary Crispus Attucks state champs in 1955, and Damon Bailey s heroics in 1990. Hoosier colleges produced five NCAA titles by the Indiana Hoosiers, John Wooden s career at Purdue, Larry Bird and the Indiana State Sycamores amazing 33-1 NCAA finalist season, and Butler s back-to-back runner-up finishes. Among the pros, the Indiana Pacers won three ABA championships under Coach Bobby Slick Leonard, and an NBA Finals appearance in 2000 under Bird, the coach.