If you find yourself wishing the NCAA tournament wasn’t over yet, take heart. There is plenty of basketball history in Indiana to soak in during the off season.
The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame is a good place to start. Located in New Castle, Indiana and open seven days a week, the exhibits at the Hall of Fame chronicle Indiana’s storied obsession with the sport. From the Milan Miracle depicted in the movie Hoosiers to the contributions of game greats Larry Bird and Coach John Wooden, the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame is a perfect stop for anyone who loves hoops.
New Castle is also home to the largest high school basketball stadium in the country. The New Castle Chrysler High School Fieldhouse seats more than 9,300. To underscore that basketball is serious business in Indiana, the country’s second largest high school basketball arena is the Wigwam in Anderson, which seats just shy of 9,000.
Two other must-see places for basketball fans include Assembly Hall at Indiana University in Bloomington and Hinkle Fieldhouse at Butler University in Indianapolis.
Assembly Hall is the home of the IU Hoosiers, whose legacy includes five national basketball championships.
Hinkle Fieldhouse, a National Historic Landmark, was honored by collegehoops.net as one of the 5 Best Venues to Watch College Basketball. Named for legendary Butler coach Tony Hinkle, the fieldhouse has retained its old school feel despite recent upgrades to the training and practice facilities.
While you are in Indianapolis, be sure to take in the NCAA Hall of Champions, which pays homage to all NCAA sports including basketball, and Conseco Fieldhouse, home to the Indiana Pacers.
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