The Franklin Wonder Five, 1920. This Franklin High School team won three consecutive state championships, 1920, '21, and '22. Photo courtesy Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame

Hoosier Hysteria: Indiana High School Basketball

In the Hoosier state, basketball is Indiana's game. There may be more basketball goals per capita than any other state. In fact, one was erected in the driveway of the governor's executive mansion. In Indiana, high school basketball is a passion. The fruits of that passion are the thousands of first-rate high school basketball players the state has developed since the 1940s.

This legacy project chronicles the significant events, teams and monuments in Indiana high school basketball with videos: from the Indiana High School Athletic Association of the 1954 Boys Basketball Final, the 1999 Boys and Girls Tournaments of Champions Finals; the 1989 Girls Basketball State Championships, and others; and also a movie video, Indiana's Game, about the state's high school basketball; and the book Broc: the Littlest Champion, at five feet seven who played for the Evansville Bosse Bulldogs, "who out dribbled, out maneuvered, and outsmarted nearly all competition." The legacy is also documented with materials submitted by individual high schools throughout Indiana which include narratives, newspaper clippings, photographs, letters written by Hoosier basketball fans recalling their memories of Indiana high school basketball; and photographs and memorabilia submitted by the Indiana Basketball of Fame.

Originally submitted by: Richard G. Lugar, Senator.

More Local Legacies... Additional Indiana Local Legacies Local Legacies for all U.S. States

The Local Legacies project provides a "snapshot" of American Culture as it was expressed in spring of 2000. Consequently, it is not being updated with new or revised information with the exception of "Related Website" links.