On Selection Sunday, Indiana was announced as the #12 seed, ending an embarrassing NCAA tournament draught. However, with the 68-team format, they had to travel to Dayton for a play-in game against Wyoming. It was almost an insult to have made the field, but then forced to prove that they deserved to be in the 64-team bracket. To make matters worse, they would have to then travel cross-country to Portland, Oregon to face #5 St. Mary’s with little preparation time. As fate would have it, they also had issues with the plane and didn’t arrive until morning. If they could somehow get by the Gaels, then a third game in five days against UCLA would be the reward. So, a tired but healthy Hoosier squad arrived at the Moda Center in the Rose City.
Meanwhile in Dayton, the Wyoming Cowboys proved to be a tough match-up. It was a low scoring affair as expected with the score only 13-8 with 8:33 remaining until halftime and IU with the edge. At the horn, it was 30-25 as the teams headed for the locker room. Eleven Cowboy turnovers kept the Hoosiers in the game despite a typical poor shooting performance. Trayce Jackson Davis was dominant inside, ultimately ending the game as high-scorer with 29-points. Wyoming cut the margin to three after the half but could come no closer, as IU stretched the lead to ten at the 60 mark and went on to win 66-58.
The real dancing starts on St. Patrick’s Day, once the IU players hopefully get a nap. St. Mary’s is the favorite with a 25-7 record, including a 10-point victory over #1 seed Gonzaga. Wisconsin was a common opponent that beat both schools – twice for IU – but each was a winner over Notre Dame. With the play-in victory, the Hoosiers won three tough games down the stretch to finally stake an NCAA Tourney claim. Today, they’ll need the luck of the Irish.
1976 was the last year when a team went undefeated all the way through the NCAA tournament – “Your Indiana Hoosiers.” It’s a record that has held now for 46 years, but the Cream and Crimson have also gone through hard times since then, especially the last 20 years since they’ve been in the championship game and 25-years since they’ve won it all. It’s been frustrating right up to these last few games, feeling now that a dark cloud has finally lifted with their play in the BIG Tournament. Even though it didn’t turn out the way we wanted against Iowa, we still accomplished what we all wanted – a ticket to the “Big Dance.” We’ll know for sure after the Selection Show, but let’s reflect on all the really bad streaks we stopped this year:
Four consecutive losses against Illinois.
Five consecutive seasons without an NCAA Tournament appearance.
Eight consecutive seasons without a Big Ten Tournament Semifinals appearance.
Nine consecutive losses against Purdue.
Nine consecutive losses against Michigan.
19 consecutive years without multiple wins in a single Big Ten Tournament.
Granted, Wisconsin only added to our frustrations this season with two more close looses. Plus, Iowa ended our tournament run on a last second prayer. We even hit 60 first, but “The Rule” has some exceptions that make it interesting. We could have been playing Purdue for all the marbles. Wouldn’t that have been a treat for the basketball fans in the state of Indiana?
Would of…could of…should of – the story of this season.
IU certainly didn’t get any breaks from the selection committee. They are barely in the field as a twelve seed with a play-in game against Wyoming in Dayton, followed by a long flight to Portland if they win, and a match-up with St. Mary’s. If they somehow get by these hurdles, UCLA lurks in the shadows. It could come down to three games in five days for the short-handed Hoosiers who might be without Galloway and Geronimo. Regardless, it’s time to dance!
The Michigan game was like the changing of the conference guard, as last year’s BIG Ten Coach of the Year returned from an embarrassing suspension to the additional disappointment of a loss in his first game back. The boos were prevalent at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Michigan had won the last 7 games, dating back to February of 2017 in Bloomington and Coach Tom Crean, who was just fired at Georgia. Archie Miller couldn’t get the job done either, much like his woes against Purdue and Wisconsin, to mention a couple of Miller curses. Woodson is now in a position to become coach of the year and maybe the last two decades, with regard to Indiana success. Maybe the conference was premature in naming Greg Gard? What a turnaround we’ve witnessed!
The ILL-INI chant is very annoying, making me ILL, especially after four straight victories over the Hoosiers. The earlier meeting this season in friendly Simon Skjodt was anything but that, as the Blue & Orange battered IU down the stretch 74-57 and started a 5-game February skid. Then came March and two more critical losses to burst the bubble. “Suddenly,” as Don Fisher exclaimed things turned around in the most unexpected place – the BIG Tourney. Speaking of curses, this one dates back to Coach Knight. It did not exist when Mike Woodson was a player, so this was his first experience.
Michigan was first to fall and last year’s winner and this year’s #1 seed, Illinois, was the next victim. A friend texted me when IU hit 60 first but only with a 1-point lead with 3:23 on the clock. It was Trayce Jackson-Davis who got them there at the free throw line, on his way 21-points. Kofi Cockburn outscored him by two, but he held his own against another All- BIG center for the second game in a row, after being outplayed in their previous match-ups.
The game was a classic example of the “Magic of 60,” where IU got there first and held on to win. As I asked my friend who texted me at the 60-mark, “Do you believe in Magic?” He responded, “It’s the Rule of 60,” and once again held up.”
Next up high-scoring Iowa and another shot at revenge. They were the one team where Archie Miller had their number, beating them twice last year and once more in 2019-2020. The ILL-INI chant is now less annoying. Go IU!
It’s the last chance to make the Big Dance, as the BIG tournament continues in Indianapolis. IU was the #9 seed, playing Michigan for the second time this season. Both teams are on the tournament bubble, although the Wolverines are currently in while the Hoosiers are the first team out. Michigan head coach Juwan Howard has been reinstated to once again lead them to victory, as he did in Ann Arbor 80-62. At halftime in that game, it was 38-30, as Hunter Dickinson put them over the 60-mark with 9:29 remaining and a 14-point lead. IU finally got to 60 at 4:07 and soon cut the lead to 11, but never got closer. Dickenson finished with 25 and 9 rebounds while Trayce Jackson Davis was a miserable 6-13 from the free throw line and totaled 17 in the losing effort, overshadowed by Caleb Houston’s 19. The Hoosiers get a second chance for victory and hopefully will play better defense, especially against the three. Michigan was a sizzling 11-17 behind the arc. They also need more offense from Race Thompson and better three-point shooting than 5-19, as was the case in that first match-up.
If the Hoosiers don’t prevail against Michigan, they deserve nothing better than the NIT and a chance to play some teams outside the conference where the haven’t been able to effectively compete down the stretch or on the road. Indy should be like a second home for the Hoosiers where they beat NCAA Tourney bound Notre Dame earlier this season. Can the Candy Stripes do it again today?
It was another Tale of Two Halves, but this time it was a Hoosier Happy ending. A massive comeback and a 46-point second half made up for a lot of letdowns this season. The Wolverines easily reached 60 at the 12:54 mark with a 17-point bulge, but only scored 9 more the entire game, allowing IU to ultimately pass them 63-62 with 5:32 remaining. In that 7-minute span, relentless defense allowed only two free throws by Eli Brooks and caused 6 turnovers. Hunter Dickinson had only one bucket the entire second half and 15 overall, ten less than the first time around. Trayce Jackson-Davis led all scorers with 24, followed by Xavier Johnson with 17. Michigan was 6-20 from three point range, a vast improvement for IU’s perimeter defense since the previous match-up. It’s now on to the next round against Illinois and another chance to impress the selection committee with more revenge. Final: IU 74 Michigan 69.
The year 1973 was when I got married for the first time and graduated from college. I had to put my big boy pants on, cut my hair, get a job, and buy a more sensible car. I lived in an apartment by the railroad tracks that I carpeted using scraps from the mobile home industry. At least, I was finally twenty-one years old, working as a supervisor in a Styrofoam company. We would soon find out that there was a baby on the way, so the pants got tighter, and we looked for a bigger place to live. The Viet Nam war was coming to an end, so that was no longer a worry. My wife had a job at the local bank and all was well until I lost my job at the factory, I was replaced by a far more experienced supervisor from the main plant and can’t remember if I was fired or laid off.
In the meantime, we had bought our first home and a van, so we had to scramble to make the payments. I was out of work for several months but got help from my parents. A headhunter found me a job at a small newspaper operation in Middlebury, Indiana. My wife had started a plant business doing in-home parties and eventually opened her own retail outlet called The Hall of Ivy. The van helped us haul plants from wholesale locations, including Florida, but also served as a delivery vehicle for the Middlebury Independent and Crystal Valley Express newspapers that we published. I was selling ads, doing some artwork, layouts, and working weekends for a small salary. A year later, I found an advertising sales job at the local radio stations, WTRC-AM and WYEZ-FM, that became the basis of my career.
I worked in some form of the advertising business for over 40-years before I was able to comfortably retire. The peak of my profession was a six-year span when I was the head of two different television stations and their respective websites. My responsibilities during this time included overseeing hundreds of employees in sales, news, marketing, art, production, and accounting, while reporting to the “Corporate Gods” and keeping us actively involved in the community. In retrospect, although I enjoyed being the head honcho and the respect that went with it, my happiest times were just selling ads, while not having to worry about the crazy aspects of management. All in all, I climbed the ladder of success but the most satisfaction came somewhere in the middle of that climb.
In 1972, Intel invented the single-chip microprocessor, the Top Song was “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” by Roberta Flack, movies included The Godfather, The Getaway, What’s Up Doc and The Poseidon Adventure. I got married for the first time in October – it stuck for 27-years. It’s been another 21 years already the second time around. Some of my friends are starting to celebrate 50-years together this year. Tomorrow is my sister’s 66th birthday. I’ll give her a call, delaying my usual Monday contact with her. Happy Birthday, Sis!
I just finished reading Defense Lawyer: The Barry Slotnick Story and am moving on to another James Patterson novel Run, Rose, Run, co-written by Dolly Parton. In the meantime, I continue to write The Magic of 60, despite the misfortunes of the Indiana Hoosier basketball team. Much of my effort is transposing what I wrote 25-years ago that somehow didn’t get saved in a digital format. It’s a very tedious process, but a project that I want to complete while I have time in retirement.
March dates are starting to fill in on the calendar. It will be our busiest month since we moved here. Four sets of guests, lunch dates with vacationing friends, neighborhood get-togethers and too many trips to the airport. We drive to Ft. Myers on Thursday and meet one of my childhood best friends at Ford’s Garage. I picked the spot because it reminded me of the Ford Model A that he restored in his father’s body shop. I have many memories of being in that shop, a private space where we could go in the evenings when no one was working. I’d sit in the cars and pretend like I was driving. It was my first experience with a clutch that I stupidly engaged, causing the Corvette to suddenly lurch forward. Fortunately, I didn’t do any damage, but it scared me. Later on in life, I owned two different cars with stick shifts – the Triumph GT-6 and a Volkswagen Beetle. This lost skill also came in handy for a rental car in Europe, but otherwise my automobiles have all been automatic since the mid 70s.
The year 1971 saw the sentencing of Charles Manson and his followers for the Tate-LaBianca murders, plus another anti-Vietnam War protest march in Washington D.C. I had made the move from Albion College to Indiana University where a new basketball coach, Robert Montgomery Knight was introduced to replace Lou Watson. I drove a brand new, bright red, Triumph GT-6 to Bloomington to live with a high school friend in my first apartment. It turned out to be a big mistake, although I did avoid going to Viet Nam.
It’s now 51-years later, as I write this from my Florida home. I’m waiting for a home inspector in preparation of my final warranty walk-through by the builder. We want to make sure that everything is in order before this house is no longer covered. We conducted the first inspection a year ago before we moved in. Over the course of this first year, we’ve had a chipped countertop repaired, painting touch-ups, lanai repairs, wiring issues resolved, plumbing re-worked, and roofing tiles replaced. We still have some caulking and molding that needs some attention, along with a ceiling crack. So far, we’ve been pleased with the service we’ve gotten and the issues have been minimal.
Yesterday, we made another trip to the hardware store for more plants, a rake, downspout covers, a hose, and some caulk. It’s not like condo life where you simply call someone to make the day-to-day repairs. I’ve had to re-purchase many of the tools I’ve given away through the years. We upgraded the lights on each side of the garage door and continue to make improvements both inside and out. I’m pleased with my new office shelves, and we have a lot more storage space in our closets and pantry as a result of that customization. We also just purchased all the elements for the outdoor kitchen that will incorporate our DCS grill/burners, including venting, sink, and refrigerator. Stone and tile will be used to finish off this exciting new addition to our lanai. Slowly but surely our new home is coming together.
Another chance for a ticket to the field of 64, but a tall order for a season sweep of #8 Purdue. The Boilermakers had won the last six in West Lafayette and it was Senior Night honoring Trevion Williams, Sasha Stefanovic, and Eric Hunter Jr. They combined for 40-points in a 69-67 victory. It was just another case of the Hoosiers not being able to hold on, up 56-52 with just under seven minutes to play. The Boilers went on a 7-0 run and hit the 60-mark at 4:33. It was similar to the previous game in Bloomington, but IU couldn’t get to sixty first this time. Rob Phinisee hit the winning three with :18 seconds remaining back in January but Xavier Johnson missed everything on his last second attempt. Purdue prevailed 69-67 and left Indiana dateless for the dance.
The Hoosiers had blown leads in their last two games and lost seven of their last nine. It brought back bad memories of Syracuse in November when IU could have won in the first overtime but couldn’t get off a shot. It was also reminiscent of the two Wisconsin games, Ohio State, and Rutgers where we didn’t execute down the stretch, just like the loss to Purdue. If IU had won even half of those six games, they would be dancing.
They will have yet another chance to redeem themselves in the BIG Tourney, but history has not been kind. Not only have they never won it, but they are 13-23 overall. IU would need to beat both Michigan and Wisconsin (make that Illinois) to turn some heads with the selection committee. However, “if it weren’t for bad luck, we wouldn’t have any luck at all.” The first Purdue game was the only clutch performance we’ve had so far this year and it prevented a 10th straight loss.
At this point, considering their inability to close out games, they are NIT bound. The National Invitational Tournament was Mike Woodson’s only collegiate championship as a player. As a Freshman, the Hoosiers didn’t play in the post season. In his Sophomore year 1977-78, the team lost to Villanova 61-60 in the NCAA Tournament. IU got to 60 first on his 24-point performance, but it wasn’t enough as Rory Sparrow hit the winning shot. The next year, 1978-79, only two teams from each conference could qualify for the NCAA, so the NIT was where Coach Mike Woodson as a player cut down the nets after the last-second victory over Purdue. His Senior year ended with a loss to the Boilermakers in the NCAA tournament. Woodson was 4-6 against Purdue as a player and now 1-1 as a coach.
Nixon, Woodstock, the moon landing, the final Beatles’ album, and the amazing Mets are some of the more notable highlights of 1969. I graduated from Elkhart High School and attended Albion College. Going to Viet Nam was on my mind as 250,000 protestors marched on Washington. However, 100,000 more of my generation went to Woodstock by conservative estimates. Peace, love, and drugs were influencers on my life, but I will always regret not going. I don’t even remember being aware that it was happening at the time, nor do I know any of my friends that went. I’ve been to larger events in my lifetime, like the Indy 500, New Orleans Jazz Festival, and Mardi Gras, but Woodstock remains at the top of my bucket list of missed opportunities.
In my opinion, 100,000 people in one place is a significant event. Funerals, Pilgrimages, Festivals, Marches, and Rallies top the list of events involving millions of attendees – most of these take place over many days. The venues that can accommodate these massive crowds are primarily auto racing venues around the world. For example, the Daytona 500 attracts over 160,000 spectators, making it my fourth largest event in personal attendance. The Las Vegas Motor Speedway was not far behind on my list, followed by Michigan International Speedway, Mid-Ohio, Elkhart Lake, Circuit of the Americas, Brickyard 500, Formula One Indy, the College World Series in Omaha, and Daryl Royal Stadium in Austin, Texas. At the 50,000+ level were events at the Hoosier Dome, Lucas Oil Stadium, St. Louis Arena, Coho Hall, Indy Jazz Fest, Reliant Stadium, Soldier Field, Comiskey/Cellular One/Guaranteed Rate Park, Anaheim Stadium, Minute Maid Park, Providence Park, PGA at Crooked Stick, Moda Center, Minneapolis Metrodome, Milwaukee Coliseum, Wrigley Field, Amway Arena, Tiger Stadium, America West Arena, Silverdome, Tropicana, Riverfront Stadium, Conseco, Superdome, Liberty Bowl, Independence Bowl, Oracle Stadium, Oakland Coliseum, PNC Park, Busch Stadium. Portland International Speedway, Arlington Park, Fenway Park, Marlins Park, Maui Classic, Irish Stadium, Yankee Stadium, T-Mobile Park, US Olympic Trials in Eugene, RFK Stadium. Camden Yard, Century Link Field, AT&T Arena, Citi Field, and the Great American Ballpark, to name a few.
The St. Pete Grand Prix that we just went to last week was estimated at 150,000 attendees. However, I find these large crowds to be intimidating in retirement and preferably avoided. Other missed bucket list opportunities like the Rose Bowl and Super Bowl will continue to be hard to avoid, especially if one of my teams makes the cut or I get a free ticket.
1968 was my Junior year of high school. It was a turbulent time with the Vietnam War’s Tet Offensive, riots in Washington, DC, the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1968, and heightened social unrest over the Vietnam War, values, and race. I seemed to be oblivious about all of this, focused instead on the social aspects of school. My prom date for that year got married just out of high school but her husband passed away in 1973. She was one of the top students in our class and her mother worked with my dad. I took a few minutes to do a search this morning, but I wonder what ever happened to her? She is not reported as deceased on our class website. My other high school prom date was a year younger and we have exchanged a few messages through the years.
We are going on a pontoon adventure this afternoon with Captain Bruce. It’s something we have done with several of our former house guests in search of dolphins and manatees. The weather should be great with temperatures in the 80s. We will then drive them to the Tampa Airport and prepare for our next group of visitors. I am back in my home office this morning, having given up the space to my son-in-law, who was still working during their one-week stay. Our schnauzer Tally was able to sit in the chair that she prefers, acting as his co-worker, while I used the dining room table for my monkey business. We went out to eat last night at the Venice Art Café that turned out to be a bit of a disappointment. The good news was that there was no one else there, so I didn’t have to fight the noise to hear our conversation.
I’ll be back in Tampa next Friday to drop my wife off at the airport for her trip to San Francisco/Oakland to be with her two daughters, one of which is here this week. At the same time, I’ll also pick-up my hometown high school friends that we left behind in Oregon for what I thought was going to be Spring Training at the neighborhood Braves Park. The owner’s strike has squashed that plan. We’ll certainly find other things to do like concerts, pickleball, and drinking in the sun. It will be a fun time of indoor camping with just the boys.
