I have always been a die hard Indiana University Basketball fan, I have had very few days harder than March 14th, 2008. I was 10 years old sitting in elementary school decked out in my candy striped pants and hoosier jersey just like most game days for the hoosiers as a kid. 2008 was a great year to be a hoosier fan, great record, exciting players who were to be future NBA players, and a thirsty fan base. I had been to a few IU basketball games so far as a kid but nothing super intense or a markee matchup, and all my games attended were in assembly hall, which don’t get me wrong is the best atmosphere to watch a college hoops game in, in the country. Miss me with that Cameron Indoor crap, my high school gym is bigger. It was Lunch time for this 10 year old and I got called to the principals office for the first time in my life and that had me shaking in my candy stripes.
Get to the office and find my Uncle Brad who was freshman at Indiana that year and my dad both decked in their IU attire as well so I was pretty confused not knowing what the rest of the evening would hold. We were headed to indy to Attend the Big Ten Tournament that evening as the best IU team in recent years took on Minnesota on their way to claiming a big ten title before making a run in the NCAA’s, or so I hoped. Indiana lost on a last second shot to Minnesota in heartbreaking fashion comparable to the laettner shot against Kentucky. Broke my heart and planted a painful feeling towards the B1G tourney for the rest of my life inside me.
Fast forward to this year I have a very different feeling towards the Big ten tourney, a feeling of regretfulness. I regret that I did not appreciate what I had in the big ten tourney each march, giving me and millions of others what we all love, good competition, physical basketball, and a good cinderella story every once in a while. This year since the Big ten Tourney didn’t get played, it cut the season short for every athlete on each of the basketball teams, did not give them a chance to compete for a conference championship and even for others a chance to extend their seasons into the NCAA tournament and a chance to make a run at the night dance.
The Corona virus took away seasons from lots of athletes this spring. Basketball players got hit pretty hard… right when everyone seems to care the most, in March. Hoops players got their seasons cut short and even for some players got their chances to raise their draft stocks up before the NBA draft in June. This was a shot to the gut for so many and were all fighting to get through it together. We are united as athletes, D1,D2 it doesn’t matter. we are one.
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