Letter: Could ‘Hoosiers’ happen again?

Tuesday, March 21, 2006 | 8:16 a.m.

A March 16 editorial in the Sun, "March Madness is upon us," said that one reason for interest in the NCAA tournament was the " 'Hoosiers' effect," meaning the upset possibilities. But the degree of the upset depends upon its probability and a team's opportunity to be there.

"Hoosiers" is a movie loosely based on a high school state championship game played in Indiana a half century ago between small-town Milan and big-city Muncie Central. As in the movie, Milan's Bobby Plump hit the winning shot as the clock ran out, but the victory was achieved by running a slowdown stall.

In those days, upsets were more frequent than one might think, and small towns could make their seasons by knocking off the big-city teams. You can ask any Hoosier.

Today the game has evolved. The five-second count, the shot clock and the three-point goal have changed "The Game" in ways that perhaps the American Dream has changed. Even in Indiana there are now multiple divisions of play. It's probably a good thing, but no Milan will ever again knock off a Muncie Central. There will be no opportunity.

I thought about that when I read about the dispute in Las Vegas over Bishop Gorman High School. The school is said to recruit, and the other schools don't want to play them. Certainly a school is at a disadvantage if it must take what it gets off the school bus and play a team that recruits.

It isn't fair, and no one would want to have to play that big school, unless at heart you are a Hoosier.

Jerry Bitts, Las Vegas