My Two Cents: Hoosier Hysteria Translates to 'Let's Get the Party Started'
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — It's that time of year, mid-October. Bloomington and this incredible Indiana University campus are just beautiful in the fall. Colors are exploding from every corner.
It's beautiful inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, too.
And thank God for that. Lots of red. Lots of white.
It's been since March since we've had any basketball events in one of college basketball's finest cathedrals. That all changed on Friday night with Hoosier Hysteria, which might be a bit contrived, but that's all good. It's all for show, a lot of flash and dazzle, and even a concert with rapper Gucci Mane.
It is winter's ''Let's get the party started'' moment. And boy — and girls — are we ready to party.
I don't have to tell you that it's been a rough football season at Indiana. Hoosier fans are ready to move on, and that's to basketball. It's a right of passage here on this campus, because there is no denying this is a basketball school. And basketball season is now just a few weeks away, and it will keep us highly entertained for the next five months.
It starts here. It's been called "Hoosier Hysteria'' for a while now, and it was "Midnight Madness'' before that. It's been a fun tipoff to the season for a while now. What's great about it is that even can get in their Hoosier gear and head to Assembly Hall, It's a nice ''start'' to a Friday night for students, and a nice way to ''end'' a Friday night for the older folks.
It's fun in Assembly Hall, and it brings the entire fan base together. Young and old, from near and far. It's a good night out.
Former Hoosier football player and current football radio analyst Rhett Lewis was one on the hosts for Hoosier Hysteria.
I ran into Joni Hulls in the hallway. She's Jordan Hulls' mom. Jordan, as we all know, was a great player at Indiana from 2009 to 2013 and is now a member of Mike Woodson's staff.
The Bloomington native grew up on this event. Absolutely born and raised here.
"Jordan had a brother who is eight years older, so if I had to guess, the first time Jordan was here, he was probably three or four,'' she said. Hulls walked out on stage with four of Joni's grandchildren. "It was a different name back then, but we came every year. It was always that first taste for basketball that season. The kids loved it.''
Indiana senior Anthony Leal and his big sister Lauren — also Bloomington natives — have been coming to Hoosier Hysteria since they were little, too. Leal made a three-quarter court shot to win a round in a challenge competition, much to the delight of the fans, and the won the final round with Lenee Beaumont with some clever tactics, too
And this event means as much to the women's basketball team is it does the men.
Just ask Ali Patberg. I saw her in the hallway, too. The former Indiana women's basketball great played here from 2015 to 2022 — a very long time — and is now on Teri Moren's staff. She is very much a face of this franchise.
She grew up down the road in Columbus, Ind., and she came to this event often, too. "I don't even remember how little I was (the first time), but I was little. It was always so much fun. I'm from Indiana, so this is home to me. But this place is special because of the people. They're different here. They're special.''
There were all sorts of kids spread throughout Assembly Hall of Friday night, many sporting their candy-stripe pants, with little brothers and sisters in tow. It was family night, for sure.
There was plenty of silliness. Popular IU women's star Sydney Parrish, who got second-biggest ovation of the women's players — only All-American center Mackenzie Holmes got more — carried her dog for her runway introduction.
There was some seriousness, too. Sophomore guard Yarden Garzon, who's an Israel native and has lots of family in harm's way back at home, came out with the Israeli flag draped over her shoulders. She got a standing ovation.
Indiana women's coach Teri Moren, who's from Seymour, came out on stage to the hit from her neighbor, John Mellencamp. It had to be ''Small Town'' for her. Her rousing ovation was deserved. She's been a national coach of the year, a Big Ten champion, and the winningest coach in program history.
This is so much fun for her, too.
Their program is at a pinnacle right now. They've been a top-10 team for several years, they've won a conference title — their first in 40 years — and they've made a run in the NCAA Tournament. They were a No. 1 seed a year ago.
They draw record crowds here too, and expect to do more of the same again this season.
"This place is so special to so many people, and we've made Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall one of the toughest places to play in all of college basketball,'' Moren said during the show. "I think fans love how we play, and love watching us. They've really bonded with this group. This group is so close and, by the way, they're really good.''
They're really loved by Hoosier Nation, too. This event, in its early stages, was mostly about the men's team. It's not that way anymore. Indiana women's basketball is a big deal now, too.
As it should be.
The guys all did their thing, too. There are a lot of new faces on this team, and they all got shown plenty of love. So did the older guys like Trey Galloway and Anthony Leal and Xavier Johnson. Roars filled the building, even from balcony.
They had fun with coach Mike Woodson, too. The former Indiana great last year said that ''Indiana basketball is the s---.'' (Rhymes with hit.) They put together an adorable video with players fans and even little kids repeating the line.
It got lots of laughs.
"It hasn't changed all these years. Indiana has the greatest fans in college basketball,'' Woodson said. "It's never been about me, it's about the players that I coach and my family and the fans.
"I've got to say this. When all of you guys go home tonight, go home and say a prayer for Bob Knight, because Bob Knight IS Indiana basketball.''
There's no doubt about that. Indiana basketball is indeed special, both brands. And so is this building.
It's good to be back. Let's roll. And party.
DJ Iman Tucker entertains the crowd at Hoosier Hysteria on Friday night.
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