In Indiana, basketball is more than a game — it's a source of Hoosier pride, culture, and community that spans over a century of history. As the birthplace of Indiana University Basketball, Bloomington in particular is a hub for the sport's legend and lore. Taking a trip through Bloomington's Basketball Trail is a must for all enthusiasts of the sport.
Monroe County History Center Exhibit
Picture Perfect: The Indiana Hoosiers and the 1975-1976 season
Opening September 30, 2025
Indiana already was known for its love of basketball, and Indiana University had won two national championships prior to 1976. Yet, the accomplishments of the IU’s men’s basketball team that year lifted the Hoosiers and Coach Bob Knight to unparalleled heights, making Indiana University a permanent part of the national collegiate basketball conversation. The previous year, 1975, IU had lost only once, by two points in an NCAA regional final, when the Hoosiers’ best player took the floor with a broken arm. When practice began the following season, Coach Knight gave his team a singular goal: not just to win a Big 10 title, not just to win a national championship. The goal for that year was not to lose a single game. They didn’t, ending with a record of 32-0 when the nets came down in Philadelphia on March 29, 1976. In the past 50 years, there have been no other undefeated NCAA men’s basketball champions, and in 2013, the NCAA crowned the unbeaten Hoosiers as the all-time best “March Madness” team. This exhibit follows the pursuit of perfection in photographs taken by the staff of The Herald-Times newspaper during its coverage of the 1975-1976 season, from the play on the court to the dancing in the streets when the final buzzer sounded. (Description by Rod Spaw, guest curator).
Outfitting IU Athletics: Hoosier Champions
In partnership with the Indiana University Athletics Sports Memorabilia Collection, University Collections at McCalla is proud to present its newest exhibit, Outfitting IU Athletics: Hoosier Champions. The exhibit will open on Friday, November 14 from 4:00–6:00 PM at 525 E. 9th St. This showcase highlights individual and team champions throughout IU’s rich athletics heritage. Featuring uniforms, gear, and trophies, Outfitting IU Athletics traces IU’s athletic accomplishments from the founding of the first sport at IU (baseball), through 2025 individual national champions in women’s and men’s swimming and diving. Objects included in the exhibit range from the 1938 men’s cross country national championship trophy, Lilly King’s signed Olympic swimming cap, Kyle Schwarber’s 2013 College World Series bat, basketball objects, and tennis shoes worn by Heather Crowe during her run to an individual and team national championship in women’s tennis in 1982.
Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall
To begin your journey, book a tour through IU Athletics to learn all the Hoosier traditions, lore, victory, and camaraderie; a place that's considered one of college basketball's most iconic arenas: Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. It's a venue with rich basketball history — practically holy ground for college basketball enthusiasts. Visiting the sports venue when it's still and empty is a special treat.
You can request a tour not only of Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, but also Cook Hall and Memorial Stadium.
Hoosier Hysteria
IU Homecoming Weekend allows alumni to reconnect with friends, relive their favorite college traditions, and show their kids their old stomping grounds. One of the new IU traditions is Hoosier Hysteria. Taking place on the Friday of Homecoming Weekend, this is your opportunity to enjoy scrimmages with both the women's and men's teams and even possibly have a chance to meet the players.
Cook Hall
Located right beside the Assembly Hall is Cook Hall. The state-of-the-art facility serves as the practice, training, and conditioning domain for the men's and women's basketball teams. Beyond its primary purpose, Cook Hall is also home to the Pfau Shine Legacy Court, which is an exhibit that chronicles the history of Indiana Basketball. The space features photographs, artifacts, trophies, and interactive touch-screen kiosks that celebrate IU's championship teams and basketball traditions.
BuffaLouie's
Let us point you toward another Hoosier sports staple: BuffaLouie's. Located just steps from Sample Gates, the restaurant specializes in juicy, sauced-up wings — in fact, they were ranked by USA Today as a Top 10 Wing Joint in the United States. If you're wondering what delicious chicken wings have to do with IU Basketball, all you have to do is look at the restaurant's walls. Lined from floor-to-ceiling with IU sports memorabilia, art, and fanfare, BuffaLouie's is a bit of a Hoosier museum in its own right — and a great place to watch any Hoosier game!
IU Archives
Photo by Indiana Public Media
Head to the fourth stop on the trail: IU Archives, located on the fourth floor of Wells Library on the Indiana University campus. A cross between a museum and a library itself, IU Archives is the largest & most comprehensive source of information on IU Bloomington history & culture — basketball included. Visitors can study documents, photos, and other historical pieces that date back to when the university first started participating in intercollegiate men's basketball in 1901.
Graduate by Hilton Hotel
The second-to-last stop on the Bloomington Basketball Trail is a unique one, but you won't want to miss. The Graduate by Hilton, located on Kirkwood Avenue, houses a variety of interesting IU sports memorabilia in their lobby, lounge area, and rooms. While there's a range of decor inside the hotel's rooms, visitors who aren't staying the night can still see the cheeky chandelier of tangled chairs as a nod to Bobby Knight, the massive painting of the basketball team in the movie Hoosiers, and the hotel's basketball hoop light fixtures.
Nick's English Hut
There's no better place to end the Bloomington Basketball Trail than at the classic Nick's English Hut. A mainstay for locals, alumni, students, and visitors, Nick's is a home to Hoosier history in the same way BuffaLouie's is. The tavern's walls are adorned with historic IU memorabilia, including art, old fliers & posters, team photographs, and much, much more. If you're in town during a game day for any sport, but you don't have tickets to attend the game, Nick's is the second-best place to be — catch the game on one of their many TVs with a restaurant full of fellow Hoosier fans.
The Upstairs Pub
The Upstairs Pub is another beloved game day spot in town, especially for students. Step inside and you’ll find a slice of IU basketball history on the walls. The bar features an original Assembly Hall scoreboard that hung until 2004, six preserved floor panels from the legendary Garrett Fieldhouse (IU’s basketball home from 1928–1960), and wood from Gladstein Fieldhouse, where the Hoosiers played from 1960–1971. Adding to the atmosphere, a live ticker scrolls real-time scores and sports updates right beside the scoreboard—perfect for keeping up with the action.
