Hoosiers, a drama sports film released in 1986, goes down in cinematic history as one of the most rousingly enjoyable sports movies ever made. This small-town drama tells the story of the Hickory Huskers, an underdog basketball team from a tiny Indiana high school that makes it all the way to the state championship tournament. It’s a familiar story, highlighted by the superb performances of Gene Hackman as the Huskers’ coach, and Oscar nominee Dennis Hopper as the alcoholic father of one of the team’s key players. As the drama unfolds we come to realize that many of the characters including Barbara Hershey as a schoolteacher with whom Hackman falls in love are recovering from disappointing setbacks, and this depth of character is what makes the otherwise conventional basketball story so richly rewarding.

On Friday, November 29, the Lady Titans JV and Varsity basketball teams had the privilege to play against the Danville Community High School Lady Warriors in what is today known as “The Hoosier Gym.” The gym is located in Knightstown, Indiana, just a few miles east of Indianapolis, and was used as the home court for the Hickory Huskers in the movie Hoosiers. JV Head Coach Rusty Reeves never imagined he would get to coach a game in the Hoosier Gym. “I watched Hoosiers a ton as a kid. I was ten when it came out and the movie has always been one of my favorites.” said Reeves. “It was very cool to coach in the gym, it was still pretty much the way it was in movie.” said Reeves.

Many Gibson Southern fans also made the nearly three and a half hour drive to cheer on the Lady Titans. “I was floored by the attendance of our fan base. To drive 3.5 hours for a morning game on Black Friday speaks volumes.” said Reeves. The JV squad went on to stun the Lady Warriors 62-21. The varsity Lady Titans didn’t come to play either. Both Gibson Southern and Danville were ranked high in an IHSAA Class 3A poll. For senior guard, Claire Jones, playing in the gym was little different than contesting in the Titan Fieldhouse. “The court is older so it was set up different such as n half court life and there were two sets of out of bounds lines. It was very different to play on but not too hard to get the hang of.” said Jones. 

“Something I learned from this experience of playing at the Hoosier Gym was to not take it for granted and to play our hardest because we will most likely never get the chance to play here again.” said Jones. The Varsity Lady Titans went on to oust the Lady Warriors 56-41. This gave the lady titans a record of 6-0 on the season and a brand new #1 ranking for IHSAA Girls Basketball in class 3A. Like Rocky, Rudy, and Breaking Away, the movie gives viewers a quintessential message about beating the odds and rising above one’s own limitations, something not only done by the Hickory Huskers, but also by the Lady Titans. Just try to watch it without cheering!