acknowledgements

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     Congratulations to Ed and Billy for this exceptional book about basketball in Indiana. It takes me back to the days in the late 1960's when I was a student at Indiana University, and it helps me to remember the great relationships I have had with so many of the players written about in the book, including the Van Arsdale's, John McGlocklin,  Brian Evans and the late George McGinnis.  The book will live on as a tribute to the legacy of Indiana High School basketball forever.

     I struggled putting Their Times in Indiana down when I began reading it. It tells the story of so many legends of high school basketball from our state like no other book that I've already read. I knew some of their stories, but not to the detail described in the book. And some of the stories I can attest to, as I knew the players at the time.

     It's a great read for so many of us who appreciate high school basketball in the true heydays of hoops.

     In writing my book, “Hoosier’s Two, The Road Warriors,“ about the East Chicago Roosevelt Rough Riders 1970 undefeated state championship team, I read virtually every book on Hoosier Hysteria before I started writing. I even read manuscripts that weren’t published but were made available to me. 

     I can honestly say this is the BEST BOOK EVER WRITTEN ON BASKETBALL IN INDIANA!! The individual stories of these unique basketball players in their own words are captivating! It’s truly an inspirational book and it allows the reader to experience basketball at its finest in the single class system. I’m honored to have a chapter written about James Bradley and me in the book. In my opinion, James was the most complete player to ever lace up shoes on the basketball court as a high schooler.

     I take personal privilege to be included with all the great players in the book, especially my favorite, Rick Mount, the greatest jump shooter of all time.

     I have never seen a more creative writing that so  fittingly describes the spirit and passion defining the glory days of Indiana High School Basketball. “THEIR TIMES IN INDIANA" tells the stories of Indiana’s star players growing up, falling in love with basketball, and playing it at a level where many wanted to be, but few attained. And they did this in front of adoring hometown fans, making high school basketball a truly unique experience that only Hoosiers could understand. 

     Friday and Saturday nights found the high school gyms of both small towns and large cities packed with fans cheering for their teams.  It was the only place to be on those Hoosier winter nights during the golden era of high school basketball. 

     This is a must read for all basketball fans. 

     My dad played in the golden era of Indiana basketball, and he had his own stories to share, including how wonderfully competitive the 16-team Zionsville Sectional had been, how he met Tony Hinkle on a recruiting visit to Butler before enrolling at Ball State, and how Jack Keefer and Stan Neal were on his freshman team in the old Ball Gym, with George Griffith as the team’s student manager. As I covered games across the state for The Indianapolis Star, Dad often tagged along and I’d sometimes find him talking old times with Jim Rosenstihl, “Big” Ed Schilling, Jimmy Rayl, Garry Donna, Billy Keller, and Billy Shepherd, among the many legends he knew. When he drove through Bainbridge, I’d get a call for another Larry Steele story he couldn’t wait to share.

     A host of great stories from Indiana’s basketball icons are in the pages of this book. Thank you, Ed, for preserving them.

     I’m such a huge basketball fan that I love reading anything that’s well written about the game and its players. But this book goes to another level because of its concept and the period covered, which is undoubtedly the glory days of Indiana high school basketball.

     It truly is a wonderful read.

     Their Times In Indiana is a great book at the perfect time. Basketball in Indiana is a great subject for a book and the idea of having players tell the story of the best years in Indiana high school basketball is the perfect way to do it.

     Indiana high school basketball has always been so much bigger than the exploits of one individual player. The impact that the community has on you as a high school player is very special. The players in this book do a great job of explaining how important that is for young players growing up in the game. I've been to high school games all over the country and nothing compares to what occurs during the season on Friday and Saturday nights in Indiana.     

     Ed’s book sums up what it takes to be a great basketball player and what the experience is like when you find yourself there. While it is evident that these players are extremely talented, the support received from parents, teammates, coaches, and entire communities definitely had an everlasting impact. Enjoy the stories of greatness and all the different ways these fine players from the state of Indiana made it to the top.

     The theme of love and respect for the game is evident throughout each passage of this book. The Purdue guys, like all the others, realize in retrospect that they played in the Golden Age of Indiana boys’ basketball. Each knows it took the collective work of many others (coaches, teachers, parents, and friends) to help them get to where they were in the game. It was a different time, and that healthy understanding by these players that Indiana prep basketball will never be as it was in those days and that they couldn’t have achieved the level of success that they did without others make the stories redeeming and very interesting and insightful.

     If you’re a fan of Indiana high school basketball’s glory days – that is, the years before the end of single-class basketball -- Ed’s book, Their Times In Indiana, is a must-have and a must-read. It is filled with first person memories of some of the finest young athletes who’ve ever played high school ball in Indiana, a state where basketball means something more than it does everywhere else in the nation.

     This book is a wonderful tribute to the game of basketball in Indiana and a gift to basketball fans everywhere. I couldn’t recommend it any more highly.

     One would be hard-pressed to have grown up in Indiana having not developed some relationship with basketball. The stories contained within the game's rich history will often feel relatable to what we experienced in our own high schools and home towns, lending a sense of nostalgia.     

     This book is a tribute to one of Indiana’s greatest jewels -- its high school basketball history -- and is one that should be on the bookshelf of every basketball fan who loved the high school game when it was the best show in town.

     In visiting with Ed as he was putting this wonderful book together, it was easy to see how much he loves basketball and how sincere he’s been with these great players. This comes through in the appreciation he’s shown the players, their stories, and the great game of Indiana high school basketball during such a special time in the state’s history.

     And that means a lot to an old coach who can never give back what the game has given to him. I will always love and cherish Indiana high school basketball and I have a lifetime of memories to prove it.