News

The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Board of Directors announces the 2016 Mens’ Induction Class to be honored on Wednesday, March 23, 2016.              

  * indicates deceased

 Indiana Basketball HOF announces 55^th induction class

(New Castle) – Including the all-time leading scorer in Indiana high school basketball history, the all-time leading scorer in Indiana University and Big Ten Conference history, men who once held the all-time scoring records at Butler University and Indiana State University, a pair of Indiana high school state champion players, the record holder for state finals rebounding, a collegiate national champion player and a coach of two Indiana Mr. Basketballs, the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame announces their 55^th mens’ induction class.

Damon Bailey remains the all-time leading scorer in Indiana high school basketball history 26 years after he graduated from Bedford North Lawrence High School with 3,134 points. The 1990 Indiana Mr. Basketball, he led the Stars to three state finals appearances, including the 1990 state championship, won in front of a world-record crowd of 41,046 for a high school basketball game. A two-time Gatorade Indiana Player of the Year, he was a 1990 McDonald’s All-American, the consensus 1990 High School National Player of the Year and named by USA Today as the High School Player of the Decade.

A 1994 All-American as a senior at Indiana University, he graduated having won more games in an IU jersey than any other player (108) including a school-record 11 NCAA Tournament wins, tied for 2^nd in games played (132), the all-time leader in three-point field goals made (166), 5^th in three-point % (.437), tied for 2^nd in assists (474), and 5^th in career scoring (1,741). A 1994 2^nd round draft pick of the Indiana Pacers, Bailey played with the CBA Fort Wayne Fury and in France. He has entered the coaching profession as head boys coach at Bedford North Lawrence from 2005-2007, then leading the BNL girls to a 4A state championship in 2014 as their head coach. A co-owner of Hawkins-Bailey Warehouse in Bedford, he is now in his 2^nd season as an assistant coach with the Butler University women’s basketball program.

Bailey is inducted in his first year eligible (26 years after high school graduation), and becomes just the 9^th player inducted into the Hall in their first year of eligibility (joining Steve Alford, Kent Benson, Larry Bird, Dave Colescott, Kyle Macy, George McGinnis, Rick Mount and Oscar Robertson).

Tom Bowman was a three-year sharp shooting starter at Martinsville High School who led the Artesians to two sectional championships before his record-setting career at Butler University. Totaling 1,334 points in three seasons, he broke Bobby Plump’s career scoring record for the Bulldogs. A three-time all-conference selection, he was the unanimous pick as the Indiana Collegiate Conference MVP in his junior season of 1961-62. He averaged a career-best 18.4 points per game that season, leading Butler to their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance and an upset win over #9 Bowling Green. A 1963 draft pick of the Baltimore Bullets and one of six alternates for the 1964 U.S. Olympic team, he was one of 15 players named to Butler’s all-Sesquicentennial team in 2006. Retired from the Franklin Life Insurance Company, he resides in Lafayette, Colorado. To 

Calbert Cheaney set records at Evansville Harrison High School before a remarkable college and pro career. The only player in Harrison history to have his jersey retired, Cheaney holds the single-game school scoring record (47) amongst his 1,064 points as he revived the Warriors program with two city and conference championships. A three-time college All-American and the consensus 1993 National Player of the Year, he re-wrote the Indiana University record book, remaining today the all-time leading scorer (2,613 points) in school and Big Ten Conference history.

Setting the IU record for career starts (130) and graduating 2^nd in career games played (132), he left with the school record in field goals made (1,018), 2^nd in career FG % (.559), 4^th in three-point % (.438) and having led the team in scoring all four years, he held three of the top 13 single-season scoring totals in IU history upon graduation. The #6 overall pick in the 1993 NBA Draft, he played 13 seasons in the league, totaling 7,826 points, 2,610 rebounds and 1,398 assists with Washington, Boston, Denver, Utah and Golden State. After his retirement as a player, he spent two seasons on the staff of the Golden State Warriors, two seasons on staff at Indiana University and is now in his 3^rd season as an assistant coach at Saint Louis University.  

The late Henry “Hank” Clason was a standout athlete at Goshen High School and Northwestern University. In his high school days, Clason was Goshen’s leading scorer for three seasons, earning three years of all-conference honors and three years all-county. Helping Goshen to a sectional championship victory as a sophomore, he led the NIHSC conference in scoring as a junior and was named captain of the all-county basketball team as a senior in 1938. A three-year letterman at Northwestern, he led the team in scoring and was named all-Big Ten as a junior and captained the Wildcats’ 1941-42 team. Beyond the hardwood, Clason set numerous records at Goshen in track and field and as a noted member of Northwestern’s 1940 Big Ten baseball champions.   Following service in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II, Clason was a teacher and coach at Topeka High School from 1947-1953 and as a teacher and coach at Goshen High School from 1953-1986.   Clason died in 2013.

Jim Fisher was a standout scorer under Hall of Fame coach Jim Rosenstihl at Lebanon High School. A two-year leading scorer for two sectional champion teams, he graduated as the 6^th all-time leading scorer in Lebanon history, with the 2^nd highest career scoring average (22.6 ppg), 3^rd highest season scoring average (28.5 ppg) and 4^th highest season point total (656) in school history. Shooting 52% from the field during his prep career, he totaled 1,317 points as a three-time all-conference, three time all-sectional and two-time all-regional selection. Scoring over 1,000 points in a college career that included a pair of academic all-district honors at Newberry College (SC), he played for the all-Navy basketball team during U.S. military service. Employed with Fusion Alliance, he resides in Indianapolis.

Russ Grieger started games in four seasons under Hall of Fame coach Herman Keller at Evansville Bosse, on his way to even greater basketball successes in his hometown. His high school career capped by a standout senior season in which he averaged 23.4 points and set the school’s single-game scoring mark (38 points), he was named MVP of the all-city team, the leading vote getter on the SIAC all-conference team, as well as all-sectional and 3^rd team all-state. Grieger played two seasons for Hall of Fame coach Arad McCutcheon at Evansville College in the pinnacle of the Aces’ success. A part of teams that went 56-3 from 1963-65, Grieger was a starting guard on their 1965 29-0 NCAA College Division National Championship squad. Holding a PhD in psychology, he has been an instructor at the University of Virginia since 1970 and is an author and in private practice in Charlottesville, Virginia. He joins his brother Gary (inducted in 2007) as siblings enshrined in the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

Bill Hahn starred at Michigan City Elston High School and Drake University before embarking on a lengthy teaching and coaching career. A two-year starter under Hall of Fame coach Doug Adams on teams that won a pair of NIHSC conference championships, two sectional championships and were 41-10, he averaged 15 points and six assists his senior year. A three-year starter at Drake, a 19-7 record his sophomore year marked the best season in program history and he earned three honorable mention all-conference honors and would be named to Drake’s 1960’s all-decade team. Winning a total of 246 games, five sectionals and one regional as a high school head coach, he led Michigan City Rogers from 1971 – 1982, where he coached Indiana Mr. Basketballs Dan Palombizio and Delray Brooks, followed by stints at Eastern Greene, Mississinewa and Muncie South high schools. He also served five seasons as an assistant coach at Ball State University. Retired, he lives in Muncie.

A prolific scorer, Willie Humes is the leading scorer from Madison’s first family of basketball. A four-year starter on four sectional championship teams, Humes graduated as the Cubs’ 2^nd all-time leading scorer with 1,876 career points – the most of the five Humes brothers who have combined for over 6,000 points in a Madison jersey. Setting and breaking his own single-game scoring records, he still holds Madison’s single-game scoring record of 53 points. An All-American at Vincennes University, he scored 1,218 points in his two seasons there, setting their single-season scoring average record (25.5 ppg) before heading to Idaho State University.

Scoring a school record 51 points in his first game at Idaho State (ranked one of the top moments in Big Sky Conference history), Humes would amass 1,510 points in two seasons, as the 5^th leading scorer in the nation in 1969-70 (30.5 ppg) and 3^rd leading scorer in the country the following season (32.4 ppg). He still holds eight of the top 11 single-game scoring efforts in Idaho State history, including a record of 53. His 31.5 ppg career average at Idaho State remains the 10^th highest career average in NCAA Division I history and is the 2^nd highest two-year Division I career average. He was drafted in 1971 by the NBA Atlanta Hawks and ABA Utah Stars. A longtime Indiana high school girls basketball coach, he is in his 12^th season as an assistant with the Columbus East girls program, spent three years as an assistant with the Columbus East boys and spent three seasons as head coach of the Madison girls from 2011-2014 with a 53-16 record with two sectional and one regional championships. He resides in Elizabethtown, near Columbus. He will join his brother Larry (inducted in 1991) as one of a limited number of sets of brothers inducted in the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

Brad Miley set IHSAA basketball records as a revered rebounder en route to an appearance in the NCAA Final Four. A member of Rushville’s 26-2 1976 state runner-up squad under Hall of Fame coach Larry Angle, he remains the school’s single-season rebounding leader with 394 rebounds in 28 games (14.1 rpg). He added his name to the IHSAA record book with a state finals record 29 rebounds in the Lions’ come-from-behind semi-final game against East Chicago Washington and followed it up with a state championship game record 21 rebounds in the loss to Marion. His total of 50 rebounds surpassed the previous single-class state finals record of 42 and he was named a 1976 Indiana All-Star. A four-year career at Indiana State University included a starting role for the 1979 NCAA national runner-up Sycamores, starting all 34 games that season averaging 5.7 points and 6.0 rebounds. Totaling 627 rebounds in his college career, he graduated as Indiana State’s 6^th all-time leading rebounder and 2^nd in games played (120). He played professionally for three seasons in Iceland and one year in Australia. Employed in sales, he resides in Terre Haute.

Terry Stillabower helped guide Lafayette Jeff to a 1963 state finals appearance and their 1964 state championship victory. A two-year starter under Hall of Fame coach Marion Crawley, he was an all-sectional, all-regional and all-semi-state selection before injuring his knee in the opening moments of the 1963 state finals in the Bronchos’ two-point loss to eventual state champion Muncie Central. Returning to average 16.8 points and 7.0 rebounds his senior season, Stillabower scored 20 or more points eight times, including 23 in an afternoon state finals win over Evansville Rex Mundi. Named to the 1964 Indiana All-Star squad, he led the team in scoring over two games versus Kentucky. A leading scorer for two seasons at Tyler Junior College on their National Tournament team and later an inductee in their Sports Circle of Honor, he finished his career at Ball State University, where he still holds the program record with 20 field goals made in one game. He is a business development manager with LW Survey and resides in Katy, Texas.

Joe Todrank left a lasting impact on Southern Indiana basketball as a player and coach, starting as a player at Holland High School. As a three-year starter for the Dutchmen, he led the school of approximately 75 students to a 50-16 record, including a win over 3^rd ranked and state championship contender Jasper as part of a 22-2 junior campaign and averaged 18.1 points as a senior for a 17-4 squad. Moving on to Oakland City College, he played his way to Little All-American honors, totaling 1,079 points over three seasons and helping the Oaks to the NAIA National Finals with a 19-6 record his senior year. He graduated as the school’s 2^nd all-time leading scorer and their 65-29 record during his career was the best in school history. Amassing 295 wins in 21 seasons as a small school head coach at Monroe City, Barr-Reeve, Holland, and Southridge, he led his first team at Monroe City to a 25-3 record and runner-up finish in the 83-team 1963 Wabash Valley Tournament. He was the coach of his alma mater, Holland, in the school’s final year of existence and the first coach in the history of Southridge following the consolidation of Huntingburg and Holland. Spending 14 seasons at Barr-Reeve in two stints, he won 196 games there including a 1980 Washington sectional championship. Following 15 years as the Activities Coordinator for the schools of Cody, Wyoming, he now resides in retirement in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Charles “Butch” Wade starred under Hall of Fame coach Bill Stearman as a captain and co-MVP on one of Columbus’ greatest teams before a record-breaking career at Indiana State University. Wade Averaged 19.1 points and a team-high 10.5 rebounds on the Bull Dogs’ undefeated and #1 ranked 1962-63 team that advanced to the semi-state before a loss to eventual state champion Muncie Central. He becomes the 4^th player from that team to be inducted in the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, joining classmate Bill Russell and teammates Jerry Newsom and Steve Hollenbeck, as well as their coach, Stearman.

Under Hall of Fame coach Duane Klueh at Indiana State, Wade left his mark. Averaging more than 20 points in each of his three varsity seasons, the three-time team MVP and three-time All-American graduated as the Sycamores’ all-time leading scorer (1,672 points), career rebounds leader (540), and record holder in career field goals (610), free throws (422) and single-game scoring record holder in points (43). Helping ISU teams twice to National Tournament appearances and national rankings, he was drafted by the NBA New York Knicks and ABA Oakland Oaks. He was named to Indiana State’s 1960’s all-decade team and in 1998 was named one of 12 players to ISU’s all-century team. Employed with Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation as a health and PE teacher from 1985-2005, Wade spent 10 years as a varsity assistant coach at Columbus North, two years as girls varsity coach at Columbus North and 16 years as a coach at Central Middle School in Columbus. Retired, he lives in Columbus.

The recipient of this year’s Indiana Pacers Silver Medal award, which includes Hall of Fame induction, is longtime Evansville broadcaster Mike Blake. On air with 14WFIE-TV since 1970, Mike has won numerous awards for his coverage and support of high school sports including Associated Press awards for sports coverage and sports play-by-play in five different decades. Hosting and producing Friday night high school sports coverage, he has also served as a sports reporter, sports anchor and sports director at the station. A 2006 inductee into the National Television Academy of Arts & Sciences Silver Circle, he received the Indiana Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association Distinguished Service Award in 1989 and the IHSAA Distinguished Media Service Award in 1998. His community and charity involvement includes a long-running relationship supporting and hosting over 40 Muscular Distrophy telethons, as well as United Way, March of Dimes, Ronald McDonald House and Little Sisters of the Poor. A graduate of Mt. Carmel High School in Chicago, he holds degrees from Loras College and the University of Iowa. He resides in Evansville.

Bill Diddel receives the Centennial Award, created to recognize those who contributed to Indiana high school basketball more than 100 years ago. A forward at Indianapolis Manual High School seven years before an organized state tournament, Diddel helped their 1903-04 team to success leading the school yearbook to note “eminently qualified to be high school champion of Indiana and Ohio, having beaten Piqua, Ohio (the Ohio state champion).” That squad also defeated Butler multiple times and ended their season with a 26-1 victory over Louisville (KY) Male High School. A two-time all-state player at Wabash College, Diddel was named all-Western Team in 1908 and named the best basketball player in the United States in a poll of sportswriters. Wabash teams were 56-3 during his career. Spending brief stints as athletic director and basketball coach at Wabash, he gained prominence as a nationally renowned golf course architect, designing nearly 300 courses across the country, including Northwood Club in Dallas, Texas, which hosted the 1952 U.S. Open. A five-time Indiana State Golf Amateur Champion, he died in 1985 just shy of his 101^st birthday.

The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame’s 55^th annual Mens’ Awards Banquet will be held on Wednesday, March 23, 2016. The day’s events will include a reception at the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame museum that afternoon with a banquet that evening at the Primo Banquet Hall in Indianapolis.

Reservations are available online now or through mail order in early 2016.  Call the Hall at 765-529-1891 or visit www.hoopshall.com for more information or email info@hoopshall.com. You may purchase a congratulatory ad for an inductee or honoree either online or through the mail.