Indiana Vs. Kentucky All-Stars June 17 & 24;
Former All-Stars To Be Honored In Years Ending In '6'
With the 50th and 30th anniversaries of two Indiana basketball icons Mr. Basketball Oscar Robertson and Miss Basketball Judi Warren, respectively, the 2006 Indiana-Kentucky All-Star series offers a tasty mix of nostalgia and extreme anticipation.
Obviously a very, very strong candidate for this year's Mr. Basketball (the team won't be announced until April 26), Lawrence North's Greg Oden would bring with him designation as the nation's top senior player and winner already of numerous accolades and national TV exposure.
Indiana's boys and girls will meet their Kentucky counterparts on Western Kentucky University's homecourt in Bowling Green on June 17. The action will return to Conseco Fieldhouse Saturday, June 24.
Because of the likelihood of Oden and what critics say will be among the best of Indiana's boys and girls squads this year, officials at The Indianapolis Star---game sponsors since 1939---anticipate one of the largest crowds at Conseco Fieldhouse in the past 10 years.
Leading to the expectation that 2006 will also be a very good year for charities that benefit from the Star's All-Star sponsorship is the fact that again this year the two Indiana All-Star teams will play three exhibition games at different sites against what's expected to be an exceptional Indiana Junior All-Star teams.
Sites for the exhibition games have not yet been determined, according to Indiana Game Director Patrick Aikman. If the past provides a clue, however, they will be played in communities that produce senior or junior All-Stars. Usually, according to Aikman, communities and schools that want to host the exhibitions contact him to express their interest.
There definitely will be 24 junior girls and 24 junior boys selected for these events by their respective coaching committees. Six "core" players will be selected for the boys team and six for the girls team. These players will appear in all three exhibition matchups. Furthermore, there'll be six boys and six girls selected from generally the north, central and south parts of the state to join the core groups. "Our object will be to select the best 48 juniors in the state as the top priority, with their geographic origin a secondary consideration," Aikman pointed out. "We don't want to put geography considerations ahead of selecting the best players in the state, but we will look at where players come from but it just won't be the paramount deciding factor."
The exhibition games, wherever they are played, will probably be scheduled on June 14, June 20 and June 22.
"Alumni" All-Stars from the years 1946, 1956, 1966, 1976, 1986 and 1996 will be honored at a reception at Conseco Fieldhouse June 24 and will be introduced during the Indiana-Kentucky games. The Star is already seeking information on addresses for those former All-Stars it expects to honor this summer.
Splitting the series last year with Kentucky, Indiana leads the girls series, 32-28, after winning 21 of the last 28 games with the Bluegrass girls. The Indiana boys hold a commanding 75-41 edge in the series. The Indiana boys swept last year's games, wining by double digits in both states.
The Indiana girls coaches will be announced March 5 followed by an announcement of the boys coaches a week later. Miss Basketball and Mr. Basketball will be announced on March 19 and April 9, respectively. The girls team will be announced March 26 and the boys team on April 26. Ballots for the girls All-Star team went out Feb. 21. Ballots for the boys team were scheduled to go out March 13. If you are an eligible voter (boys or girls head coach or a member of the media) may request a ballot if you did not receive on via e-mail. Call 317-444-7322.
For tickets to the June 24 games with Kentucky, call TicketMaster (317-239-5151) after April 1.
