I am going to do one more blog about college basketball before I start concentrating on the real sport, America's Pasttime, baseball.  As most of you know, Butler has made the championship game the past two seasons.  But, what most of you don't know much about is where Butler University plays their home games at.  So, I am going to give you a bit of a history lesson.  But before I do, I'd like to propose something I think would be absolutely amazing for college basketball.  Most of you know of my dislike and anamosity towards the Kansas Jayhawks, and their home arena, Allen Fieldhouse.  But, I would love to see the University of Kansas, and Butler university play a home and home series.  Most peole wouldn't even give this a second look.  Butler and KU, whoop-d-do.  Just another non-conference game, right??  That very well may be, but what would make this such a good and intriguing matchup has nothing to do with the teams and their recent success.  Brad Stevens has put Butler on the map with consecutive appearances in the title game, and KU is a perennial contender.  But what would make this such an amazing series is the venues they call home.  Most of you know of the history and lure of Allen Fieldhouse, from the "Rock Chock, Jayhawk" chant at the end of games, to the banner reading "Pay Heed, All Who Enter.  Beware the Phog."  Not to mention the court named after the inventor of basketball, and Kansas' first coach, Dr. James Naismith.  The building is names after their legendary coach of 39 years, Dr. Forrest C. (Phog) Allen.  I have never personally attended a game their, and honestly don't care to.  I can't stand to hear that chant on TV, so I really don't want to hear it in person.  But to KU fans and impartial fans, it's one of the greatest feelings to be around.  It is one of the most historic venues in college basketball.
But there is one arena that tops it, and that's Hinkle Fieldhouse, home of the Butler Bulldogs.  There is so much history in this arena I can't fit it all into one blog.  It doesn't get the attention of Allen Fieldhouse because Butler is a smaller school in the Horizon League.  "Butler Fieldhouse" as it was called in the beginning opened in 1928.  It was renamed in 1966 to honor long time coach, Paul D. "Tony" Hinkle who coached at Butler for 41 seasons.  When it opened the court ran east to west, but in 1933 they reconfigured it to run north to south because most of the seats were on the ends of the floor.  So the floor was placed at a 90 degree angle to the "arch" of the roof.  Another way to describe it would be looking across the arena with arches of the roof, and the court going from side to side.  It's a little odd looking at first, they pull it off.  It hosted the Indiana state basketball tournament from 1928 to 1971, including the "Milan Miracle."  I'm sure most of you have seen the movie "Hoosiers."  In that era, Indiana only had one state tournament for every school in Indiana.  So, a small school with an enrollment of less than a hundred students had to play against the much larger powerhouses in the same tournament.  In lamen's terms, it was David v Goliath.  And in the case, David beat all odds and the "Goliaths" and won the state tournament.  So, it was host to one of the greatest underdog basketball achievements all time.  The tournament scenes of the movie "Hoosiers" were also filmed at Hinkle.  It was featured in a documentary on ESPN in 2006 entitled, "Indiana's Basketball Cathedral."  In 1983 it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and in '87 was designated as a National Historic Landmark for it's role in college basketball.  The Indiana Pacers use it as their practice facility, and along that note it was the inspiration for Conseco Fieldhouse, where the Pacers call home.  It's also been the host of many other sporting events, including olympic basketball trials, and the first USSR v USA basketball game, as well as hosting US Presidents.  This venue has contibuted a lot for the history of basketball.
Those that know me know that I have two big passions, history and sports.  These two historic arenas give a person like me the best of both worlds.  I've always been interested in historic sports venues.  Some, like Ebbott's field in Brooklyn, and the Polo Grounds in Washington Heights (NY) are long gone, and some, like (old) Yankee stadium more recently.  Some, such as Fenway Park, Wrigley Field, Lambeau Field, and Soldier Field.  I wish I had the opportunity to attend a game at the venues I mentioned that have been raized, and hope that I get an opportunity to visit the ones that are still with us.  Well, to see these two teams match up at both venues would be the event of a lifetime.  The storyline for this matchup would feature the venues more than the teams.  But with Butler's recent rise to prominence would surely make it a good and entertaining game as well.  I for one would LOVE to see it, even if it means listening to that god-awful chant at Allen Fieldhouse.  It would be the event of a lifetime for an enthusiast like me.