Column: Through the best and worst of times

$960. That is the amount I spent for four years of student tickets for Indiana men’s basketball games.

The seniors who spent that much through their four years are part of a distinctive
group. They are those willing to believe in an idea.

We had no idea when that idea, later named “The Movement,” would come to fruition, but we were willing to wait.

I can only assume that, coming into this season, those who had tickets for four years were part of a smaller number than in the past. These people, including myself, saw something in Assembly Hall through those years that no one had.

Purchasing those tickets freshman year was one of the best decisions I ever made.

I shared in something that has never happened before. I saw a historic program do something no one thought they could: return to greatness.

Those tickets came with some memories that won’t be on the highlight reel, but that I, and many others, probably won’t forget.

It was the time in 2008 when IU beat IU-Purdue University Indianapolis with a last-second free throw by guard Daniel Moore.

After that game, IU Coach Tom Crean grabbed the microphone from announcer Chuck Crabb and thanked the half-empty Assembly Hall.

He thanked us for staying and cheering. That was the first time I felt like a Hoosier. It was the time we finished the same season with only one win in the final 21 games.

It was the time we all chose to buy tickets for a second season when everyone else said they were a waste of money.

It was the time I got to sit in the front row for the Maryland game in the 2009-10 season. It was the atmosphere that reminded me why I was willing to wait.

It was the confusion when a small amount of students rushed the court after the win against Minnesota that year.

As some students were on the court, many of us in our seats wondered if this could be as good as it would get for us.

It was buying tickets for a third season with the promise that help was on its way.
It was when we finally beat a ranked opponent at Assembly Hall with a win against Illinois. This time, when students rushed the floor, I was right there with them.

Who could blame us? It was the win we had hoped for after three years of frustration.

It was the crowd that ensued in the stairwells and ramps of Assembly Hall after that same win. As Crean moved through the building thanking everyone, we followed him knowing we wouldn’t want to forget this.

It was when my ticket group decided to camp out for a sub-.500 team for 36 hours before the Purdue game. We knew there wouldn’t be a ton of people in line, but we wanted to start something. We wanted to be the first campers for seats, and we were.

Accomplishing that meant everything.

It was buying tickets for this season. For the first time, I wasn’t called crazy. Other people actually wanted to get tickets and wanted to know who I was sitting with. I told them the same people I experienced everything IU basketball with for the past three years.

People remember everything that happened this season. People were finally back in Assembly Hall the way they were supposed to be. There is still that special group, though, those that gave four years watching the team through the good and bad.

As I sat behind the basket with my group after Sunday’s game, we stared out onto the court. We knew what it was like to sit in those seats when no one was cheering or smiling.
The change in Assembly Hall from 2008 to today was something that cannot be described. For those who experienced it, we will never forget it.