IU Indy tips off NCAA basketball season in front of thousands of third-graders
INDIANAPOLIS — Forget the old acronym: the Jaguars college basketball team now represents IU Indy. They started their first season with their new name in front of a loud and young crowd.
More than 3,000 third-graders went to Indiana Farmers Coliseum on a field trip to watch IU Indy take on IU Columbus. IU Indy athletic director Luke Bosso said the full house of elementary school students could pay off when they start applying to colleges in about a decade.
“People may go to a school because of the academics but they will know about a school because of the athletics,” Bosso said. “We have a great institution that offers a lot of great degrees, and we turn out great quality graduates. We want ten-year-olds to recognize that early. We want them wearing our gear, cheering for the Jags and having a great time.”
The game also tied into NCAA’s Readers Become Leaders program, which aims to improve childhood literacy.
Holy Spirit Catholic School principal Gina Fleming hopes the kids bring the same energy to reading that they had while watching IU Indy basketball.
“We as educators need to capitalize on this energy and enthusiasm and take it back to our buildings so students see that anything is possible,” Fleming said. “What’s important is that they start to own their own learning and that the children recognize they can pursue all of their interests through books.”
IU Indy handily defeated IU Columbus, 100-44.
