INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments feature representatives from every Division I-A conference. The Horizon League's champions clinched their spots in the Field of 68 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.
The Horizon League tournaments wrapped up inside the Corteva Coliseum on Tuesday. Green Bay played Purdue-Fort Wayne for the women's title, and Youngstown State matched up against Robert Morris for the men's championship.
Fans of the final teams made their way to Indianapolis for the chance to watch them capture Horizon League glory.
"The passion is more homegrown with mid-majors." said Green Bay fan Jamie Seidl, who has made it to nearly every Horizon League tournament in the past 30 years. "You have the big programs, but it just means more for our level of basketball fans."
"I feel like I'm a bit of a hypeman," said Purdue-Fort Wayne fan Daniel Riecke. "I came out repping my 260 as much as I can, just bringing the energy and sitting courtside."
Green Bay defeated Purdue-Fort Wayne 76-63 to win its second straight Horizon League tournament.
The Youngstown State-Robert Morris matchup starts at 7 p.m. If Youngstown State wins, it would be their first NCAA Division I tournament appearance in school history.
The Horizon League has hosted its tournaments at the State Fairgrounds for the past six years. It not only finishes its basketball season in Indianapolis, the conference itself is headquartered in downtown Indianapolis.
"Indy is a sports city, and we want to be right in the center of that action," said Horizon League commissioner Julie Roe Lach. "I just talked to a gentleman last night who's been here for four years and is from the metro Indy area. He said he's become a Horizon League fan because of the high-quality basketball that he sees."
This March's bracket-buster could come from the Horizon League, and fans in the conference will cheer for their competitors if they make noise on the national stage.
"If I know where the Horizon League ends up in the tournament, I'll root for that," Seidl said. "I'll find it on TV, and that game will be on."
"You may have an opportunity to cheer for big schools like Notre Dame, Purdue, and IU, but the girls here are putting in just as much hard work and attention to detail for their craft," Riecke said.
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