We argue this constantly, but love it or hate it class basketball facts are out there. Attendance is down over 75%. The IHSAA has not sold out the state finals consistently and as a generalized statement, communities just don't care as much as they used to about HS basketball. You can say that "in your town" or "at my high school" basketball is still popular and we sell out, or we would have a full house. But regardless of all that, HS basketball in Indiana was ruined with the creation of Class basketball in my estimation. I killed most local rivalries, it created idiotic drives for schools to have to make, it disinterested most fans, it frustrated and ultimately lead to national networks such as ESPN not carrying the state finals as they did for many years, it has lead to an amazing shortfall in funds within athletic deptments at many schools (because they are not selling tickets and merch).
You can argue that it is more fair, you can argue that is ideal, etc. etc. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH! Class basketball sucks! It always will! Just like Class Football sucks and Class anything else sucks! It is a result of the over concern of HS administrators to be concerned about feelings and emotional matters, rather than understanding that a school like Western Boone playing a school like Ben Davis teaches a great deal of to both schools. If WEBO gets their butt kicked the players learn a lesson...if WEBO wins the Giants of BD learn something. But either way, the experience is valid and important to development. This is not to say that if WEBO only played similar sized schools they woudn't learn the same lesson, but IMHO it isn't the same lesson. In other words, sometimes the big guy needs to kick the little guys ass so the little guy learns a lesson and sometimes the big guy needs to get their ass kicked by the little guy. Basketball allows that to happen (at least it did back when it was allowed to happen that way). Now it doesn't...because only similar sized schools play each other. It makes it boring!!
Going out on a limb here but isn't it a Communist concept to make sure that everythign is fair and even? Life isn't fair or even, yet we want to teach our kids through sports that things are fair and even? Utterly ridiculous! The concept of parody for HS's is beyond stupid. There is no such thing as parody. THE IHSAA is a political organization by design and they politically created somethign that they know is causing them problems and is not the best things for the student athletes, the fans and the sport itself...but they are too busy listening to supposed "studies" and propoganda about the effects of everything from the internet to a student reading Harry Potter books...waste of time and effort. here is the reality, student athelets playing in a dog eat dog, best team is the champion tournament teaches a much, much more important life lesson than simply printing 4 state champ trophies does. Current national adminstration's answer to everything is to print more money and look where we are now....IHSAA's answer to everything....make more trophies and forget about history, forget about the importance of tradition, blow off the important lessons that can be learned by watering down those lessons, and so many other issues. If you hadn't figured it out yet...I HATE CLASS BASKETBALL!!
CLASS BASKETBALL SUCKS!!!! IT WILL ALWAYS SUCK!!!