On February 19, 1897, the first intercollegiate basketball game in Indiana was played at the YMCA in downtown Crawfordsville.
Wabash defeated Purdue 23–13.
How did it come to pass that Wabash hosted this contest?
Basketball was brought to the Midwest by Rev. Nicholas C. McCay, a student of Dr. James Naismith at YMCA Training School—now Springfield (Massachusetts) College. After graduating in 1890, McCay came to Crawfordsville to serve as general secretary and physical director at the newly erected Y. Shortly after the invention of basketball by Dr. Naismith in 1891, McCay introduced the sport to Crawfordsville, which quickly embraced the new game. In the 1890s Wabash had no gymnasium, so its home contests were played at the local YMCA.
During its first five years, “basket-ball” was quite different from today’s game. There were nine men on a side, and the players were not permitted to move with the ball. Young Ward “Piggy” Lambert ’11, who would later star at Wabash and coach many Big Ten championship teams at Purdue, had the honor of poking the ball out of the basket after each score. In 1896 the number of players
was reduced to five per side, dribbling was introduced, and the bottom was cut out of the basket.
Fast-forward 100 years. Before the varsity contest against Manchester on February 8, 1997, teams of alumni from Purdue and Wabash played a game commemorating the centennial of that original contest. With time running out, the Little Giants trailed 86 to 83. The final moments of the game are described in the Spring 1997 edition of Wabash Magazine:
“Jack Roudebush ’74 took the pass, squared up, and promptly drained a clutch three-pointer to knot the score as the clock expired. No overtime would be played on this day, and both alumni associations were proud of the 86–86 score in a game about good will and memories.”
David Phillips H’83 is professor emeritus of chemistry at Wabash.