Indiana men’s basketball will honor former player Bill Garrett in its regular season opener against Florida Gulf Coast University on Nov. 7, it announced in a press release. Dubbed the "Bill Garrett Game," it will celebrate 75 years since Garrett broke the unofficial color barrier in Big Ten basketball.
Garrett’s trailblazing moment first occurred Dec. 4, 1948, Indiana’s season opener in which Garrett was the first Black player to start for a Big Ten team. Indiana will provide specialty game programs replicating those of the 1948-49 season.
Garrett played three seasons with the Hoosiers, compiling a 50-13 record highlighted by a 19-3 campaign in 1950-51 when Indiana peaked at No. 7 in the final AP Poll. That season, Garrett was recognized as a consensus All-American, the All-Big Ten First Team and voted most valuable player by his teammates.
His 792 points at the time of his graduation were the program record. He then became the third Black player ever drafted to the NBA. The Boston Celtics selected him in the second round of the 1951 NBA Draft.
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