Butler's Big Dance: The Team, the Tournament, and Basketball Fever

by Susan S. Neville, Bobby Fong (Foreword)

The Butler Bulldogs advanced to the NCAA National Championship basketball game against Duke University upon defeating Michigan State on April 3, 2010. With only 4,500 students, Butler was the smallest school to play for a national championship since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985. Coached by Brad Stevens―just three years into his position as head basketball coach―the undefeated Bulldogs were a hometown team, playing before a hometown crowd on the national stage. Two days later, Butler lost narrowly to Duke, 61–59, but their run for the championship had become a national phenomenon. From her vantage point as a Butler professor, acclaimed writer Susan Neville observed (and participated in) Hoosier Hysteria firsthand. In Butler's Big Dance, she intertwines her recollections of the events with interviews, anecdotes, and photographs to bring readers a taste of the on-campus and courtside excitement of the Bulldogs' David-and-Goliath bid for the national title.

128 pages, Paperback

First published November 21, 2010

Reviews

[Marcy]

I enjoyed reading this one. It allowed me to relive the tourney of 2010 a bit. And I will probably never tire of hearing the stories of the experiences of Butler students, alum, faculty, staff, family, friends, etc. from March and April of that year. "Surreal" was a word tossed around a lot, but I'm going to throw in my votes for words like "phenomenal," "energized," "amazing," and "intense."

And, apparently, "epic." :)

[Jamie]

Indiana, basketball and community and why all three seem to go so well together.