OG Anunoby becomes second former Indiana University Basketball Player to win multiple NBA titles For the second time in his NBA career, OG Anunoby is a champion. He joins IU basketball legend Isiah Thomas as the second former Hoosier to win multiple NBA titles. “It’s very special. It’s what we’ve been working for the whole season. This was our dream, this was our goal, and we did it,” Anunoby said during the trophy presentation after the New York Knicks beat San Antonio 94-90 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals to clinch the series 4-1.
The second title has to be much sweeter for Anunoby, who did not play in the postseason with Toronto in 2019 after having an appendectomy in April of that year. This year, the 28-year-old averaged 21.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, 1.4 steals and 1.0 assists while shooting 52.5% overall and 50% from three in the Finals. He hit the game-winning shot as part of a 33-point effort in Game Four. Anunoby took a photo with his Indiana coach Tom Crean after the game.
Overall, eight former IU players have won NBA titles. Here is the full list of former IU basketball players who have won championship rings: Herm Schaefer (’49-50) Dick Farley (’54-55) Jon McGlocklin (’70-71) Steve Downing (’73-74) Quinn Buckner (’83-84) Isiah Thomas (’88-89) Isiah Thomas (’89-90) OG Anunoby (’18-19) Thomas Bryant (’22-23) OG Anunoby (’25-26)
Indiana University Football lands 2027 cornerback Chris Bradley Class of 2027 cornerback Chris Bradley has committed to Indiana football, he announced Sunday afternoon. Bradley took an official visit to IU this weekend. The West Chester, Ohio native is rated a three-star recruit by 247Sports Composite. Bradley is ranked the No. 42 overall prospect in the class out of Ohio, and the No. 106 cornerback in the class. Bradley checks in at 5-foot-10 and 150 pounds. He chose the Hoosiers over Wisconsin, James Madison, and Temple, per Rivals and On3. His other offers included Wake Forest, Miami (OH), Ohio, Kent State, and Toledo. Bradley is the 12th commit of the class of 2027 for IU. He’s the first cornerback of that group and the third defensive back. Per 247Sports, Bradley finished his junior year at North College Hill with 28 tackles, two tackles for loss, and six interceptions. He also runs sprints for his school’s track and field team. Bradley reports a 4.37 40-yard spring time and a 10.71 in the 100-meters.
Bloomington South Baseball Headed to the State Championship Game for the First Time Bloomington South’s seniors have been waiting four long years for this moment. Head coach Phil Kluesner has waited since he took over the Panthers’ program in 2019. For some, since 1984. For many more, all the way back to 1972. The wait is over. For the first time in 54 years, South is playing for a baseball state championship. And what a, well, not perfect, let’s say ‘appropriate’ manner is more like it. The No. 10 Panthers were no-hit, but found a way with pitching, defense and taking advantage of a big mistake in a 1-0 win over No. 3 Evansville North in the IHSAA Class 4A semi-state championship game at the University of Evansville’s Braun Stadium on a muggy, sometimes rainy Saturday night.
This is a team that had to grit its teeth through an eight-inning win over rival North for a sectional, through a 13-inning epic over Columbus North for the regional and a through a 4-1 win over stubborn North Central in the semifinals earlier Saturday. For some Panthers, it was still sinking in. “The coaches have been telling us for forever, three or four years now, this is the group to do it,” said South senior Connor Couch, who scored the winning run. “Yeah, it’s just unreal.”
“It means the world,” winning pitcher Xavier Hemingway added. “Our coaches are telling us, this is the best team they’ve ever had. They made it to semi-state finals two times. So, third time’s a charm.” His coach was on the same wavelength. The Panthers (25-6) will play 2024 champ Lake Central (27-8) for the 4A state title on Saturday at 8 p.m. at Victory Field in Indianapolis. “It’s awesome,” South coach Phil Kluesner said. “We ain’t done yet, man. We’re looking to win the whole thing. But this is pretty awesome. Third time’s a charm I guess.”
The pitching was excellent all day for the Panthers, giving up just one earned run in 14 innings. Couch took care North Central for 5⅔ to get his fourth win of the postseason, with Tyler Morris getting the save in a 4-1 win in the opener. Then it was Hemingway, bulldog for 6⅓ until a blister popped on a finger of his pitching hand. He wasn’t ready to come out, but the bleeding wouldn’t stop. “I had another five pitches,” Hemingway said. “If I could have, I would have stayed in there for those last five.” Hemingway was ready for the moment. He gave up just three of North’s four hits and struck out seven. “He’s been in those pressure situations pretty much his entire career with us since he was a sophomore,” Kluesner said. “Age and experience does that for you. He doesn’t get fazed. A lot of kids would say, ‘Oh, crap.’ He’s tough.”
Hemingway started off with three out in just four pitches but then has to sit through a 45-minute rain delay in the second inning. He gave up back-to-back hits coming out of it, but on the last, Jonathan Winstead gunned down a runner from center trying to score, fortuitously keeping it 0-0. He worked around a walk and an error in the third, a single and walk in the fourth and an error in the sixth. “I’ve been in situations like that all year,” Hemingway said. “That’s what the entire year is for, preparing for this game. Obviously, your heart races a little bit more, but it wasn’t too big of a moment.”
Instead, Kluesner had to turn to shortstop Reid Walker again. Walker closed out the win over Columbus North and would do it again, thought it got interesting real quick. A walk, a strikeout and an infield hit loaded the bases before a lazy fly to left sent the Panthers into hysterics. “It’s pitching and defense,” Kluesner said. “Pitching and defense wins championships. I know we made a couple errors, but when you’ve got Xavier on the mound making pitches like that, it kind of diluted the errors. “I got a little nervous when I had to take Xavier out, but dang, Reid, he’s got ice-water in his veins.”
Evansville North, last year’s state runners-up, were coming off their own gutsy win, 2-0, over Center Grove. Junior AJ Baggett, a tough junior lefty with great command and an Indiana commit, was the pitcher South would have to figure out. The Panthers did hit the ball hard, but never found any gaps. The only recourse was to manufacture something, and that they did. The first two batters in the bottom of the fourth struck out as it looked like Baggett was going to keep cruising. But Connor Couch dug in and earned a walk. “That was a long at-bat,” Couch said. “I had to earn that walk. But I think I knew we just needed a spark because the last two outs were quick. I just knew I needed to fight and keep fighting. “And I was just on first base and then Drew hit a little ground ball, and it just magically worked out.” Drew Palileo sent a routine grounder to third, but the throw was low and got away. Couch got on his horse and sped all the way around, sliding in safely without a play. “So good,” Couch said of the feeling. “I think this is the hardest game anyone of us has ever played. Just that one run, so much relief.” “I’ve never seen him run that fast in my life,” Hemingway joked. That was it. South’s only base runners came on four walks against Baggett and sophomore reliever Carson Frome. “We saw (Baggett) before,” Couch said. “We were hitting him hard, but it just wasn’t landing. But I think we knew we had it.” “We knew we had everything cut out for us, with the crowd, and they lived up to it,” Kluesner added. “We were just able to scratch a mistake across and they didn’t, so that’s kind of the difference there.”
After Evansville North tripped up No. 1 Center Grove, South went to work. The opener was a grinder offensively, but the pitching was up to the task. “That’s what it’s felt like these past couple of games,” McCammon said. “But we got the job done. It’s about being consistent; I feel like that’s what helped us a lot with this team. Just swinging at good pitches and being aggressive at the plate helps a lot.” The Panthers created plenty of havoc and traffic on the basepaths right off the bat as North Central (21-7) committed three errors in the first two innings. South had nine hits but also had eight flyouts. Palileo made 1-0 in the second when he had a leadoff single, went to second on a sac bunt and scooted to third when the NC first baseman decided to throw to second, despite the fact Palileo was standing calmly on the bag. The high throw let him advance to third, where he scored on a Boston Held base hit. “It got us some momentum,” McCammon said. Couch worked out of a two-out jam in the bottom of the third and then South put up two more runs in the top of the fourth. McCammon singled and courtesy runner Collin Marcum stole second. Held singled to put runners at the corners and then stole second. Winstead’s sacrifice fly to center made it 2-0, After a two-out walk, Max Surdam’s RBI single pushed the lead to 3-0 and that chased NC sophomore starter Cy Street. North Central was limited to five hits and struck out six times, including the game clincher by Tyler Morris.
Dennis Reinbold founder of IndyCar team Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Passes Away at Age 65 Dennis Reinbold, the founder of the IndyCar team Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, died Saturday at the age of 65, the team announced. Reinbold founded the team in 1999 and began competing in the Indy Racing League in the year 2000, winning their first-ever race at Walt Disney World Speedway with driver Robbie Buhl. “Dennis treated each of us as family, and family was his highest priority. We are determined to carry on his legacy of excellence with the dealerships,” said Brian Gauker, General Manager of the Dreyer & Reinbold dealerships. In addition to his IndyCar team, Reinbold also owned the Dreyer & Reinbold car dealerships in Indianapolis and Greenwood. “Dennis’ passion for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway—its history and the pursuit of an Indy 500 win—drove him every day,” said Brett De Bord, the Chief Commercial Officer of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.
Reinbold entered 53 cars at the Indianapolis 500 since the team’s founding, including the most recent race last month in which drivers Conor Daly and Jack Harvey finished 12th and 22nd, respectively. The team competed full-time in IndyCar from 2000 until 2012. Beginning in 2013, the team became a part-time, Indianapolis 500-only team. Driver Oriol Servia scored the team’s best Indy 500 finish in 2012 when the Spaniard finished fourth. “We will work tirelessly to carry his legacy with the same inspiration and pursuit of excellence that he modeled every day of his life, which includes winning the Indianapolis 500,” De Bord said. “Now we have an even greater purpose; upholding and carrying forward the legacy of a man that meant so much to so many of us. When we do cross that finish line, we will know he was with us every step of the way and taught us how to get there.” Memorial services are pending, according to a team statement.
Sophie Cunningham and Caitlin Clark lead the Indiana Fever past the Connecticut Sun 85-75 Sophie Cunningham hit three 3-pointers and scored the final 11 points for Indiana, helping the Fever beat the Connecticut Sun 85-75 on Saturday night to improve to 4-1 in Commissioner’s Cup play. Caitlin Clark had 25 points and five assists as Indiana (8-5) closed within a half-game of East-leading New York in Cup play, with the top teams in each conference playing for the title June 30. Clark made her fifth 3-pointer — following an offensive foul on Brittney Griner — for a 72-65 lead with 5:22 left to play.
Saniya Rivers and Griner had back-to-back baskets and Kennedy Burke hit a free throw after Clark was called for a technical foul to cut it to 74-72 with 2:30 remaining. Cunningham, who subbed in with 3:56 left, grabbed a missed shot by Rivers following the technical, then hit two straight from distance for her first points of the game. She drove for a layup to put the Fever up 82-72 and hit another 3 with 23 seconds left to finish off a personal game-ending 11-3 run. Kelsey Mitchell added 19 points and five assists for Indiana, which has won three in a row for the second time this season. Aliyah Boston had 13 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. Olivia Nelson-Ododa finished with 12 points and seven rebounds off the bench to pace the Sun (2-13). They have lost five in a row and are 0-5 in the tournament. Indiana Hosts the Toronto Tempo Tuesday Night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
USA Water Polo makes a splash in Indianapolis to grow the sport in the Midwest Combine soccer and basketball in a pool and it gives you water polo. Teams from across the Midwest, including Chicago, St. Louis, Cincinnati and Michigan, competed in Indianapolis this weekend for the first ever USA Water Polo Midwest Summer Festival in an effort to grow the sport in the region. “Indianapolis is a perfect place for this,” Coach Rob Peglar said. He signed up his St. Louis team as soon as he learned about the tournament in Indianapolis. “It’s such a great swimming community and the pools and just the aquatic, you know, infrastructure lends itself, and water polo is a very fast-growing sport all across the country,” Peglar said.
USA Water Polo invited anyone to watch the U18, U16 and U14 boys’ and girls’ teams play and expose more people to the game. “Like lacrosse, for example, been growing here in the Midwest, and swimming is already very well established, but the chance to do something new and apply skills to a great team sport that’s actually very unique,” Peglar said. Both of Scott Rogles’s daughters play water polo. “My older one involved who was swimming and then kind of just introduced water polo to her and then she just kind of fell in love with it,” Peglar said.
USA Water Polo Sport Growth Manager Nicole Bacoyanis said people can enjoy the sport more than every four years. “You watch it in the Olympics, and it kind of goes away,” Bacoyanis said. USA Water Polo is starting to bring new clubs and more tournaments to a state with a deep swimming history. “Amazing pools all around the Indianapolis area. A really awesome established swimming program. There is a lot of really great athletes and we see a lot of potential,” said Bacoyanis. Bacoyanis explained the sport creates strong skills important for children. “Swimming is a lifesaving skill, and that’s kind of our number one thing is you know if we can get kids in the water, it’s hard to get them out,” Bacoyanis said. “Given Indy’s tradition of swimming; I think it’d be great to have Indianapolis be a hub for water polo as well,” said Peglar. That’s why they’re testing the waters to grow the game in a city that celebrates sports on the track, court, pitch and pool.
Indianapolis Indians lose in 12 Innings to Split the Six Game Series with the Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers outlasted the Indianapolis Indians, 4-3, in 12 innings on Sunday afternoon at Victory Field. The Indians loaded the bases in extra innings but could not capitalize. Thomas Harrington (L, 0-5) entered in the 10th inning and kept the Indians (28-41) in the game, allowing no hits to the 11 batters he faced, but a sac bunt moved the automatic runner over to third base in the 12th inning. Cooper Ingle decided the game with a sac fly to score the winning run for Columbus (38-30), 4-3. The Indians trailed 3-0 until the sixth inning but and got it all back in one swing. Termarr Johnson launching a game-tying, three-run home run to make it a 3-3 ball game.
Indianapolis had their greatest chance with a bases-loaded, two-out situation in the bottom of the 11th. Termarr Johnson started the inning on second as the automatic runner, and Ronny Simon and Enmanuel Valdez were intentionally walked. On the brink of achieving third walk off at Victory Field this season, Jhostynxon Garcia grounded into a double play to end the inning. Columbus’ Tommy Mace (W, 3-0) got out of the bases-loaded jam in the 11th and pitched a scoreless 12th to earn the win. The Indians have an off day today before beginning a six-game road series with the Iowa Cubs, beginning on Tuesday, June 16 at 7:38 PM ET. Indy has not yet named a starter, and LHP Jordan Wicks (0-4, 6.09) is scheduled to take the mound for Iowa.