Vote set on Ind. 1-class basketball tourney bill

INDIANAPOLIS — The question of whether the Indiana Legislature should try to force a return to the state’s single-class high school basketball tournament is set for a vote.

The state Senate’s education committee is expected to vote Wednesday afternoon on whether to advance a bill that includes the tourney proposal, along with provisions that would block school districts from starting their academic year before Labor Day and require the teaching of cursive writing.

Bill sponsor Sen. Mike Delph of Carmel says the four-class tournament used by the Indiana High School Athletic Association since 1998 has “failed miserably” and that the old tournament celebrated in the movie “Hoosiers” helped unite the state for decades.

IHSAA leaders say the current system promotes fairness by giving smaller schools a better chance to advance.