John Wooden honored with court name

The Hulman Center court got a new name Saturday before the men's basketball exhibition game against Albion-Nellie and John Wooden Court.

John Wooden coached at ISU from 1947-48 before making history at UCLA as the winningest coach in NCAA basketball history.

Saturday, athletics director Ron Prettyman, ISU president Daniel J. Bradley and former players for Wooden pulled blue sheets off the court, unveiling the signatures for Nellie and John Wooden on both the east and west sides of the court.

John Wooden spoke to the crowd of 3,251 at Hulman Center via the screen on the mid-court scoreboard before the game began and during timeouts.

When asked if the court could be dedicated, he made sure his wife Nellie's name came before his own in the name of the court.

In 1948, Wooden brought the first black player in history to a collegiate postseason tournament, Clarence Walker from East Chicago, Ind.

Wooden's daughter and granddaughter were on hand for the event, too.

Wooden was born in Hall, Ind., and is one of three people who are members of the Basketball Hall of Fame as both players and coaches. He also received an honorary doctorate from Indiana State during the 2008 summer.

( Ben Corn is a senior journalism major. He can be reached at sasspted@isugw.indstate.edu.)