The players and coaches were not the only ones with a lot on the line in the 2002 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship, April 1. Maryland Association of Counties Executive Director David Bliden will soon receive a Hoosier gift box from Matt Brooks, executive director at the Association of Indiana Counties, thanks to the University of Maryland Terrapins 64-52 victory over the Indiana University Hoosiers.
“I’m looking forward to receiving my van of goodies from the heartland of America,” said Bliden. The two leaders found the game a perfect chance to possibly sample treasured items from outside their respective regions.
Since Maryland won, Bliden will receive auto racing and basketball memorabilia. People from Indiana traditionally know their sports, so Indianapolis 500, Brickyard, and high-school hoops stuff seems appropriate. Had Indiana won, Brooks would have received a dozen blue crabs, Maryland’s most scrumptious claim to fame.
Brooks said the mood around the office was pretty somber the morning after the Hoosiers’ loss, but he was graceful in defeat, saying that Indiana had a great run and lost to a special team.
“Since David has the luxury of being from a state known for an edible food item like crabs, we decided to also offer up a down-home cooking item made famous in Indiana — apple butter,” said Brooks.
Both executives had reason to celebrate their teams’ trips to the championship. Brooks received a bachelor’s degree in public affairs from Indiana University, while Bliden majored in economics at the University of Maryland.
Other Hoops News
Indiana’s coach, Mike Davis, has a connection to county government. His mother, Vandella Davis, works in the collections department of the Fayette County, Ala. Solid Waste Department. She was one of the few friends and relatives of Mike Davis lucky enough to receive courtside tickets to the championship game. According to the Indianapolis Star, tickets were so hard to come by that almost everybody else in the Davis entourage had to watch the game from their hotel rooms near the arena in Atlanta.
