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Don't have big bucks for NBA All-Star tickets? No worries. This might be even better 🏀

Dana Hunsinger Benbow, Indianapolis Star
·6 min read

INDIANAPOLIS -- At this point, admittedly a bit late in the NBA All-Star game ticket-buying venture, prices are exorbitant -- ranging from $3,000 for balcony level (the highest seats available at Gainbridge Fieldhouse) to $9,000 for the closest-to-the-court tickets still available.

Maybe you can afford those prices. Maybe you can't. Or maybe you don't want to. No worries. We've got everyone covered with some really cool, historic, nostalgic basketball stuff to do during NBA All-Star weekend in Indy -- whether you have tickets or not.

Watch a game in one of oldest college basketball arenas in U.S.

The details: As NBA All-Star festivities play out, Butler University men's basketball team will take on Creighton at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 17 at Hinkle Fieldhouse, 510 W. 49th St. Get tickets here. If you can't catch the game, Hinkle is open 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday for self-guided tours.

Know before you go: When Hinkle Fieldhouse was built in 1928 (then called Butler Fieldhouse), it was the largest college basketball arena in the United States, seating 15,000 people, and it was also one of the first fieldhouses to be built in America. Since that time the historic arena, which is home to Butler University athletics, has seen a lot.

In the past century, Hinkle has been host to a Nobel laureate and six U.S. presidents, including Herbert Hoover, Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush. It has hosted the Billy Graham Crusade, the first USA-USSR basketball game, all-star basketball games for the NBA and ABA, a three-ring circus and a six-day bicycle race. The fieldhouse also housed the U. S. military as a barracks during World War II.

More: Take a virtual tour of Hinkle Fieldhouse

In 1983, Hinkle was named to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1987, it was named a National Historic Landmark. A year before that, Hinkle was in the Hollywood spotlight as the site of the championship game in the movie "Hoosiers."

Speaking of "Hoosiers," while you're in the Hinkle neighborhood, you might as well take a quick three-mile jaunt to taste Hoosier nostalgia.

Hoosier tenderloin or Big Bobby burger?

The details: For an iconic Hoosier basketball-themed dining experience, head to Plump's Last Shot restaurant, 6416 Cornell Ave. Menu items include the state's best-known delicacy, a massive, breaded tenderloin fried (or grilled), as well as the Big Bobby burger loaded with cheddar, bacon, and barbecue, with a choice of fries, tater tots or onion rings for the sides. Info and hours.

More: Finally, an image of Bobby Plump's winning shot

Know before you go: This is Bobby Plump's restaurant and Plump is the real-life hero of the movie "Hoosiers." The film is based on the 1954 Milan Miracle, a true story in which tiny Milan High made it to the state basketball finals and defeated powerhouse Muncie Central on Plump's winning shot.

The restaurant is filled with memorabilia of that game, as well as Indiana high school basketball nostalgia. Plump is known to sometimes make appearances and visit with guests.

More: Wrong side of 'Hoosiers': He's only living Muncie Central player on court when Milan won

A 3-for-1 in basketball-crazed New Castle, Indiana

The details: This former, buzzing factory city located 48 miles east of Indianapolis is a must to visit when it comes to Indiana basketball hoopla. Not only is it home to the Steve Alford All-American Inn, a modest hotel paying homage to the hometown hero who won an NCAA title with Bob Knight at IU in 1987, but it is also home to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame and a high school gym that is among the largest in the nation. Info: Steve Alford All-American Inn, Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Attend a basketball game at New Castle High Tuesday, Feb. 20 as the Trojans take on Lapel.

The Steve Alford All-American Inn opened in 1997.
The Steve Alford All-American Inn opened in 1997.

Know before you go: Alford is New Castle's high school basketball sweetheart and the hotel in his honor opened in 1997, a decade after he won a national title at IU. Tucked between a Steak 'n Shake and the Henry County Rural Electric Membership Corporation, the hotel is filled with basketball and Alford nostalgia, including a massive fiberglass sneaker out front painted for Nevada, the college team Alford now coaches.

More: The Steve Alford story, Part 1: 'Everything coach Knight promised me, it all came true'

More: Steve Alford hotel is quirky, bizarre homage to a high school basketball hero

Just miles away from the Alford inn is the gym where he played his high school career, the self-proclaimed world's largest high school gymnasium. When New Castle High's fieldhouse was completed in 1959, it boasted more than 9,000 seats, virtually unheard of for a preps gym. The court resembles the layout of a college or pro arena, sitting below an expanse of bleachers that reach up to a circular walkway surrounding the court.

More: Indiana is home to the largest high school gyms in the U.S. Here’s a tour of 13 of them.

"In Indiana, basketball isn’t simply a game – it’s a tradition, passion, and part of our culture," reads the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame website. The crowning jewel of New Castle is this hall of fame which celebrates the state's proud heritage of basketball, which began in the 1890s.

The Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame is a 14,000-square-foot museum with exhibits dedicated to John Wooden, Oscar Robertson, Larry Bird and the 1954 Milan Indians, as well as the jerseys, trophies, photos, and memorabilia of other Hoosier legends. There are interactive displays where guests can take a Game Winning Shot, show their Indiana basketball knowledge in a trivia game, become a sportscaster on “You Make the Call," or attempt to block the shot of Oscar Robertson and Stephanie White.

See basketball played in 'Hoosiers' gym

The details: The famed high school gym where most of the basketball scenes in the movie "Hoosiers" was shot will host a game 10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 17, between visiting teams from West Virginia, Man High and Tolsia High. The Hoosier Gym is located at 355 N. Washington St. in Knightstown. Info.

Like many old gyms around Indiana, the Knightstown gym sat empty and mostly forgotten until a film crew descended on the community in the 1980s.
Like many old gyms around Indiana, the Knightstown gym sat empty and mostly forgotten until a film crew descended on the community in the 1980s.

Know before you go: The former Knightstown High gym now calls itself the Hoosier Gym, home of the fictional Hickory Huskers in the movie "Hoosiers." Its website boasts "one of the most famous and iconic gyms in the world." If you can't make the game Feb. 17, the gym is open to the public, but hours vary. Call before visiting at 765-345-2100 or email info@thehoosiergym.com.

Other 🏀🏀🏀 stuff to do

Feel the electricity of Hoosier hysteria and the Big Ten rivalry as Indiana University takes on Northwestern at Assembly Hall 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 18. Tickets and info.

Watch the No. 2 ranked team in the nation as Purdue takes on Minnesota at home 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15 at Mackey Arena. Tickets and info.

Go on a self-guided tour, including stops at the John Wooden statue downtown and the Free Basket sculpture at the 100 Acres Nature Park. Info at Art Zone - Basketball Experience IN Indiana

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on X: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Don't have big bucks for NBA All-Star tickets? Try Hoosier hysteria