The Indiana High School Athletic Association is mulling a proposal to shift the state basketball tournament to a three-class structure. A decision was not made at a meeting this week.
A review committee composed of IHSAA staff members and executives, members of the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association, and members of the Indiana Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association was formed to review the proposal and report findings this summer.
The format would adjust the current four-class tournament to a three-class system. It would create two divisions within each class based on school enrollment and result in 80 sectional winners. The divisions would be combined at the regional level.
Athletic officials will review how the tournament will work and the financial impact on schools before making a decision.
The IHSAA executive committee did vote to allow the high school girls basketball season to begin a week earlier beginning in 2015-16. The approval will lead to the girls state finals to be played a week earlier than the boys basketball sectional finals. It will hinder any scheduling conflict with the Big Ten Conference Tournament played in the same arena.
