ICE League : the first season

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Authors
Wright, Andrew Smith
Advisor
Taylor, Christopher M.
Issue Date
2015-05
Keyword
Degree
Thesis (B.?)
Department
Honors College
Other Identifiers
Abstract

The ICE Basketball League had its inaugural season starting on February 7, 2015, and it lasted six weeks until March 14,2015. The league was designed for seventh and eighth graders in Muncie Community Schools. It required students to have at least a 2.5 OPA to be eligible to play all four quarters of a basketball game. If they had a 2.0 to a 2.29 OPA, they could play only one quarter. If they had a 2.3 to 2.49 OP A, they could play only two quarters. I became the executive producer for a documentary that would feature the ICE League in its first season. The documentary shows the day-to-day events of the league, feature specific student athletes, and reveals whether or not a league could be effective by having a OPA requirement. The documentary's purpose was to show the impact a basketball league can have on a student's education and OP A. I produced this documentary through Ball State Sports Link, an immersive sports media program at Ball State University. In order to produce this documentary, Sports Link members and I attended all ICE League events such as the draft, practices, and games, and we captured them on video. In addition, we conducted interviews with eight student athletes, ICE League coaches, and ICE League staff. After the ICE League tournament on March 14,2015, I began the process of putting the documentary together. In the documentary, I chose to highlight specific ICE League events such as Draft Day, the first day of games, and the tournament. I also chose to feature specific ICE League student athletes and tell their personal stories. The topics ranged from how they became a better basketball player to how the ICE League has influenced them to improve their OP A. Through this documentary, I hope everyone who watches sees the positive effect a basketball league can have on encouraging students to think strongly about their education and OPA.