Getting Open: The Unknown Story of Bill Garrett and the Integration of College Basketball - Tapa blanda

"A story of endurance, perseverance, and achievement on a par with any in the history of desegregation." -Washington Times "A lively story, full of fascinating figures-heroes and villains-who changed history." -Chicago Tribune "A striking and honest portrait of a man overcoming racism in a place that barely acknowledged its existence." -Publishers Weekly "One of the most engaging sports stories I have ever read." -Indianapolis Monthly "Remember the Titans judiciously spliced with Hoosiers." -Washington Post "Getting Open is an excellent read for sports fans, history buffs or anyone interested in biographies. And, it should be required reading for every young high school athlete on the way to college and every college athlete on the way to the pros-especially African American athletes. With all the scandals plaguing professional sports today, Bill Garrett's story might inspire a lot of folks-athletes and fans alike-to bring some dignity back to the games." -Frost Illustrated "... a spell binding piece of work that reads like a cross between a good mystery and a top notch golden age sports radio broadcast." -Frost Illustrated, Oct. 1 2008 "The authors' style is readable and engaging, especially in the chapters on the march to the state title. It reads much like a real-life 'Hoosiers.'" -Franklin Daily Journal, November 2, 2008 "Although this is a thoroughly researched study, the story is also gripping and well written so it reads like a novel." -Journal of African American History, Vol. 94, No. 1 (Fall 2009)

In 1947, the same year Jackie Robinson broke the color line in Major League Baseball, Bill Garrett integrated college basketball. By joining the basketball program at Indiana University, he broke the gentleman's agreement that had barred black players from the Big Ten, college basketball's most important conference. While enduring taunts from opponents and pervasive segregation at home and on the road, Garrett became the best player Indiana had ever had, an all-American, and in 1951, the third African American drafted in the NBA. Within a year of his graduation from IU, there were six African American basketball players on Big Ten teams. Soon tens, then hundreds, and finally thousands walked through the door Garrett had opened.