THE GOLDEN AGE OF OHIO STATE BOYS’ BASKETBALL

Dr. Matthew J.Gladman, author of The Golden Age of Ohio High School Boys’ Basketball will be at Dover Public Library on Saturday, March 15 at 2:00 PM to talk about his fifth and most recent installment in the series Heartbreak Highway: A History of the Ohio Boys’ Scholastic State Basketball Tournament. A book signing will follow the program.

Gladman will speak about coach Paul Walker’s Middletown Middies that enthralled basketball fans with their performance at the 1956 state tournament held at Cleveland Arena. He will talk about the inaugural tournament held at Ohio State University’s St. John Arena in 1957. Gladman will discuss the two-division format of the final fifteen seasons of the “Golden Age” (1956-70) and highlight legendary individual and team performances at the state tournaments. He will also point out the changes in basketball rules and show how the sport continues to evolve into its present-day form.

A sports enthusiast and alumnus of Ohio University, Dr. Matthew J. Gladman has always been curious about the boys’ state tournament and has spent much of his life researching the topic. Gladman, an alumni of Ohio University, has taught courses on American baseball, theatre and film. This program will be held on Saturday, March 15 at 2:00 PM in the Community Room at the library, located at 525 N. Walnut Street, Dover. Register online at www.doverlibrary.org/events or call the library at 330-343-6123.