IU women's basketball takes candy-striped pants on road vs South Carolina in March Madness

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley isn’t the only one on the Colonial Life Arena court flaunting some flashy fashion for the opening weekend of women’s March Madness.

The South is getting a taste of an eye-catching Midwestern style Indiana brings to the NCAA Tournament – on the court and in the stands.

“You’re not a real Hoosiers fan if you don't wear candy stripes,” said Amy Metheny, a lifelong Hoosiers fan and Indiana native, who traveled to Columbia to cheer on No. 9 Indiana, which takes on No. 1 South Carolina in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament Sunday.

For Friday’s first-round game against Utah, Metheny was wearing the same candy-striped pants that Hoosiers players ripped off after the national anthem to start their 2025 March Madness run.

Repping the stripes in SC. pic.twitter.com/VsCMTW2Uar
— Indiana Women’s Basketball (@IndianaWBB) March 23, 2025

All roads led to this.

It’s gameday, Hoosiers. pic.twitter.com/RKXt73Vios
— Indiana Women’s Basketball (@IndianaWBB) March 23, 2025

The Hoosier tradition did not start with the basketball program. Indiana began wearing the candy stripes in the 1960s, when swimming and diving coaches James Counsilman and Hobie Billingsley came up with the stripes so they could spot their swimmers in the pool.

In 1971, the men’s basketball team adopted the candy stripes, followed by more IU teams. The ‘fit spread to the fans and became identifiable with Indiana in the 1980s. Metheny remembers wearing her candy-striped pants as a kid while watching the legendary Bob Knight coach at Indiana.

Aimee Parrish, mom of graduate guard Sydney Parrish, talked about how all the students and fans wear them whenever Indiana plays.

“It’s our signature,” she said.

Indiana former player Jordan Hulls, now the team and recruiting coordinator for the Hoosiers men’s team, brought the tradition into his personal life.

“When he got married, he chose to do it at IU,” Metheny said, “and the groomsmen all came down in their candy-striped pants and then ripped them off.”

Olivia Noni and Sarah Sims are students in the University of Georgia's Sports Media Certificate program.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IU women's basketball dons candy-striped pants for South Carolina game

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