Jernstedt’s ‘celebration’ includes unveiling of Indy statue

By The Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Longtime NCAA executive Tom Jernstedt helped create a path for the men’s college basketball tournament to go from just a national championship event into a March Madness megaevent. On Saturday, he will be honored in Indianapolis when a downtown statue is unveiled in his honor. The man long dubbed the “Father of the Final Four,” died in September at age 75. His widow, Kris, also has scheduled a “celebration of life” at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday. It is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. His statue will be the third in the downtown area, not far from the statue that pays tribute to the late John Wooden.