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INDIANAPOLIS — Bryce Clouse is a man who likes to arrive early for sporting events. Get there. Get settled in.
And get focused.
“That’s just how I was raised,” Clouse said. “I love sports. And I love to see the action from beginning to end.”
IndyStar photojournalist Mykal McEldowney photographed the 25-year-old Clouse at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday night before Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers sitting alone in his section behind the basket amid a sea of “Boom Baby!” yellow t-shirts draped over seats.
Clouse, from Goshen, appeared to be as locked in an hour before the game as any player possibly could be.
“I was getting focused,” he said. “Getting locked into the game just like everybody else.”
Clouse has a background in sports. The NorthWood High School graduate, a native of Nappanee, was a manager for the football team at Ball State and worked as an intern for the Wake Forest football program in 2022 and ’23 before coming back home to work on the staff at Goshen as the quarterbacks coach last season.
“I work in football, so I know how to get in that mindset,” Clouse said. “I’ve worked with some really cool dudes who have taught me a lot.”
Clouse, who attended the game by himself, said he was “one of the first people in the building” on Friday night, finding his seat in the eighth row shortly after the doors opened. He said he also attended Game 1 of the first-round series against Milwaukee. Those were his first two Pacers games since moving back to Indiana from North Carolina.
Despite the lopsided Game 3 loss, Clouse said he is confident the Pacers can recover and win the series.
“Big Pacers fan,” Clouse said. “I always remain optimistic. Just gotta take it one at a time.”
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.
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