Krum Basketball in March 1999

TROY HAMM, THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL principal and head basketball coach in this North Texas town, says that he’s heard stories of Krumians visiting places as far away as San Francisco, mentioning where they’re from, and getting asked, “Isn’t that basketball town?” Yes, it is—and it deserves its national reputation for excellence in the sport. Krum High (which doesn’t even field a football team) won the state basketball championship last year and seems a good bet to repeat this year.

Although the entire student body is just 302 people, they regularly compete against much larger 4A and 5A schools, and they rarely lose; in fact, they’ve won 134 district games in a row, putting them in range to break the record set by East Texas’ Buna High School from 1955 to 1964. Not surprisingly, hoops are erected in almost every driveway in Krum, and kids start dribbling in kindergarten. “We have a tradition,” says Vaughn Andrus, whose fifth son now plays for Krum, “and if you live here, you can’t help but get caught up in it.”

When to go: Krum High’s regular season runs from November through the middle of February; the playoffs run through March. For the team’s schedule call 940-482-6000. Article by Texas Monthly March 1999.