INDIANAPOLIS — NCAA President Charlie Baker testified Tuesday on Capitol Hill, urging lawmakers to implement tougher federal sports gambling regulations, citing harassment of athletes by gamblers.

IU Indianapolis AD Luke Bosso said digital platforms are increasing student-athletes’ vulnerability to such abuse.

“It’s not just the sports gambling, it’s also the social media aspect,” Bosso said. “Every one of our players is available online all the time. When you put passionate people in a situation where they could be winning or losing money, and you make athletes available 24/7, it creates situations that aren’t always the best.”

Baker shared that an NCAA championship team needed round-the-clock police protection after a sports bettor threatened them. He also called on Congress to ban prop bets on college athletes, which are still legal in 20 states.

Indiana legalized sports gambling on September 1, 2019, and prop bets are allowed under the state’s regulations.

Though IU Indianapolis is a mid-major athletically, its student-athletes face the same pressure to perform as those at bigger schools, thanks to social media. Bosso said the school has staff dedicated to helping athletes manage that pressure.

“We have conversations about mental health, we have conversations about the negative effects of social media, and we have a pretty in-depth mental health team that helps our student-athletes,” Bosso added.

Congress members say they will continue to look into the issue of sports gambling.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Time and time again, people keep bringing up the idea to stop changing our clocks twice a year. If this were to finally happen, and Indianapolis had to make the choice, what would be the difference between permanent daylight saving time or permanent standard time?

Here is what each would look like in Indianapolis:

Permanent daylight saving time would mean we “spring forward” and stay there.

Being on the western side of the eastern time zone, Indianapolis’ sunrise in permanent daylight saving time would be after 9 a.m. on the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year.

On the summer solstice, or the longest day of the year, our sunrise and sunset times would be unaffected since we already are in daylight saving time in the current system.

Permanent standard time would equate to not “springing forward” at all.

In this case, the summer solstice sunrise time would change to 5:16 a.m. in Indy with a sunset of 8:16 p.m. The winter solstice would not be impacted since standard time is already used in the current system.

Basically, this boils down to if you are more of a morning or evening person. Sunrises and sunsets would both be earlier in standard time in the summer. Daylight saving in winter would result in later sunrises and sunsets.

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — We are finally seeing the end of a construction project that started in 2019. Lanes will be re-opening lanes and restrictions will be lifting on I-465.

As of Dec. 16, the Finish Line I-69 project is complete.

Long-term restrictions have been removed from lanes of I-465 between I-65 and I-70 on the southwest side of Indianapolis. Also the U.S. 31 SB to I-465 WB ramp, that closed in spring of 2023, is reopening.

“This milestone marks the end of major traffic disruptions on the I-69 Finish Line corridor,” said INDOT Commissioner Mike Smith.

With only minor construction changes left in the coming weeks leading to Christmas, the corridor officially opened to traffic with the opening of the new I-69/I-465 interchange in August 2024.

“We anticipate having all mainline movements open prior to Christmas, with minor construction activities occurring this week and early next”, Smith said.

The construction targeted disruptions on I-69 allowing for many openings. Harding Street, within limits of I-465 and Elper Avenue at S.R. 37, are scheduled to open by the end of the year.

There will be additional minor additions and fixes to I-69 and I-465 including guardrail and drainage installations.