The 1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won a second consecutive NCAA national championship, the fourth in five years under head coach John Wooden, with a win over North Carolina.[2]
1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball | |
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NCAA tournament National champions Pac-8 champions | |
Conference | Athletic Association of Western Universities |
Ranking | |
Coaches | No. 2 |
AP | No. 2 |
Record | 29–1 (14–0 Pac-8) |
Head coach |
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Assistant coaches | |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 2 UCLA | 14 | – | 0 | 1.000 | 29 | – | 1 | .967 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
USC | 11 | – | 3 | .786 | 18 | – | 8 | .692 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington State | 8 | – | 6 | .571 | 16 | – | 9 | .640 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
California | 7 | – | 7 | .500 | 16 | – | 9 | .640 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon State | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 12 | – | 13 | .480 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stanford | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 11 | – | 15 | .423 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Washington | 4 | – | 10 | .286 | 12 | – | 14 | .462 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oregon | 2 | – | 12 | .143 | 7 | – | 19 | .269 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rankings from AP Poll[1] |
UCLA's 47-game winning streak came to an end in January when they were beaten by Houston and All-American Elvin Hayes in the Astrodome 71–69; the game was known as the Game of the Century. The Bruins avenged the loss in a rematch with Houston in the NCAA Final Four, by beating the Cougars 101–69 to become the only team to win consecutive NCAA championships twice.
Season Summary
editThis team ushered in a new era of college hoops when it played and lost to Houston in a regular-season game at Houston Astrodome that was seen by a national television audience. The Bruins avenged the only loss in the Final Four, thrashing the Cougars behind Lew Alcindor's 19 points and 18 rebounds. "Big Lew" was even more dominant in the title game, with 34 points and 16 boards in a win over North Carolina. UCLA limited Houston's Elvin Hayes, who was averaging 37.7 points per game but was held to only 10. Bruins coach John Wooden credited his assistant, Jerry Norman, for devising the diamond-and-one defense that contained Hayes.[3][4]
Players
edit1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Lew Alcindor would suffer the first major injury of his athletic career. He suffered a scratched left cornea on January 12, 1968, in a game against the California Golden Bears. He got struck by Ted Henderson of Cal in a rebound battle.[5] He would miss the next two games against Stanford and Portland. This happened right before the game against the University of Houston.
Schedule
editDate time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | Site city, state | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Regular Season | |||||||||||
December 2, 1967* |
No. 1 | at Purdue | W 73-71 | 1-0 |
Purdue Arena West Lafayette, IN | ||||||
December 8, 1967* |
No. 1 | Wichita State | W 120-86 | 2-0 |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
December 9, 1967* 8:00 pm, KTLA (delay) |
No. 1 | Iowa State | W 121-80 | 3-0 |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
December 22, 1967* |
No. 1 | No. 10 Bradley | W 109-73 | 4-0 |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
December 23, 1967* |
No. 1 | Notre Dame | W 114-63 | 5-0 |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
December 27, 1967* |
No. 1 | Minnesota Los Angeles Classic |
W 95-55 | 6-0 |
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
December 29, 1967* |
No. 1 | Saint Louis Los Angeles Classic |
W 108-67 | 7-0 |
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
December 30, 1967* |
No. 1 | Wyoming Los Angeles Classic |
W 104-71 | 8-0 |
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
January 5, 1968 |
No. 1 | Washington State | W 97-69 | 9-0 (1-0) |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
January 6, 1968 |
No. 1 | Washington | W 93-65 | 10-0 (2-0) |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
January 12, 1968 |
No. 1 | at California | W 94-64 | 11-0 (3-0) |
Harmon Gym Berkeley, CA | ||||||
January 13, 1968 |
No. 1 | at Stanford | W 73-63 | 12-0 (4-0) |
Stanford Pavilion Stanford, CA | ||||||
January 18, 1968* |
No. 1 | Portland | W 93-69 | 13-0 |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
January 20, 1968* TVS |
No. 1 | vs. No. 2 Houston Game of the Century |
L 69-71 | 13-1 |
Houston Astrodome (52,693) Houston, TX | ||||||
January 26, 1968* |
No. 2 | vs. Holy Cross | W 90-67 | 14-1 |
Madison Square Garden (18,106[6]) New York, NY | ||||||
January 27, 1968* |
No. 2 | vs. Boston College | W 84-77 | 15-1 |
Madison Square Garden (18,499[7]) New York, NY | ||||||
February 3, 1968 |
No. 2 | USC | W 101-67 | 16-1 (5-0) |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
February 9, 1968 |
No. 2 | at Oregon State | W 55-52 | 17-1 (6-0) |
Gill Coliseum Corvallis, OR | ||||||
February 10, 1968 |
No. 2 | at Oregon | W 104-63 | 18-1 (7-0) |
McArthur Court Eugene, OR | ||||||
February 16, 1968 |
No. 2 | Oregon | W 119-78 | 19-1 (8-0) |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
February 17, 1968 |
No. 2 | Oregon State | W 88-71 | 20-1 (9-0) |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
February 24, 1968 |
No. 2 | at Washington | W 84-67 | 21-1 (10-0) |
Hec Edmundson Pavilion Seattle, WA | ||||||
February 26, 1968 |
No. 2 | at Washington State | W 101-70 | 22-1 (11-0) |
Bohler Gymnasium Pullman, WA | ||||||
March 1, 1968 |
No. 2 | Stanford | W 100-62 | 23-1 (12-0) |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
March 2, 1968 |
No. 2 | California | W 115-71 | 24-1 (13-0) |
Pauley Pavilion Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
March 9, 1968 |
No. 2 | at USC | W 72-64 | 25-1 (14-0) |
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
NCAA Tournament | |||||||||||
March 15, 1968* |
No. 2 | vs. New Mexico State Regional semifinal |
W 58-49 | 26-1 |
University Arena Albuquerque, NM | ||||||
March 16, 1968* |
No. 2 | vs. Santa Clara Regional Final |
W 87-66 | 27-1 |
University Arena Albuquerque, NM | ||||||
March 22, 1968* |
No. 2 | vs. No. 1 Houston National semifinal |
W 101-69 | 28-1 |
Los Angeles Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
March 23, 1968* |
No. 2 | vs. No. 5 North Carolina National Final |
W 78-55 | 29-1 |
Los Angeles Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA | ||||||
- Source:[8]
Rankings
editWeek | ||||||||||||||||
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Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
AP | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Coaches | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Notes
edit- The team opened the season as the No. 1 team in both the AP and UPI polls.
- Second consecutive national championship; fourth in five years.
- UCLA became the first school to have a top winner in both basketball and football in the same year with quarterback Gary Beban winning the Heisman Trophy and Lew Alcindor winning the U.S. Basketball Writers Association player of the year award in 1968.
- Three days after he was benched by Coach Wooden during the "Game of the Century" on January 20, Edgar Lacey, a high school All-American at Jefferson High School and Los Angeles City Section Player of the Year in 1963, quit the team.[9]
- On its 50th anniversary in 2018, the team was honored at halftime of the UCLA–Stanford game at Pauley Pavilion on January 27.
Awards and honors
edit- Lew Alcindor, NCAA basketball tournament MOP (1968)
- Lew Alcindor, USBWA College Player of the Year [10]
- Lew Alcindor, Helms Foundation Player of the Year award
- Lew Alcindor, First Team All-American; Lucius Allen, Second Team
Team players drafted into the NBA
editRound | Pick | Player | NBA Team |
---|---|---|---|
4 | 45 | Mike Lynn | Chicago Bulls |
4 | 49 | Edgar Lacey | San Francisco Warriors |
14 | 180 | Mike Warren | Seattle SuperSonics |
- Source:[11]
References
edit- ^ "2017-18 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. p. 72. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
- ^ Official Collegiate Basketball Guide
- ^ Esper, Dwain (March 25, 1968). "Bruins Hope Norman Stays". The Independent. Pasadena, California. p. 15. Retrieved July 22, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Gasaway, John (June 7, 2010). "John Wooden's Century". Basketball Prospectus. Archived from the original on July 23, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
- ^ Jeff Prugh – Bruins win again without Alcindor. Big Lew Sidelined By Eye Injury Suffered in Game against Bears. Los Angeles Times, January 14, 1968
- ^ Prugh, Jeff (January 27, 1968). "LEW PUTS ON SHOW FOR FOLKS AT 'HOMECOMING': Alcindor Demolishes Holy Cross' Man-to-Man Defense With 33 Points as Bruins Romp, 90-67, at the Garden UCLA WINS, 90-67". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 155784798.
- ^ Prugh, Jeff. "BRUINS HOLD OFF EAGLE SPURT, POST 84-77 WIN". Los Angeles Times. No. 28 January 1968. ProQuest 155770221.
- ^ "Season by Season Records" (PDF). UCLA Athletics.
- ^ Funeral in Downey today for UCLA player Edgar Lacey Archived 2012-03-09 at the Wayback Machine, Long Beach Press Telegram, April 8, 2011
- ^ "USBWA > Awards > Oscar Robertson Trophy". Archived from the original on February 13, 2007. Retrieved January 25, 2007.
- ^ "1968 NBA Draft on databaseBasketball.com". Archived from the original on June 30, 2014. Retrieved October 4, 2014.
External links
edit- 1967–68 UCLA Bruins at Sports-Reference.com