1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team

1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball
Pac-8 Championship
NCAA National Championship Game
vs. North Carolina, W, 78–55
Conference Athletic Association of Western Universities
Ranking
Coaches #2
AP #2
1967–68 record 29–1 (14–0 Pac-8)
Head coach John R. Wooden
Assistant coach Jerry Norman

The 1967–68 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team won UCLA's fourth NCAA National Basketball Championship under head coach John R. Wooden with a win over North Carolina.[1]

UCLA's 47-game winning streak came to an end in January when the Bruins 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

This 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.[2][3]

Players

[4]

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

Date
Time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (Attendance)
City, State
Regular season
*
#1 at Purdue W 73-71  1-0
Mackey Arena (-)
West Lafayette, IN
*
#1 Wichita State W 120-86  2-0
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA
*
#1 Iowa State W 121-80  3-0
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA
*
#1 Bradley W 109-73  4-0
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA
*
#1 Notre Dame W 114-63  5-0
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA
*
#1 Minnesota
Los Angeles Classic
W 95-55  6-0
(-)
Los Angeles, CA
*
#1 Saint Louis
Los Angeles Classic
W 108-67  7-0
(-)
Los Angeles, CA
*
#1 Bradley
Los Angeles Classic
W 104-71  8-0
(-)
Los Angeles, CA

#1 Washington State W 97-69  9-0
(1-0)
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA

#1 Washington W 93-65  10-0
(2-0)
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA

#1 at California W 94-64  11-0
(3-0)
Harmon Gym (-)
Berkeley, CA

#1 at Stanford W 73-63  12-0
(4-0)
Stanford Pavilion (-)
Stanford, CA
*
#1 Portland W 93-69  13-0
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA
January 20*
, TVS
#1 vs. #2 Houston
Game of the Century
L 69-71  13-1
Houston Astrodome (52,693)
Houston, TX
*
#2 vs. Holy Cross W 90-67  14-1
(-)
*
#2 vs. Boston College W 84-77  15-1
Madison Square Garden (-)
New York, NY

#2 USC W 101-67  16-1
(5-0)
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA

#2 at Oregon State W 55-52  17-1
(6-0)
Gill Coliseum (-)
Corvallis, OR

#2 at Oregon W 104-63  18-1
(7-0)
McArthur Court (-)
Eugene, OR

#2 Oregon W 119-78  19-1
(8-0)
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA

#2 Oregon State W 88-71  20-1
(9-0)
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA

#2 at Washington W 84-67  21-1
(10-0)
Hec Edmundson Pavilion (-)
Seattle, WA

#2 at Washington State W 101-70  22-1
(11-0)
Beasley Coliseum (-)
Pullman, WA

#2 Stanford W 100-62  23-1
(12-0)
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA

#2 California W 115-71  24-1
(13-0)
Pauley Pavilion (-)
Los Angeles, CA

#2 at USC W 72-64  25-1
(14-0)
Los Angeles Sports Arena (-)
Los Angeles, CA
NCAA Tournament
March 15*
#2 vs. New Mexico State
NCAA Regional Semifinal
W 58-49  26-1
University Arena (-)
Albuquerque, NM
March 16*
#2 vs. Santa Clara
NCAA Regional Final
W 87-66  27-1
University Arena (-)
Albuquerque, NM
Mar 22*
#2 vs. Houston
NCAA National Semifinal
W 101-69  28-1
Los Angeles Sports Arena (-)
Los Angeles, CA
March 23*
#2 vs. #5 North Carolina
NCAA National Final
W 78-55  29-1
Los Angeles Sports Arena (-)
Los Angeles, CA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Notes

Awards and honors

Team players drafted into the NBA

Round Pick Player NBA Team
4 45 Mike Lynn Chicago Bulls
4 49 Edgar Lacey San Francisco Warriors
14 180 Mike Warren Seattle SuperSonics

[8]

See also

References

  1. Official Collegiate Basketball Guide
  2. Esper, Dwain (March 25, 1968). "Bruins Hope Norman Stays". The Independent (Pasadena, California). p. 15. Retrieved July 22, 2015 via Newspapers.com.
  3. Gasaway, John (June 7, 2010). "John Wooden's Century". Basketball Prospectus. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015.
  4. http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/ucla/1968.html
  5. Jeff Prugh – Bruins win again without Alcindor. Big Lew Sidelined By Eye Injury Suffered in Game against Bears. Los Angeles Times, January 14, 1968
  6. Funeral in Downey today for UCLA player Edgar Lacey, Long Beach Press Telegram, April 8, 2011
  7. http://www.sportswriters.net/usbwa/awards/robertson/index.html
  8. http://www.databasebasketball.com/draft/draftyear.htm?lg=N&yr=1968

External links

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