1971–72 NCAA University Division men's basketball season

The 1971–72 NCAA University Division men's basketball season began in December 1971, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1972 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 25, 1972, at Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California. The UCLA Bruins won their eighth NCAA national championship with an 81–76 victory over the Florida State Seminoles.

Season headlines

edit

Season outlook

edit

Conference membership changes

edit
School Former conference New conference
Ball State Cardinals non-University Division University Division independent
Georgia Southern Eagles non-University Division University Division independent
Illinois State Redbirds non-University Division University Division independent
Indiana State Sycamores non-University Division University Division independent
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs Gulf States Conference (College Division) Southland Conference
Miami (Fla.) Hurricanes University Division independent Discontinued basketball program
NYU Violets University Division independent Discontinued basketball program
Oral Roberts Titans non-University Division University Division independent
Pacific Tigers West Coast Athletic Conference Pacific Coast Athletic Association
Seattle Redhawks University Division independent West Coast Athletic Conference
South Alabama Jaguars non-University Division University Division independent
South Carolina Gamecocks Atlantic Coast Conference University Division independent
Southwest Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns Gulf States Conference (College Division) Southland Conference
Stetson Hatters non-University Division University Division independent

Regular season

edit

Conferences

edit

Conference winners and tournaments

edit
Conference Regular
season winner[4]
Conference
player of the year
Conference
tournament
Tournament
venue (City)
Tournament
winner
Atlantic Coast ConferenceNorth CarolinaBarry Parkhill,
Virginia[5]
1972 ACC men's basketball tournamentGreensboro Coliseum
(Greensboro, North Carolina)
North Carolina
Big Eight ConferenceKansas StateIsaac "Bud" Stallworth, Kansas[6]No Tournament
Big Sky ConferenceWeber StateNone selectedNo Tournament
Big Ten ConferenceMinnesotaNone selectedNo Tournament
Ivy LeaguePennNone selectedNo Tournament
Mid-American ConferenceOhioTom Kozelko, Toledo[7]No Tournament
Middle Atlantic ConferenceTemple (East); Rider (West)No Tournament
Missouri Valley ConferenceLouisville & Memphis StateLarry Finch, Memphis StateLouisville
Ohio Valley ConferenceEastern Kentucky, Morehead State, & Western KentuckyLes Taylor, Murray StateNo Tournament
Pacific 8 ConferenceUCLANone selectedNo Tournament
Pacific Coast Athletic AssociationLong Beach StateEd Ratleff, Long Beach StateNo Tournament
Southeastern ConferenceKentucky & TennesseeMike Edwards, Tennessee, & Tom Parker, Kentucky[8]No Tournament
Southern ConferenceDavidsonRuss Hunt,
Furman[9]
1972 Southern Conference men's basketball tournamentGreenville Memorial Auditorium
(Greenville, South Carolina)
(Semifinals and Finals)
East Carolina[10]
Southland ConferenceLouisiana TechDwight "Bo" Lamar,
Southwest Louisiana[11]
No Tournament
Southwest ConferenceSMU & TexasLarry Robinson, TexasNo Tournament
West Coast Athletic ConferenceSan FranciscoMike Stewart, Santa ClaraNo Tournament
Western Athletic ConferenceBYUNone selectedNo Tournament
Yankee ConferenceRhode IslandNone selectedNo Tournament

Conference standings

edit
1971–72 ACC men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 2 North Carolina93 .750265  .839
No. 14 Maryland84 .667275  .844
No. 20 Virginia84 .667217  .750
Duke66 .5001412  .538
NC State66 .5001610  .615
Wake Forest39 .250818  .308
Clemson210 .1671016  .385
1972 ACC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Big Eight Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Kansas State122 .857199  .679
Missouri104 .714216  .778
Oklahoma95 .6431412  .538
Nebraska77 .5001412  .538
Kansas77 .5001115  .423
Iowa State59 .3571214  .462
Colorado410 .286719  .269
Oklahoma State212 .143422  .154
Rankings from AP Poll[12]
1971–72 Big Sky men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Weber State104 .7141811  .621
Gonzaga86 .5711412  .538
Northern Arizona86 .5711310  .565
Idaho State86 .5711412  .538
Montana77 .5001411  .560
Boise State77 .5001412  .538
Montana State68 .429916  .360
Idaho212 .143514  .263
1971–72 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 11 Minnesota113 .786176  .739
No. 19 Ohio State104 .714186  .750
No. 17 Indiana95 .643178  .680
Michigan95 .6431410  .583
Michigan State68 .4291311  .542
Wisconsin68 .4291311  .542
Purdue68 .4291212  .500
Illinois59 .3571410  .583
Iowa59 .3571113  .458
Northwestern311 .214518  .217
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Ivy League men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 3 Pennsylvania131 .929253  .893
Princeton122 .857207  .741
Harvard86 .5711511  .577
Dartmouth86 .5711412  .538
Brown68 .4291016  .385
Yale59 .357717  .292
Columbia311 .214420  .167
Cornell113 .071519  .208
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Ohio73 .7001511  .577
Toledo73 .700187  .720
Kent State64 .600717  .292
Western Michigan55 .5001014  .417
Miami (Ohio)46 .4001212  .500
Bowling Green State19 .100420  .167
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 MAC men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
University–Eastern
Temple60 1.000238  .742
Saint Joseph's51 .833199  .679
American33 .500168  .667
Hofstra24 .3331114  .440
Drexel24 .3331114  .440
La Salle24 .333619  .240
West Chester15 .167916  .360
University–Western
Rider82 .8001511  .577
Lafayette73 .700205  .800
Delaware73 .700187  .720
Lehigh37 .3001014  .417
Bucknell37 .300518  .217
Gettysburg28 .2001112  .478
1972 MAC men's basketball tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 4 Louisville122 .857265  .839
No. 13 Memphis State122 .857217  .750
Saint Louis95 .643188  .692
Bradley86 .571179  .654
Wichita State68 .4291610  .615
Tulsa59 .3571511  .577
North Texas State212 .143818  .308
Drake212 .143719  .269
New Mexico State 196  .760
West Texas State 1411  .560
Rankings from AP Poll[13]
1971–72 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Morehead State95 .6431611  .593
Eastern Kentucky95 .6431511  .577
Western Kentucky95 .6431511  .577
Tennessee Tech77 .5001411  .560
Murray State68 .4291511  .577
East Tennessee State68 .4291114  .440
Middle Tennessee59 .3571511  .577
Austin Peay State59 .3571014  .417
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Pacific-8 Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 1 UCLA140 1.000300  1.000
Washington104 .714206  .769
Oregon State95 .6431810  .643
USC95 .6431610  .615
California68 .4291316  .448
Stanford59 .3571015  .400
Washington State311 .2141115  .423
Oregon014 .000620  .231
As of April 15, 1972[14]
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Pacific Coast Athletic Association men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 5 Long Beach State*102 .833254  .862
Pacific84 .667179  .654
San Diego State75 .5831810  .643
UC Santa Barbara57 .417179  .654
Cal State Los Angeles57 .4171412  .538
San Jose State57 .4171115  .423
Fresno State210 .167917  .346
* – Overall record adjusted to 23–3
Rankings from AP Poll[15]
1971–72 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Tennessee144 .778196  .760
No. 18 Kentucky144 .778217  .750
Alabama135 .722188  .692
Vanderbilt108 .5561610  .615
Georgia99 .5001412  .538
Ole Miss810 .4441312  .520
Mississippi State612 .3331313  .500
Auburn612 .3331016  .385
LSU612 .3331016  .385
Florida414 .2221015  .400
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Southern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Davidson82 .800199  .679
Furman83 .7271711  .607
William & Mary64 .6001017  .370
East Carolina75 .5831415  .483
The Citadel56 .4551213  .480
Richmond39 .250619  .240
VMI210 .167619  .240
Southern Conference Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1971–72 Southland Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Louisiana Tech†*80 1.000233  .885
Lamar**71 .8751313  .500
Texas-Arlington53 .6251412  .538
Arkansas State***54 .5561214  .462
Abilene Christian35 .375178  .680
No. 8 Southwest Louisiana****08 .000233  .885
Trinity (Tex.)08 .000618  .250
† Regular-season championship winner
* – Played as non-major program; conference record adjusted to 8–0.
** – Dispute conference record 6–2.
*** – Disputed conference record 4–4.
**** – Disputed record 8–0 conference, 25–4 overall.
Rankings from AP Poll[16]
1971–72 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Texas104 .714199  .679
SMU104 .7141611  .593
TCU95 .643159  .625
Texas A&M95 .6431610  .615
Texas Tech86 .5711412  .538
Arkansas59 .357818  .308
Baylor410 .2861412  .538
Rice113 .071620  .231
Rankings from AP Poll
1971-72 WCAC men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
San Francisco131 .929208  .714
Santa Clara113 .786179  .654
Seattle104 .714179  .654
UNLV86 .5711412  .538
Loyola (Calif.)68 .4291115  .423
Pepperdine59 .3571015  .400
Saint Mary's311 .214917  .346
Nevada014 .000224  .077
Rankings from AP Poll[17]
1971–72 WAC men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 9 BYU122 .857215  .808
UTEP95 .643207  .741
Arizona State95 .643188  .692
Colorado State77 .500159  .625
New Mexico77 .5001511  .577
Utah59 .3571312  .520
Arizona410 .286620  .231
Wyoming311 .2141214  .462
Rankings from AP Poll[18]
1971–72 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Rhode Island 82 .8001511  .577
Maine 64 .6001510  .600
Massachusetts 64 .6001412  .538
New Hampshire 55 .500149  .609
Connecticut 55 .500817  .320
Vermont 010 .000519  .208

University Division independents

edit

A total of 67 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, Oral Roberts (26–2) had the best winning percentage (.929) and Florida State (28–5) finished with the most wins.[19]

1971–72 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 16 Oral Roberts 262  .929
No. 7 Marquette 254  .862
Hawaii 234  .852
No. 12 Marshall 234  .852
No. 10 Florida State 285  .848
Northern Illinois 214  .840
No. 6 South Carolina 245  .828
Duquesne 205  .800
Syracuse 226  .786
Providence 216  .778
Detroit 186  .750
Houston 207  .741
Jacksonville 208  .714
No. 15 Villanova 208  .714
Pan American 177  .708
Niagara 219  .700
Penn State 178  .680
Fordham 189  .667
St. Bonaventure 168  .667
Cincinnati 179  .654
Georgia Southern 179  .654
Colgate 158  .652
St. John's 1911  .633
Fairleigh Dickinson 159  .625
Illinois State 1610  .615
Virginia Tech 1610  .615
Canisius 1511  .577
Creighton 1511  .577
Holy Cross 1511  .577
Oklahoma City 1612  .571
Loyola (LA) 1411  .560
Rutgers 1411  .560
West Virginia 1311  .542
Hardin–Simmons 1412  .538
DePaul 1211  .522
Centenary 1312  .520
Long Island 1312  .520
Boston College 1313  .500
Dayton 1313  .500
Pittsburgh 1212  .500
Air Force 1213  .480
Fairfield 1213  .480
Saint Francis (PA) 1213  .480
Saint Peter's 1213  .480
Indiana State 1214  .462
St. Francis (NY) 1214  .462
Utah State 1214  .462
Xavier 1214  .462
Army 1113  .458
Manhattan 1113  .458
George Washington 1114  .440
Navy 1013  .435
Denver 1115  .423
Portland 1016  .385
Seton Hall 1016  .385
Southern Illinois 1016  .385
Ball State 915  .375
Loyola (IL) 814  .364
Tulane 818  .308
Boston University 716  .304
South Alabama 717  .292
Iona 617  .261
Butler 620  .231
Georgia Tech 620  .231
Notre Dame 620  .231
Stetson 620  .231
Georgetown 323  .115
Rankings from AP Poll

Informal championships

edit
Conference Regular
season winner
Most Valuable Player
Philadelphia Big 5Penn & TempleCorky Calhoun, Penn, & Chris Ford, Villanova

Penn and Temple both finished with 3–1 records in head-to-head competition among the Philadelphia Big 5.

Post-season tournaments

edit

NCAA tournament

edit

Final Four

edit
National semifinals National finals
      
E North Carolina 75
ME Florida State 79
ME Florida State 76
W UCLA 81
MW Louisville 77
MW UCLA 96 Third place
E North Carolina 105
MW Louisville 91

National Invitation tournament

edit

Semifinals & finals

edit
Semifinals Finals
    
Jacksonville 77
Maryland 91
Maryland 100
Niagara 69
St. John's 67
Niagara 69 Third place
Jacksonville 83
St. John's 80

Awards

edit

Consensus All-American teams

edit
Consensus First Team
Player Position Class Team
Henry Bibby G Senior UCLA
Jim Chones C Junior Marquette
Dwight Lamar G Junior Southwestern Louisiana
Bob McAdoo F Junior North Carolina
Ed Ratleff F Junior Long Beach State
Tom Riker F/C Senior South Carolina
Bill Walton C Sophomore UCLA


Consensus Second Team
Player Position Class Team
Rich Fuqua G Junior Oral Roberts
Barry Parkhill G Junior Virginia
Jim Price G Senior Louisville
Bud Stallworth F Senior Kansas
Henry Wilmore G/F Junior Michigan

Major player of the year awards

edit

Major coach of the year awards

edit

Other major awards

edit

Coaching changes

edit

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.

Team Former
Coach
Interim
Coach
New
Coach
Reason
Arizona Bruce Larson Fred Snowden Snowden was an assistant at Michigan.
Ball State Bud Getchell Jim Holstein
Bucknell Don Smith Jim Valvano
BYU Stan Watts Glenn Potter
California Jim Padgett Dick Edwards Padgett left to coach Nevada.
Canisius Bob MacKinnon John Morrison MacKinnon left to join the coaching staff for the Buffalo Braves
Cincinnati Tay Baker Gale Catlett Baker left to coach Xavier. Catlett was formerly an assistant with Kentucky.
Colgate Ed Ashnault Bill Vesp Ashnault left to coach William & Mary.
Cornell Jerry Lace Tony Coma
Dartmouth George Blaney Tom O'Connor Blaney left to coach Holy Cross.
Denver Jim Karabetsos Al Harden
Georgetown Jack Magee John Thompson McGee was fired at the end of the season after the 1971–72 Georgetown team finished with a record of 3–23.
Gonzaga Hank Anderson Adrian Buoncristiani
Hardin–Simmons Glen Whitis Russell Berry
Hofstra Paul Lynner Roger Gaeckler
Holy Cross Jack Donohue George Blaney
Kentucky Adolph Rupp Joe B. Hall Rupp retired as the NCAA all-time leader in victories after reaching the Commonwealth of Kentucky's mandatory retirement age of 70. He was replaced by lead assistant Hall, who coached the Wildcats for 13 seasons and led UK to the 1978 national championship.
Lehigh Roy Heckman Tom Pugliese
LSU Press Maravich Dale Brown Maravich, father of NCAA career scoring leader Pete Maravich, was fired after the Tigers finished 10–16 in their first season in the LSU Assembly Center (later renamed for Pete Maravich in 1988). He was succeeded by Washington State assistant Brown, who remained at LSU for 25 seasons. Maravich left to coach Appalachian State.
Marshall Carl Tacy Bob Daniels Tacy left after the season to become the head coach at Wake Forest.
Montana State Gary Hulst Hank Anderson
Nevada Jack Spencer Jim Padgett Spencer stepped down to take an assistant coaching job under new head coach Jim Padgett.
New Mexico Bob King Norm Ellenberger King left to be the athletic director at Indiana State.
Pacific Dick Edwards Stan Morrison
Purdue George King Fred Schaus
Saint Peter's Don Kennedy Bernie Ockene
Seattle Morris Buckwalter Bill O'Connor
Vermont Arthur Loche Peter Salzberg
VMI Mike Schuler Bill Blair
Wake Forest Jack McCloskey Carl Tacy McCloskey left after the season to become the head coach for the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers.
Washington State Bob Greenwood George Raveling

References

edit
  1. ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia. Random House. 2009. p. 846. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
  2. "Playing Rules History" (PDF). ncaa.org. NCAA. p. 12. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
  3. ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia. Random House. 2009. p. 836. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
  4. "2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  5. 2008–09 ACC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Year by Year section Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2009-02-14
  6. 2008–09 Big 12 Men's Basketball Media Guide – Awards section, Big 12 Conference, retrieved 2009-02-04
  7. 2008–09 MAC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Records Section, Mid-American Conference, retrieved 2009-02-14
  8. 2008–09 SEC Men's Basketball Record Book, Southeastern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-06
  9. 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Honors Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09
  10. 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09
  11. "2008–09 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Southland Conference. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 13, 2011. Retrieved February 7, 2009.
  12. sports-reference.com 1971-72 Big Eight Conference Season Summary
  13. "1971-72 Missouri Valley Conference Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  14. "2017-18 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. p. 72. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  15. "1971-72 Pacific Coast Athletic Association Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  16. "1971-72 Men's Southland Conference Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  17. https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/conferences/wcac/1972.html
  18. sports-reference.com 1971-72 Western Athletic Conference Season Summary
  19. "1971-72 Men's Independent Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 16, 2024.