On This Date: Former College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on April 7

Extra! Extra! As a new season enters its second weekend, you can read news about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Former Hofstra top scorer and rebounder Brant Alyea set a MLB Opening Day RBI record on this date. Ex-juco hoopers Bobby Munoz (Polk FL), Jim Perry (Campbell NC), Tony Phillips (New Mexico Military) and Jim Thome (Illinois Central) also made MLB news on this date. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 7 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 7

  • Minnesota Twins LF Brant Alyea (Hofstra's leading scorer and rebounder in 1960-61 after finishing runner-up in both categories previous basketball season) amassed seven RBI, a major league record for opening day, against the Chicago White Sox in 1970. Alyea drove in 19 runs in P Jim Perry's first four starts that year.

  • In his MLB debut in 1970, Philadelphia Phillies 2B Denny Doyle (averaged 2.7 ppg for Morehead State in 1962-63) delivered three hits, including a RBI triple in the third inning for the game's first run, in a 2-0 win against the Chicago Cubs.

  • In his MLB debut in 2017, Cincinnati Reds LHP Amir Garrett (averaged 7.4 ppg and 4 rpg for St. John's in 2011-12 and 2012-13 before RS transfer year at Cal State Northridge) hurled six shutout innings to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals.

  • RHP Bobby Humphreys (four-year hoops letterman for Hampden-Sydney VA in mid-1950s) traded by the St. Louis Cardinals to the Chicago Cubs in 1965.

  • INF Ralph LaPointe (Vermont hoops letterman during WWII) traded by the Philadelphia Phillies with $30,000 to St. Louis Cardinals for 1B Dick Sisler in 1948.

  • RHP Dave Madison (hoops letterman for Louisiana State from 1939-40 through 1942-43) purchased from the New York Yankees by the St. Louis Browns in 1952.

  • Philadelphia Phillies RHP Bobby Munoz (scored 35 points for Polk Community College FL in game against Palm Beach in mid-November 1986) hurled three innings of scoreless relief against the Colorado Rockies in 1994 appearance for his lone MLB save.

  • Minnesota Twins RHP Jim Perry (averaged more than 20 ppg in late 1950s for former juco Campbell) opened 1970 campaign by shutting out the Chicago White Sox en route to A.L.-leading 24 victories.

  • Detroit Tigers 3B Tony Phillips (New Mexico Military juco hooper in 1977-78 as teammate of eventual Drake All-American Lewis Lloyd) contributed four hits in a 1993 game against the Oakland Athletics.

  • Chicago White Sox DH Jim Thome (played junior-college hoops for Illinois Central in 1988-89) smacked decisive three-run homer in bottom of the eighth inning of 4-2 win in 2009 season opener.

  • New York Yankees LF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) homered in each of his first three games in 1983.

MAC Attacks Streak: No Member in 65 Years Compiled Unbeaten League Mark

A year ago, South Dakota State (18-0) became the first Summit League member to compile an unblemished conference record since the league's inaugural season in 1982-83. Oral Roberts duplicated SDSU's feat in the SL this campaign.

Indiana, the last NCAA Division I school to go undefeated (32-0 in 1975-76), is also the last team to go unbeaten in Big Ten Conference play. The Mid-American (65 straight years) is the only league posting a longer active streak than the Big Ten without an undefeated team in conference competition.

Analyst Dick Vitale, rather than chronically currying favor with the big boys energizing ESPN elitism, should always be promoting the MAC. After all, he has firsthand experience dealing with league rigors, losing his first six games against MAC members when coaching independent Detroit.

After SDSU's success in the SL in 2021-22, the Big East Conference and Northeast Conference remained as leagues never having an undefeated club since their alliances were formed in the early 1980s. Following are the six longest current streaks of at least 40 campaigns without a member going unbeaten in league competition:

Conference (Years) Last Unbeaten Team in League Play Coach (Overall Record)
Mid-American (65) Miami (Ohio) in 1957-58 Dick Shrider (18-9)
Big Ten (47) Indiana in 1975-76 Bob Knight (32-0)
Pac-12 (45) UCLA in 1977-78 Gary Cunningham (25-3)
Big East (44) None since inaugural season (1979-80) never achieved in league
Northeast (42) None since inaugural season (1981-82) never achieved in league
Colonial Athletic Association (40) William & Mary in 1982-83 Bruce Parkhill (20-9)

On This Date: Former College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on April 6

Extra! Extra! As a new season picks up steam, you can read news all about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Two former small-college hoopers from Iowa - Davey Lopes (Iowa Wesleyan) and Jim Todd (Parsons) before transferring to schools in other states - made MLB news on this date. Ditto ex-hoopers Mark Acre (New Mexico State), Tony Clark (Arizona/San Diego State), Mark Hendrickson (Washington State) and Darrell Sutherland (Stanford) from Far West universities. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 6 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 6

  • Oakland A's RHP Mark Acre (played in 1990 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament with New Mexico State) earned his second relief victory in three days against the New York Yankees in 1997.

  • Baltimore Orioles CF Al Bumbry (Virginia State's runner-up in scoring with 16.7 ppg as freshman in 1964-65) scored four runs in 1983 game against the Kansas City Royals.

  • Detroit Tigers 1B Tony Clark (San Diego State's leading scorer in WAC games in 1991-92 after transferring from Arizona) contributed two sixth-inning hits, including a grand slam, in a 10-inning, 10-9 win over the Chicago White Sox in 2001. Eight years later, Clark clobbered back-to-back homers for the Arizona Diamondbacks in a season-opening, 9-8 win against the Colorado Rockies in 2009.

  • In 2006, LHP Mark Hendrickson (two-time All-Pacific-10 Conference selection paced Washington State four straight seasons in rebounding 1992-93 through 1995-96) hurled first complete-game shutout for the Tampa Devil Rays in a span of 349 contests (three-hit, 2-0 whitewash against Baltimore Orioles).

  • Los Angeles Dodgers 2B Davey Lopes (NAIA All-District 15 selection for Iowa Wesleyan averaged 16.9 ppg as freshman in 1964-65 and 12.1 ppg as sophomore in 1965-66 before transferring to Washburn KS with his coach and becoming All-CIC choice with 1968 NAIA Tournament team) scored three runs and stole three bases against the San Diego Padres in a 1974 game.

  • RHP Joe Niekro (averaged 8.9 ppg and 3.8 rpg for West Liberty WV from 1963-64 through 1965-66) purchased from the Atlanta Braves by the Houston Astros for $35,000 in 1975.

  • In his first start with the St. Louis Cardinals, RHP Sonny Siebert (team-high 16.7 ppg for Missouri in 1957-58 as All-Big Eight Conference second-team selection) tossed a four-hit shutout against the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1974.

  • RHP Darrell Sutherland (averaged 8.1 ppg and 2.2 rpg for Stanford from 1960-61 through 1962-63) awarded on waivers from the Philadelphia Phillies to the New York Mets as a first-year waiver selection in 1964.

  • RHP Ralph Terry (juco hooper averaged 22 ppg for Northeastern Oklahoma A&M in mid-1950s) traded by the Cleveland Indians to Kansas City Athletics in 1966.

  • RHP Jim Todd (Parsons IA hooper before averaging 16 ppg with Millersville PA in 1968-69) traded by the Chicago Cubs to the Oakland Athletics for a player to be designated and cash in 1975.

  • After 159 MLB starts, RHP Chris Young (All-Ivy League first-team selection as Princeton's leading scorer and rebounder in 1999-00) made his debut with the Seattle Mariners as a reliever (two hitless innings against Oakland Athletics in 2014).

National Review: State-By-State Winners & Sinners in NCAA Tourney History

No state is close to winning as much as two-thirds of its NCAA Tournament games and none has as many as five different schools with winning playoff records. The Michigan Wolverines reaching the 2018 NCAA final instead of the Kansas Jayhawks enabled Michigan (.6284) to nudge ahead of Kansas (.6279) as the state with highest all-time winning percentage before the Michigan State Spartans padded the state's advantage with a 2019 Final Four appearance. Kansas, one of 20 states represented by four or fewer members in the U.S. House of Representatives, is represented much more in the NCAA playoffs by ranking seventh with 174 victories from only three universities after K-State reached a 2023 regional final.

Seven of the 13 states securing at least 100 all-time NCAA tourney triumphs - Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Oklahoma - combined to match champion Connecticut's six victories in 2023. With UK and Louisville struggling in postseason the past several years, California passed the Commonwealth in total NCAA playoff triumphs. Additional stately views of national winners and sinners you might want to review include:

  • Despite going winless in 2021 and notching only one victory in 2023, schools from the state of North Carolina have collected more NCAA Tournament triumphs (334) than a total of 22 states including those with power-conference members such as Georgia, Missouri, New Jersey and West Virginia.
  • All four ACC members in Carolina have more than 25 playoff triumphs. Each of them (Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State and Wake Forest) has more all-time wins than entire states such as Colorado, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, Rhode Island and South Carolina.
  • California is the only state with as many as 18 schools winning at least one NCAA Tournament game. Alas, fewer than 1/4 of them (four) have winning marks.
  • Other than Syracuse, Canisius is the only current New York Division I school to compile a winning NCAA playoff record (6-4) as the state went winless in 2023. CCNY, the NCAA's DI champion in 1950, assembled a 4-2 mark ledger before de-emphasizing its program.
  • Despite Villanova's two NCAA titles in the last seven tourneys, Pennsylvania is the only one of the five states with at least 185 tourney victories to compile an overall losing mark.
  • Villanova (plus 32 in PA; 71-39) and Syracuse (plus 29 in NY; 70-41) are the most games above .500 in states with overall losing playoff marks. On the flip side, Miami OH (minus 13; 6-19) and Murray State KY (minus 13; 5-18) are tied for most games below .500 in states with overall winning worksheets.
  • Abilene Christian enabled Texas earlier this decade to nudge ahead of California for most different schools participating in the tourney with 24 although Baylor and Houston are the only institutions from the Lone Star State posting a winning record. Texas has a total of 15 Final Four teams but is more games under .500 than any state (minus 35 including nine different participants never winning a playoff contest).
  • None of Louisiana's 12 schools appearing in the playoffs have notched a winning record. South Carolina has the most universities participate in the tourney (nine) without any of them posting a break-even or winning playoff record. Kansas has only three different colleges appear in the NCAA Tournament but boasts more than seven times as many victories as entire state of South Carolina and in excess of four times as many triumphs as all of Louisiana.
  • All six Mid-American Conference members from Ohio have losing records, combining for a 19-54 mark (.260).
  • Tennessee, the winningest state in NCAA playoff history despite never having a national champion, is the only state with as many as six schools at least five games below .500 in NCAA tourney competition.
  • Virginia is the only one of 12 different schools from its state and Memphis is only one of 11 different Tennessee schools appearing in the tourney to post a winning record.
  • Memphis (35-28) is joined by Spokane, Wash.-based Gonzaga (44-25) as the only mid-major schools leading a state with total of more than 40 playoff wins.
  • The only two states with fewer than 50 tourney triumphs assembling overall winning records are Nevada (39-29 by 6-10 Nevada and 33-19 UNLV) plus New Hampshire (10-7 by Dartmouth).
  • Utah is the only state saddled with as many as three schools posting tourney marks more than 10 games below .500 - Brigham Young (15-33), Utah State (6-25) and Weber State (6-17).

Plagiarist Biledumb, despite big tech and much of #MessMedia hiding details about his soap-opera family, "showers" prospect of success telling truth about attending HBCU Delaware State a mite more than the NCAA Tournament win total of the state he served as Senator because Delaware is 0-7. At least five different schools from Texas posted a minimum of one NCAA tourney triumph for the second straight year as the Longhorn State matched California and Florida for most wins in 2023 (eight). In the aftermath of all three Iowa representatives eliminated in the opening round, following are NCAA Division I playoff cumulative records listed by most state victories through 2023:

STATE (# of Tourney Schools) Overall Record Pct. School-By-School NCAA Playoff Marks (Listed Alphabetically)
NORTH CAROLINA (16) 334-204 .621 Appalachian State (0-3), Campbell (0-1), Charlotte (7-12), Davidson (8-16), Duke (119-40), East Carolina (0-2), Gardner-Webb (0-1), North Carolina (131-49), North Carolina A&T (1-10), North Carolina Central (0-4), North Carolina State (37-27), UNC Asheville (2-5), UNC Greensboro (0-4), UNC Wilmington (1-6), Wake Forest (28-23) and Western Carolina (0-1)
CALIFORNIA (23) 254-229 .526 California (20-19), UC Davis (0-1), UC Irvine (1-2), Cal Poly (1-1), UC Santa Barbara (1-7), Cal State Bakersfield (0-1), Cal State Fullerton (2-4), Cal State Los Angeles (0-1), Cal State Northridge (0-2), Fresno State (2-6), Long Beach State (7-10), Loyola Marymount (5-5), Pacific (4-10), Pepperdine (5-14), Saint Mary's (7-12), San Diego (1-4), San Diego State (11-15), San Francisco (21-15), San Jose State (0-3), Santa Clara (11-13), Southern California (17-23), Stanford (23-16) and UCLA (115-45)
KENTUCKY (seven) 238-161 .596 Eastern Kentucky (0-8), Kentucky (132-55), Louisville (76-44), Morehead State (6-9), Murray State (5-18), Northern Kentucky (0-3) and Western Kentucky (19-24)
PENNSYLVANIA (15) 197-213 .480 Bucknell (2-8), Drexel (1-5), Duquesne (4-5), Lafayette (0-5), La Salle (14-11), Lebanon Valley (1-2), Lehigh (1-5), Penn (13-26), Penn State (10-12), Pittsburgh (26-28), Robert Morris (2-8), Saint Francis (0-1), Saint Joseph's (19-25), Temple (33-33) and Villanova (71-39)
INDIANA (nine) 187-153 .550 Ball State (3-7), Butler (24-16), Evansville (1-5), Indiana (68-36), IUPUI (0-1), Indiana State (5-4), Notre Dame (40-41), Purdue (44-34) and Valparaiso (2-9)
TEXAS (24) 179-214 .455 Abilene Christian (1-2), Baylor (22-16), Hardin-Simmons (0-2), Houston (38-29), Houston Baptist (0-1), Lamar (5-6), North Texas (1-4), Prairie View A&M (0-2), Rice (2-5), Sam Houston State (0-2), Southern Methodist (10-14), Stephen F. Austin (2-5), Texas (39-40), Texas A&M (13-16), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (1-3), Texas-Arlington (0-1), Texas Christian (7-10), Texas-El Paso (14-16), Texas-San Antonio (1-4), Texas Southern (3-11), Texas State (0-2), Texas Tech (19-20), Trinity (0-1) and West Texas A&M (0-1)
OHIO (12) 177-177 .500 Akron (0-5), Bowling Green (1-5), Cincinnati (46-32), Cleveland State (3-3), Dayton (19-20), Kent State (4-7), Miami (6-19), Ohio University (8-15), Ohio State (58-34), Toledo (1-4), Wright State (1-4) and Xavier (30-29)
KANSAS (three) 174-102 .630 Kansas (116-49), Kansas State (40-36 and Wichita State (18-17)
MICHIGAN (eight) 151-88 .632 Central Michigan (3-4), Detroit (3-6), Eastern Michigan (3-4), Michigan (66-30), Michigan State (72-35), Oakland (1-3), Wayne State (1-2) and Western Michigan (2-4)
NEW YORK (22) 142-178 .444 Albany (1-5), Binghamton (0-1), Buffalo (2-4), Canisius (6-4), CCNY (4-2), Colgate (0-6), Columbia (2-4), Cornell (2-6), Fordham (2-4), Hofstra (0-4), Iona (1-16), Long Island (0-7), Manhattan (3-9), Marist (0-2), NYU (9-9), Niagara (2-4), St. Bonaventure (7-10), St. John's (27-32), Siena (4-6), Stony Brook (0-1), Syracuse (70-41) and Wagner (0-1)
OKLAHOMA (five) 106-97 .522 Oklahoma (43-33), Oklahoma City (8-13), Oklahoma State (39-28), Oral Roberts (4-7) and Tulsa (12-16)
FLORIDA (11) 101-74 .577 Florida (48-21), Florida A&M (1-3), Florida Atlantic (4-2), Florida Gulf Coast (3-3), Florida International (0-1), Florida State (23-18), Jacksonville (4-5), Miami (15-12), North Florida (0-1), South Florida (2-3) and UCF (1-5)
ILLINOIS (10) 100-101 .498 Bradley (11-9), DePaul (21-25), Eastern Illinois (0-2), Illinois (42-34), Illinois-Chicago (0-3), Illinois State (3-6), Loyola of Chicago (15-7), Northern Illinois (0-3), Northwestern (2-2) and Southern Illinois (6-10)
VIRGINIA (13) 87-110 .4426 George Mason (5-6), Hampton (2-6), James Madison (4-5), Liberty (1-5), Longwood (0-1), Norfolk State (2-3), Old Dominion (3-12), Radford (1-3), Richmond (9-10), Virginia (35-24), Virginia Commonwealth (13-18), Virginia Military (3-3) and Virginia Tech (8-13)
WISCONSIN (four) 86-70 .551 Green Bay (1-5), Marquette (42-36), Milwaukee (3-4) and Wisconsin (40-25)
TENNESSEE (11) 82-123 .400 Austin Peay (2-8), Belmont (1-8), Chattanooga (3-12), East Tennessee State (2-11), Lipscomb (0-1), Memphis (35-28), Middle Tennessee State (4-9), Tennessee (25-26), Tennessee State (0-2), Tennessee Tech (0-2) and Vanderbilt (10-16)
WASHINGTON (five) 79-65 .549 Eastern Washington (0-3), Gonzaga (44-25), Seattle (10-13), Washington (19-18) and Washington State (6-6)
ARIZONA (four) 73-58 .557 Arizona (58-36), Arizona State (15-18), Grand Canyon (0-2) and Northern Arizona (0-2)
CONNECTICUT (five) 66-46 .589 Central Connecticut State (0-3), Connecticut (65-32), Fairfield (0-3), Hartford (0-1) and Yale (1-7)
UTAH (five) 65-108 .376 Brigham Young (15-32), Southern Utah (0-1), Utah (38-33), Utah State (6-25) and Weber State (6-17)
IOWA (four) 63-67 .485 Drake (6-6), Iowa (31-31), Iowa State (21-22) and Northern Iowa (5-8)
MARYLAND (eight) 56-59 .487 Coppin State (1-4), Loyola (0-2), Maryland (44-29), Maryland-Baltimore County (1-2), Morgan State (0-2), Mount St. Mary's (2-6), Navy (8-12) and Towson (0-2)
ALABAMA (nine) 55-71 .437 Alabama (25-24), Alabama A&M (0-1), Alabama State (0-4), Auburn (19-12), Jacksonville State (0-2), Samford (0-2), South Alabama (1-8), Troy (0-2) and UAB (10-16)
ARKANSAS (four) 53-42 .558 Arkansas (50-35), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (1-1), Arkansas State (0-1) and UALR (2-5)
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA (five) 51-49 .510 American University (0-3), Catholic (0-2), George Washington (4-11), Georgetown (47-30) and Howard University (0-3)
MASSACHUSETTS (nine) 48-67 .417 Boston College (22-19), Boston University (2-7), Harvard (2-6), Holy Cross (8-13), Massachusetts (11-9), Northeastern (3-9), Springfield (0-1), Tufts (0-2) and Williams (0-1)
NEW JERSEY (seven) 44-71 .383 Fairleigh Dickinson (3-7), Monmouth (1-4), Princeton (15-30), Rider (0-3), Rutgers (6-9), Saint Peter's (3-4) and Seton Hall (16-14)
LOUISIANA (12) 42-79 .347 Louisiana-Lafayette (4-12), Louisiana-Monroe (0-7), Louisiana State (27-27), Louisiana Tech (4-5), Loyola of New Orleans (0-3), McNeese State (0-2), New Orleans (1-5), Nicholls State (0-2), Northwestern State (2-3), Southeastern Louisiana (0-1), Southern (1-9) and Tulane (3-3)
OREGON (four) 41-41 .500 Oregon (26-16), Oregon State (15-21), Portland (0-2) and Portland State (0-2)
NEVADA (two) 39-29 .574 Nevada (6-10) and UNLV (33-19)
GEORGIA (six) 33-42 .440 Georgia (7-12), Georgia Southern (0-3), Georgia State (2-6), Georgia Tech (23-17), Kennesaw State (0-1) and Mercer (1-3)
WEST VIRGINIA (two) 33-37 .471 Marshall (1-6) and West Virginia (32-31)
MISSOURI (four) 32-48 .400 Missouri (23-29), Missouri State (3-6), Saint Louis (6-11) and Southeast Missouri State (0-2)
RHODE ISLAND (four) 25-36 .410 Brown (0-2), Bryant (0-1), Providence (17-23) and Rhode Island (8-10)
SOUTH CAROLINA (nine) 24-63 .276 Charleston Southern (0-1), Clemson (11-13), Coastal Carolina (0-4), College of Charleston (1-6), Furman (2-8), South Carolina (8-10), South Carolina State (0-5), Winthrop (1-11) and Wofford (1-5)
MISSISSIPPI (six) 19-38 .333 Alcorn State (3-6), Jackson State (0-3), Mississippi (5-9), Mississippi State (11-12), Mississippi Valley State (0-5) and Southern Mississippi (0-3)
NEW MEXICO (two) 19-44 .302 New Mexico (8-16) and New Mexico State (11-28)
NEBRASKA (two) 18-32 .360 Creighton (18-25) and Nebraska (0-7)
COLORADO (four) 15-34 .306 Air Force (0-4), Colorado (11-17), Colorado State (4-12) and Northern Colorado (0-1)
MINNESOTA (one) 14-14 .500 Minnesota (14-14)
NEW HAMPSHIRE (one) 10-7 .588 Dartmouth (10-7)
WYOMING (one) 9-21 .300 Wyoming (9-21)
IDAHO (three) 9-26 .257 Boise State (0-9), Idaho (1-4) and Idaho State (8-13)
NORTH DAKOTA (two) 2-5 .286 North Dakota (0-1) and North Dakota State (2-4)
VERMONT (one) 2-7 .222 Vermont (2-7)
MONTANA (two) 2-18 .100 Montana (2-13) and Montana State (0-5)
HAWAII (one) 1-5 .167 Hawaii (1-5)
SOUTH DAKOTA (one) 0-6 .000 South Dakota State (0-6)
DELAWARE (two) 0-7 .000 Delaware (0-6) and Delaware State (0-1)

NOTE: Two states - Alaska and Maine - never had a school participate in the NCAA Division I Tournament.

On This Date: Former College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on April 5

Extra! Extra! As a new season gains steam, you can avoid #MessMedia trailing "The Donald" like a rabid dog by reading news all about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players! Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Former small-college hoopers Frank Baker (Southern Mississippi), Fred Kipp (Emporia State KS), Roger Mason (Saginaw Valley State MI), Ted Savage (Lincoln MO) and Ken Singleton (Hofstra) were involved in MLB transactions on this date. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 5 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 5

  • INF Frank Baker (Southern Mississippi basketball letterman in 1965-66 and 1966-67) traded by the New York Yankees to the Baltimore Orioles in 1973.

  • Detroit Tigers 1B Tony Clark (San Diego State's leading scorer in WAC games in 1991-92) smacked two homers among his four hits in a 15-12 win against the Chicago White Sox in 1997. Four years later, Clark contributed four hits against the Minnesota Twins in 2001.

  • LHP Fred Kipp (two-time all-conference selection for Emporia State KS in early 1950s) traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the New York Yankees in 1960.

  • RHP Roger Mason (multiple-year letterman for Saginaw Valley State MI in late 1970s) traded by the Detroit Tigers to the San Francisco Giants in 1985.

  • California Angels 3B Bob Oliver (All-Valley Conference basketball choice for American River Community College CA in 1962) supplied four hits in an 8-2 win against the Chicago White Sox in 1974 season opener.

  • OF Ted Savage (led Lincoln MO in scoring average in 1955-56) purchased from the Cincinnati Reds by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1970.

  • OF Ken Singleton (Hofstra freshman squad in mid-1960s) traded with Tim Foli and Mike Jorgensen by the New York Mets to the Montreal Expos for Rusty Staub in 1972.

  • Atlanta Braves reliever Cecil Upshaw (led Centenary in scoring as junior while averaging 13.7 ppg and 6 rpg from 1961-62 through 1963-64) registered the victory in a season-opening 7-4 success at Cincinnati in 1971. Upshaw missed the previous campaign after almost losing the ring finger on his right hand when it got entangled in a net while dunking basketball.

  • RHP Chris Young (All-Ivy League first-team selection as Princeton's leading scorer and rebounder in 1999-00) became the first hurler in New York Mets history to collect two hits in an inning (pair of singles in third against Philadelphia Phillies in 2011). Young contributed a third single in the fifth in his first start with the Mets.

Twice Wasn't Enough: UConn 16th Champion Losing > Once vs. Same Foe

The first 38 NCAA titlists, from Oregon (29-5 record in 1938-39) through Indiana (the last unbeaten team with a 32-0 mark in 1975-76), averaged barely over two setbacks per season. No kingpin sustained more than six reversals until Marquette's Al McGuire-coached squad was 25-7 in 1976-77. However, McGuire's swan song was a sign of things to come as six of the 11 championship clubs from 1981 through 1991 finished with at least seven losses. Two of the six - Villanova '85 and Kansas '88 - entered the playoffs unranked in a wire-service final Top 20 since the AP and UPI both were conducting polls in 1951.

This campaign, Big East Conference rivals Marquette and Xavier each defeated Connecticut, the eventual NCAA champion, twice. Feeling like a sixth-grader trying to collect $20G from ESPN after Bracket Boy tied for winning NCAA tourney contest several years ago, following is a list of the 16 titlists losing at least twice in their title season against a total of 22 different opponents:

Season NCAA Champion Record Team(s) Defeating Titlist at Least Twice
1953-54 La Salle 26-4 Niagara (24-6) defeated the Explorers twice by a total of 27 points before finishing in third place in the NIT.
1980-81 Indiana 26-9 Iowa (21-7) defeated the Hoosiers twice by a total of 16 points before losing its NCAA playoff opener in second round against Wichita State on the Shockers' home-court.
1982-83 North Carolina State 26-10 Maryland (20-10) defeated the Wolfpack twice by a total of 14 points before losing in second round against national runner-up Houston. Virginia (29-5) defeated the Wolfpack twice by a total of 19 points before losing against N.C. State by one point in West Regional final.
1984-85 Villanova 25-10 St. John's (31-4) defeated the Wildcats three times by a total of 22 points before losing against Georgetown in national semifinals. Georgetown (35-3) defeated the Wildcats twice by a total of nine points before losing against Villanova by two points in national final.
1985-86 Louisville 32-7 Kansas (35-4) defeated the Cardinals twice by a total of seven points before losing against Duke in national semifinals.
1987-88 Kansas 27-11 Kansas State (25-9) defeated the Jayhawks twice by a total of 26 points before losing against KU in Midwest Regional final. Oklahoma (35-4) defeated the Jayhawks twice by eight points in Big Eight Conference regular-season competition before losing against KU by four points in national final.
1988-89 Michigan 30-7 Illinois (31-5) defeated the Wolverines twice by a total of 28 points before losing against UM by two points in national semifinals. Indiana (27-8) defeated the Wolverines twice by one point before losing against eventual national runner-up Seton Hall in West Regional semifinals.
1996-97 Arizona 25-9 UCLA (24-8) defeated the Wildcats twice by a total of eight points before losing against Minnesota in Midwest Regional final.
2002-03 Syracuse 30-5 Connecticut (23-10) defeated the Orangemen twice by a total of 27 points before losing against Texas in South Regional semifinals.
2005-06 Florida 33-6 South Carolina (23-15) defeated the Gators twice by a total of 10 points before successfully defending its NIT championship. Tennessee (22-8) defeated the Gators twice by four points apiece before losing against Wichita State in second round of Washington (East) Regional.
2010-11 Connecticut 32-9 Notre Dame (27-7) defeated the Huskies twice by three points each time before losing against Florida State in second round of South Regional. Louisville (25-10) defeated the Huskies twice by a total of 14 points before losing against Morehead State in opening round of South Regional.
2013-14 Connecticut 32-8 SMU (27-10) defeated the Huskies twice by nine points each time before finishing NIT runner-up. Louisville (31-6) defeated the Huskies three times by a total of 55 points before bowing against eventual national runner-up Kentucky in Midwest Regional semifinals.
2014-15 Duke 35-4 Notre Dame (32-6) defeated the Blue Devils twice by a total of 14 points before losing against Kentucky in Midwest Regional final.
2016-17 North Carolina 33-7 Duke (28-9) defeated the Tar Heels twice by a total of 18 points before losing against Final Four-bound South Carolina in second round of East Regional.
2018-19 Virginia 35-3 Duke (32-6) defeated the Cavaliers twice by a total of 12 points before losing against Michigan State in East Regional final.
2022-23 Connecticut 31-8 Marquette (29-7) defeated the Huskies twice by a total of eight points before losing against Michigan State in East Regional second round. Xavier (27-10) defeated the Huskies twice by a total of 13 points before losing against Texas in Midwest Regional semifinals.

Boys Gone Wild: PC's Hopkins Posted Highest-Scoring Game Against UConn

Six years ago, Kentucky freshman guard Malik Monk may have manufactured the highest single-game scoring output in history against an NCAA champion-to-be when he erupted for 47 points against North Carolina in a non-conference contest at Las Vegas. In 2019, Purdue's Carsen Edwards poured in 42 points against kingpin-to-be Virginia in the South Regional final, matching Bo Kimble's output for Loyola Marymount vs. UNLV in 1990 NCAA playoffs. Notre Dame senior guard Austin Carr poured in 46 against UCLA in 1970-71. Statistical research is sketchy in the 1940s and 1950s in trying to discern if anyone contributed a higher total than Monk or Carr.

This season, Kentucky transfer Bryce Hopkins tallied 27 points for Providence against champion-to-be Connecticut. Hopkins, finishing season with a scoring average of 15.8 ppg, is the eighth of the last 14 players in this category averaging fewer than 16 ppg. Since UCLA's first NCAA championship in 1964, Louisville guard Russ Smith has the lowest scoring average (11.5 ppg in 2011-12) for any player who posted the single-game high against an NCAA titlist.

Some of the names probably will be surprising insofar as none of them became an NBA All-Star since Ray Allen (Connecticut), but following is a look in reverse order at the individuals notching the season-high scoring total against the past 59 eventual NCAA kingpins:

Year Opposing High Scorer vs. NCAA Titlist Avg. Single-Game High
2023 Bryce Hopkins, F, Soph., Providence 15.8 27 points vs. Connecticut
2022 Nijel Pack, G, Soph., Kansas State 17.4 35 vs. Kansas
2021 Cedric Russell, G, Sr., Louisiana-Lafayette 17.2 26 vs. Baylor at Las Vegas
2021 Taz Sherman, G, Sr., West Virginia 13.4 26 vs. Baylor
2019 Carsen Edwards, G, Jr., Purdue 24.3 42 vs. Virginia in South Regional final
2018 Shamorie Ponds, G, Soph., St. John's 21.6 37 vs. Villanova
2017 Malik Monk, G, Fr., Kentucky 19.8 47 vs. North Carolina at Las Vegas
2016 Ben Bentil, F, Soph., Providence 21.1 31 vs. Villanova
2016 L.J. Peak, G, Soph., Georgetown 12.3 31 vs. Villanova
2015 Michael Gbinije, F, Jr., Syracuse 12.7 27 vs. Duke
2014 Dustin Hogue, F, Jr., Iowa State 11.6 34 vs. Connecticut in NCAA playoffs
2013 Tyler Brown, G, Sr., Illinois State 18.1 25 at Louisville
2012 Russ Smith, G, Soph., Louisville 11.5 30 at Kentucky
2011 Dwight Hardy, G, Sr., St. John's 18.3 33 vs. Connecticut
2010 Trevon Hughes, G, Sr., Wisconsin 15.3 26 vs. Duke
2009 Kyle McAlarney, G, Sr., Notre Dame 15.0 39 vs. North Carolina at Maui
2008 Michael Beasley, F-C, Fr., Kansas State 26.2 39 at Kansas
2007 Al Thornton, F, Sr., Florida State 19.7 28 vs. Florida
2006 Chris Lofton, G, Soph., Tennessee 17.2 29 vs. Florida
2005 Will Bynum, G, Sr., Georgia Tech 12.5 35 vs. North Carolina in ACC Tournament
2004 Chris Thomas, G, Jr., Notre Dame 19.7 31 vs. Connecticut
2003 Chris Hill, G, Soph., Michigan State 13.7 34 vs. Syracuse
2002 Jason "Jay" Williams, G, Jr., Duke 21.3 34 vs. Maryland
2001 James "J.J." Miller, G, Sr., North Carolina A&T 16.0 34 at Duke
2000 A.J. Guyton, G, Sr., Indiana 19.7 34 vs. Michigan State
1999 Trajan Langdon, G, Sr., Duke 17.3 25 vs. Connecticut
1998 Brian Williams, G, Jr., Alabama 16.1 28 vs. Kentucky in SEC Tournament
1997 Isaac Fontaine, G, Sr., Washington State 21.9 32 vs. Arizona
1996 Marcus Camby, C, Jr., Massachusetts 20.5 32 vs. Kentucky at Great Eight
1995 Ray Allen, G, Soph., Connecticut 21.1 36 vs. UCLA in NCAA playoffs
1994 Gary Collier, F, Sr., Tulsa 22.9 35 vs. Arkansas in NCAA playoffs
1993 Chris Webber, F, Soph., Michigan 19.2 27 vs. North Carolina at Honolulu
1993 Randolph Childress, G, Soph., Wake Forest 19.7 27 vs. North Carolina
1993 James Forrest, F, Soph., Georgia Tech 19.5 27 vs. North Carolina in ACC Tournament
1993 Lester Lyons, G, Jr., East Carolina 15.4 27 vs. North Carolina in NCAA playoffs
1992 Malik Sealy, F, Sr., St. John's 22.6 37 vs. Duke at Greensboro
1991 Jeff Webster, F, Fr., Oklahoma 18.3 32 vs. Duke
1990 Greg "Bo" Kimble, F-G, Sr., Loyola Marymount 35.3 42 vs. UNLV in NCAA playoffs
1989 Roy Marble, F, Sr., Iowa 20.5 32 vs. Michigan
1988 Mitch Richmond, G-F, Sr., Kansas State 22.6 35 vs. Kansas
1987 Freddie Banks, G, Sr., UNLV 19.5 38 vs. Indiana in NCAA playoffs
1986 Ron Harper, F, Sr., Miami (oh) 24.4 36 vs. Louisville in Big Apple NIT at Cincinnati
1985 Len Bias, F, Jr., Maryland 18.9 30 vs. Villanova
1984 Chris Mullin, G-F, Jr., St. John's 22.9 29 vs. Georgetown in Big East Tournament
1983 Ralph Sampson, C, Sr., Virginia 19.1 33 vs. North Carolina State
1982 Ralph Sampson, C, Jr., Virginia 15.8 30 at North Carolina
1981 Mike McGee, F, Sr., Michigan 24.4 29 vs. Indiana
1980 Jeff Ruland, C, Jr., Iona 20.1 30 vs. Louisville
1979 Joe Barry Carroll, C, Jr., Purdue 22.8 27 vs. Michigan State
1979 Calvin Roberts, F-C, Jr., Cal State Fullerton 15.3 27 vs. Michigan State
1978 Freeman Williams, G, Sr., Portland State 35.9 39 at Kentucky
1977 Dave Corzine, C, Jr., DePaul 19.0 26 vs. Marquette
1976 Terry Furlow, F, Sr., Michigan State 29.4 40 vs. Indiana
1975 Kevin Grevey, F, Sr., Kentucky 23.5 34 vs. UCLA in NCAA final
1974 Billy Cook, G, Soph., Memphis State 16.2 33 vs. North Carolina State
1973 Billy Knight, F, Jr., Pittsburgh 23.7 37 vs. UCLA
1972 Fred Boyd, G, Sr., Oregon State 19.8 37 vs. UCLA
1971 Austin Carr, G, Sr., Notre Dame 38.0 46 vs. UCLA
1970 Pete Maravich, G, Sr., Louisiana State 44.5 38 vs. UCLA
1970 Rich Yunkus, C, Jr., Georgia Tech 30.1 38 vs. UCLA
1969 Vic Collucci, G, Soph., Providence 15.4 36 vs. UCLA
1968 Elvin Hayes, F-C, Sr., Houston 36.8 39 vs. UCLA
1967 Bill Hewitt, F, Jr., Southern California 19.5 39 vs. UCLA
1966 Jerry Chambers, F-C, Sr., Utah 28.8 38 vs. Texas Western in NCAA playoffs
1965 Ollie Johnson, C, Sr., San Francisco 21.6 37 vs. UCLA
1964 Tom Dose, C, Sr., Stanford 20.0 38 vs. UCLA

Last Man Standing: Will MOP Adama Sanogo Make Significant Impact in NBA?

"I'm gonna make it to heaven, light up the sky like a flame. I'm gonna live forever. Baby, remember my name." - Theme from 1980s film and TV series Fame

Connecticut's Adama Sanogo became the 12th Most Outstanding Player in NCAA Tournament history who wasn't an All-American. Five years ago, Villanova sixth man Donte DiVincenzo became the fourth MOP in a row who wasn't an A-A, joining Kansas' B.H. Born (1953), Villanova's Ed Pinckney (1985), Indiana's Keith Smart (1987), UNLV's Anderson Hunt (1990), North Carolina's Donald Williams (1993), Kentucky's Jeff Sheppard (1998), Louisville's Luke Hancock (2013), Duke's Tyus Jones (2015), Villanova's Ryan Arcidiacono (2016) and North Carolina's Joel Berry II (2017).

uestions linger as to whether Sanogo will have any impact in the NBA. Perhaps that is why he should think about what happens when the ball stops bouncing. What did the brightest Final Four stars do in the real world after Father Time took its toll on their playing ability? The following individuals weren't always defined solely as basketball standouts after earning acclaim as the Final Four MOP:

Year(s) - NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player, Position, Class, School

1939 - Jimmy Hull, F, Sr., Ohio State*
Employed as a dentist.

1940 - Marv Huffman, G, Sr., Indiana
Played one season with Goodyear in the National Industrial League in 1940-41 (5.1 ppg) and four with the Akron Collegians. After he stopped playing basketball, he was a special assistant to the president of Goodyear. He died in 1984 of multiple sclerosis.

1941 - John Kotz, F, Soph., Wisconsin
Retired in 1980 after working his way up from shipping clerk to president and majority stockholder of Badger Sporting Goods Company.

1942 - Howie Dallmar, G, Soph., Stanford
Averaged 9.6 ppg with the Philadelphia Warriors in three NBA seasons from 1946-47 through 1948-49. Compiled a 105-51 coaching record (.673) for Penn in six seasons from 1948-49 through 1953-54 before posting a 264-264 record (.500) with Stanford in 21 seasons from 1954-55 through 1974-75. His best season as a mentor was 22-5 mark for NCAA tourney team in 1952-53.

1943 - Kenny Sailors, G, Jr., Wyoming
Averaged 12.6 ppg and 2.8 apg with seven different NBA teams in five seasons from 1946-47 through 1950-51. Lived in Gakona, Alaska, where he owned a guided big-game hunting business with his son. Had a winter home in Arizona.

1944 - Arnie Ferrin, F, Fr., Utah
Averaged 5.8 ppg with the Minneapolis Lakers in three NBA seasons from 1948-49 through 1950-51. General Manager of the ABA's Utah Stars, athletic director for his alma mater and chairman of the NCAA Tournament selection committee in 1988.

1945 and 1946 - Bob Kurland, C, Jr./Sr., Oklahoma A&M
Retired Phillips Petroleum executive had a retirement home in Florida.

1947 - George Kaftan, F-C, Soph., Holy Cross
Averaged 7.5 ppg with the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks and Baltimore Bullets in five NBA seasons from 1948-49 through 1952-53. Graduated from Georgetown Dental School, coached C.W. Post for 17 seasons and maintained a dental practice.

1948 and 1949 - Alex Groza, C, Jr./Sr., Kentucky
Averaged 22.5 ppg with the Indianapolis Olympians in two NBA seasons in 1949-50 and 1950-51 before his pro career ended because of a college point-shaving scandal. Got a job at General Electric in Louisville before returning to his hometown (Martin's Ferry, Ohio) and running his mother's tavern. Compiled a 91-77 record (.542) as coach for Bellarmine College in seven seasons from 1959-60 through 1965-66. Executive with two ABA franchises (Kentucky Colonels and San Diego Conquistadors) before getting involved with professional volleyball. Joined Reynolds Metals in 1977 and traveled around the country as Pacific Coast manager of its chemical division.

1950 - Irwin Dambrot, F, Sr., CCNY
Became a dentist.

1951 - Bill Spivey, C, Sr., Kentucky
After 16 years in the bush leagues with assorted nondescript teams, he extended his nomadic existence with a series of jobs - salesman, insurance agent, real estate developer, government official (Kentucky's deputy insurance commissioner) and restaurant and bar owner - before relocating to Costa Rica.

1952 - Clyde Lovellette, C, Sr., Kansas
Averaged 17 ppg and 9.5 rpg with the Minneapolis Lakers, Cincinnati Royals, St. Louis Hawks and Boston Celtics in 11 NBA seasons from 1953-54 through 1963-64. Assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers in 1967 when they started their ABA franchise. Served as a sheriff in his native Indiana and taught and coached at White's Institute, a school for troubled youngsters in Wabash, before moving to Munising, Mich.

1953 - B.H. Born, C, Jr., Kansas*
Played AAU basketball until the late 1950s with the Peoria (Ill.) Caterpillars before going to work in the personnel office for Caterpillar Bulldozers. He spent his entire career working for Caterpillar until his retirement.

1954 - Tom Gola, C-F, Jr., La Salle
Averaged 11.3 ppg and 8 rpg with the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors and New York Knicks in 11 NBA seasons from 1955-56 through 1965-66. He invested in driving ranges, apartment complexes, recycling companies and residential sites. Gola owned his own insurance company and a skating rink. He was a spokesman for Texaco, Vitalis and the Army Reserve. In 1966, Gola began a two-term career as a state legislator while coaching his alma mater before becoming Philadelphia's city controller. He later became a vice president of the Valley Forge Investment Corporation and served on the board of the Philadelphia Convention Center.

1955 - Bill Russell, C, Jr., San Francisco
Twelve-time All-Star averaged 15.1 ppg, 22.5 rpg and 4.3 apg with the Boston Celtics in 13 NBA seasons from 1956-57 through 1968-69. Five-time MVP was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996). Compiled a 341-290 record (.540) with the Celtics (1966-67 through 1968-69), Seattle SuperSonics (1973-74 through 1976-77) and Sacramento Kings (1987-88) in eight seasons. Network analyst dabbled with acting but retreated to the quiet life on Mercer Island in Washington, and has a clothing line company called Center Court.

1956 - Hal Lear, G, Sr., Temple*
Played in three games for the NBA's Philadelphia Warriors in 1956-57 before playing 10 seasons in the Eastern Basketball League, becoming MVP in 1956-57 and averaging 39.7 ppg for Easton in 1960-61. Also averaged 13.1 ppg for Los Angeles and Cleveland in the ABL in 1961-62.

1957 - Wilt Chamberlain, C, Soph., Kansas*
Averaged 30.1 ppg, 22.9 rpg and 4.4 apg with the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers in 14 NBA seasons from 1959-60 through 1972-73. Made a fortune in the restaurant business, designed homes, owned racehorses and played professional volleyball. Also wrote four books: Wilt; A View From Above; Chamberlain House: The Possible Dream, and Who's Running the Asylum: The Insane World of Sports Today.

1958 - Elgin Baylor, C, Jr., Seattle*
Averaged 27.4 ppg, 13.5 rpg and 4.3 apg with the Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers in 14 seasons from 1958-59 through 1971-72. Coached the New Orleans Jazz for four seasons in the late 1970s (86-135 record). Executive with the Los Angeles Clippers.

1959 - Jerry West, F-G, Jr., West Virginia*
Averaged 27 ppg, 5.8 rpg and 6.7 apg with the Los Angeles Lakers in 14 NBA seasons from 1960-61 through 1973-74. Long-time executive with the Lakers before accepting a similar position with the Memphis Grizzlies.

1960 and 1961 - Jerry Lucas, C, Soph./Jr.*, Ohio State
Seven-time All-Star averaged 17 ppg and 15.6 rpg with the Cincinnati Royals, San Francisco Warriors and New York Knicks in 11 NBA seasons from 1963-64 through 1973-74. One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996). Memory expert and motivational speaker lived in Templeton, Calif., while working on revolutionary educational programs. Taught his memory and learning technique to many Fortune 500 companies and countless churches. He authored more than 60 books on learning, including The Memory Book, which was on the New York Times' best-seller list for 50 weeks and reached the No. 2 position behind All the President's Men, the investigative story that uncovered the Watergate scandal.

1962 - Paul Hogue, C, Sr., Cincinnati
Averaged 6.3 ppg and 7.1 rpg with the New York Knicks and Baltimore Bullets in two NBA seasons in 1962-63 and 1963-64. Worked with the Tennessee juvenile program before moving back to Cincinnati to work at a milling machine firm. He served as a physical therapist at a state mental hospital, a counselor at a neighborhood youth center and as a counselor in a local school system before becoming the division supervisor for the Postal Services' Employee Assistance Program.

1963 - Art Heyman, F, Sr., Duke*
Averaged 10.3 ppg and 2.8 rpg with the New York Knicks, Cincinnati Royals and Philadelphia 76ers in three NBA seasons from 1963-64 through 1965-66 before averaging 15.4 ppg and 6.4 rpg with the New Jersey Americans, Pittsburgh/Minnesota Pipers and Miami Floridians in three ABA seasons from 1967-68 through 1969-70. Owned and operated several restaurants.

1964 - Walt Hazzard, G, Sr., UCLA
Averaged 12.6 ppg, 3 rpg and 4.9 apg with five different NBA teams in 10 seasons from 1964-65 through 1973-74. Later named Mahdi Abdul-Rahmad, he worked in the Los Angeles Lakers' front office and coached his alma mater and Chapman College before suffering a stroke and undergoing open-heart surgery in 1996.

1965 - Bill Bradley, F, Sr., Princeton*
Rhodes Scholar averaged 12.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg and 3.4 apg with the New York Knicks in 10 NBA seasons from 1967-68 through 1976-77. Three-term U.S. Senator (Democrat-N.J.) until 1995 was a tax and trade expert with a strong voice on race issues and campaign finance reform. The presidential candidate against Al Gore in 2000 authored two basketball books (Life on the Run in 1976 and Values of the Game in 1998).

1966 - Jerry Chambers, F, Sr., Utah*
Averaged 8.3 ppg and 3.2 rpg with the Los Angeles Lakers, Phoenix Suns, Atlanta Hawks, Buffalo Braves, San Diego Conquistadors and San Antonio Spurs in six NBA/ABA seasons from 1966-67 to 1973-74. Worked for the L.A. city parks and recreation department for many years.

1967, 1968 and 1969 - Lew Alcindor, C, Soph./Jr./Sr., UCLA
Six-time league MVP averaged 24.6 ppg and 11.2 rpg in 20 NBA seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers from 1969-70 through 1988-89. Nineteen-time All-Star later named Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996). In 1999, he worked with a high school team at White Mountain Apache Reservation in Whiteriver, Ariz. He was an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers in 2000 and then worked in training camp with the Indiana Pacers before becoming head coach of the USBL's Oklahoma Storm for one season. Hired by the New York Knicks as a scout in March, 2004 before serving as a Lakers aide helping develop center Andrew Bynum. In January 2012, he was appointed a Cultural Ambassador for the U.S. Department of State before becoming a TIME columnist.

1970 - Sidney Wicks, F, Jr., UCLA
Averaged 16.8 ppg and 8.7 rpg with the Portland Trail Blazers, Boston Celtics and San Diego Clippers in 10 NBA seasons from 1971-72 through 1980-81. Worked in property management. Served as an assistant coach at his alma mater under Walt Hazzard for four seasons in the mid-1980s. At the completion of his coaching stint with the Bruins, Wicks has been in private business.

1971 - Howard Porter, F, Sr., Villanova*
Averaged 9.2 ppg and 4.1 rpg with the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons and New Jersey Nets in seven NBA seasons from 1971-72 through 1977-78. Senior probation officer for Ramsey County (Minn.) after getting clean from drugs with the help of a colleague working with him loading furniture for a construction firm in Orlando. Earlier, Porter failed at running a club in Florida and a convenience store. He was trying to trade money and crack cocaine for sex with a prostitute in St. Paul in May, 2007, when the probation officer was beaten to death, according to murder charges filed several months later.

1972 and 1973 - Bill Walton, C, Soph./Jr., UCLA
Averaged 13.3 ppg, 10.5 rpg and 3.4 apg with the Portland Trail Blazers, San Diego/Los Angeles Clippers and Boston Celtics in 10 NBA seasons from 1974-75 to 1986-87. Network commentator for both the NBA and NCAA after and while working in a similar capacity for the Clippers.

1974 - David Thompson, F, Jr., North Carolina State
Averaged 22.7 ppg and 4.1 rpg with the Denver Nuggets and Seattle SuperSonics in nine ABA/NBA seasons from 1975-76 through 1983-84. Motivational speaker with Unlimited Sports Management was also community relations director for the Charlotte Hornets.

1975 - Richard Washington, C-F, Soph., UCLA
Averaged 9.8 ppg and 6.3 rpg with the Kansas City Kings, Milwaukee Bucks, Dallas Mavericks and Cleveland Cavaliers in six NBA seasons from 1976-77 through 1981-82. Contractor in Portland.

1976 - Kent Benson, C, Jr., Indiana
Averaged 9.1 ppg and 5.7 rpg with four different NBA teams in 11 seasons from 1977-78 through 1987-88. Resided in Bloomington, where he worked with Diversified Benefit Services.

1977 - Butch Lee, G, Jr., Marquette
Averaged 8.1 ppg and 3.2 apg with the Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers in two NBA seasons in 1978-79 and 1979-80. Owned two restaurants, coached pro ball in Puerto Rico and had a sign business in San Juan.

1978 - Jack Givens, F, Sr., Kentucky
Averaged 6.7 ppg and 2.9 rpg with the Atlanta Hawks in two NBA seasons in 1978-79 and 1979-80. Announcer for the Orlando Magic did not have his contract renewed after he was found not guilty following an arrest during summer of 2004 on charges of sexual battery and lewd molestation of a 14-year-old girl.

1979 - Earvin "Magic" Johnson, G, Soph., Michigan State
Averaged 19.5 ppg, 7.2 rpg and 11.2 apg with the Los Angeles Lakers in 13 NBA seasons from 1979-80 through 1990-91 and 1995-96. Business entrepreneur emphasized attempting to revitalize a number of minority neighborhoods. He owned the Magic Theatres, an L.A. restaurant chain (Fatburgers), a TGI Friday's and some Starbucks coffee shops. Johnson was a principal in a local black-owned bank and delved into the entertainment business as a concert promoter and owner of the Magic Johnson Record label. Part of ownership group that purchased the Los Angeles Dodgers in the spring of 2012.

1980 - Darrell Griffith, G, Sr., Louisville
Averaged 16.2 ppg and 3.3 rpg with the Utah Jazz in 11 NBA seasons from 1980-81 through 1990-91. Resides in Louisville where he has several real estate investments and business interests. Father-in-law of former NBA standout Derek Anderson established a foundation in his hometown.

1981 - Isiah Thomas, G, Soph., Indiana
Twelve-time All-Star averaged 19.2 ppg, 3.6 rpg and 9.3 apg with the Detroit Pistons in 13 NBA seasons from 1981-82 through 1993-94. One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996) served as president of the New York Knicks from 2003-04 through 2007-08. Executive and part owner of the Toronto Raptors, owner of the CBA and coach of the Indiana Pacers (131-115 record in three seasons from 2000-01 through 2002-03). Served as coach for Florida International three seasons. Named president and part-owner of the Knicks' WNBA sister team, the New York Liberty, subsequent to the re-hiring of Thomas' former Pistons teammate, Bill Laimbeer, as the team's coach.

1982 - James Worthy, F, Jr., North Carolina
Averaged 17.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg and 3 apg with the Los Angeles Lakers in 12 NBA seasons from 1982-83 through 1993-94. Served as network TV analyst.

1983 - Hakeem Olajuwon, C, Soph., Houston*
Twelve-time All-Star averaged 21.8 ppg, 11.1 rpg and 3.1 bpg with the Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors in 18 seasons from 1984-85 through 2001-02. Six-time All-NBA first-team selection was named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996). NBA Most Valuable Player in 1993-94 was one of only eight players in league history to amass more than 20,000 points and 12,000 rebounds. Split time between his ranch near Houston (buying real estate in cash-only purchases) and Jordan, where he pursued Islamic studies.

1984 - Patrick Ewing, C, Jr., Georgetown
Eleven-time All-Star averaged 21 ppg, 9.8 rpg and 2.4 bpg with the New York Knicks, Seattle SuperSonics and Orlando Magic in 17 seasons from 1985-86 through 2001-02. One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996) became an assistant coach with the Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic and Charlotte Bobcats before becoming head coach of his alma mater in 2017-18. Ewing managed only one winning record in six years as bench boss for the Hoyas.

1985 - Ed Pinckney, F, Sr., Villanova
Averaged 6.8 ppg and 5 rpg with seven different NBA teams in 12 seasons from 1985-86 through 1996-97. Miami Heat TV analyst while trying to cope with an overactive thyroid.

1986 - Pervis Ellison, C, Fr., Louisville
Averaged 9.7 ppg and 6.8 rpg with the Sacramento Kings, Washington Bullets and Boston Celtics in 10 NBA seasons from 1989-90 through 1997-98 and 1999-00. Lived in Atlanta. Coached basketball for various teams throughout Southern New Jersey, including his son, Malik, at Life Center Academy.

1987 - Keith Smart, G, Jr., Indiana
Played in two games with the San Antonio Spurs in 1988-89 before basketball took him to the Philippines, Venezuela and France. After playing and coaching in the CBA with the Fort Wayne (Ind.) Fury, he joined the Cleveland Cavaliers as director of player development and assistant coach. Smart was named interim head coach of the Cavs midway through the 2002-03 campaign, replacing John Lucas. Also promoted from assistant to head coach with the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings before becoming an aide for the Miami Heat.

1988 - Danny Manning, F, Sr., Kansas
Two-time All-Star averaged 14 ppg and 5.2 rpg with seven different franchises in 15 NBA seasons from 1988-89 through 2002-03. Assistant coach at his alma mater for nine seasons before accepting head coaching position with Tulsa and subsequently accepting a similar position at Wake Forest.

1989 - Glen Rice, F, Sr., Michigan
Averaged 18.3 ppg and 4.4 rpg with six different NBA franchises in 15 seasons from 1989-90 through 2003-04. Three-time All-Star was the Heat's all-time leading scorer.

1990 - Anderson Hunt, G, Soph., UNLV
Photograph was published of him with a couple of teammates in a hot tub with known sports fixer Richard Perry before pleading guilty to misdemeanor charges in connection with marijuana found in his possession during a traffic stop in October 1993. Played overseas in France, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Venezuela. Worked in real estate market in Detroit following employment at Burger Palace inside the Imperial Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

1991 - Christian Laettner, C-F, Jr., Duke
All-Star in 1996-97 averaged 12.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg and 2.6 apg with six different NBA franchises in 13 seasons from 1992-93 through 2004-05. He and Duke teammate Brian Davis faced huge financial and legal hurdles stemming from a loan their real estate company failed to repay nearly $700,000 to former Duke captain and current Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins. Court documents obtained by the Wall Street Journal indicated that Laettner and Davis were defendants in several civil lawsuits seeking repayment of about $30 million.

1992 - Bobby Hurley, G, Jr., Duke
Averaged 3.8 ppg and 3.3 apg with the Sacramento Kings and Vancouver Grizzlies in five NBA seasons from 1993-94 through 1997-98. Owned race horses and did TV commentary on the ACC for Fox Sports. Assistant coach under his brother, Danny, with Wagner and Rhode Island prior to becoming head coach with Buffalo and Arizona State.

1993 - Donald Williams, G, Soph., North Carolina
Played professional basketball overseas in Germany and Greece and with the Harlem Globetrotters.

1994 - Corliss Williamson, F, Soph., Arkansas
Averaged 11.1 ppg and 3.9 rpg with the Sacramento Kings, Toronto Raptors, Detroit Pistons and Philadelphia 76ers in 12 NBA seasons from 1995-96 through 2006-07. Scored a career-high 40 points against the Pistons on 3-4-98. Coached for Arkansas Baptist College and Central Arkansas before returning to the NBA as an assistant coach with the Kings.

1995 - Ed O'Bannon, F, Sr., UCLA
Averaged 5 ppg and 2.5 rpg with the New Jersey Nets and Dallas Mavericks in two NBA seasons in 1995-96 and 1996-97. After his brief NBA career, he played professionally in Europe (Italy, Spain, Greece and Poland) before becoming a Toyota salesman/marketing director in the Las Vegas area. Lead plaintiff in highly-publicized lawsuit against the NCAA, disputing the organization's use of the images of its former student-athletes for commercial purposes.

1996 - Tony Delk, G, Sr., Kentucky
Averaged 9.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg and 1.9 apg with eight different franchises in 10 NBA seasons from 1996-97 through 2005-06. Scored a career-high 53 points against the Kings on 1-2-01. Played overseas in Greece and Puerto Rico before serving as an assistant coach at his alma mater and New Mexico State.

1997 - Miles Simon, G, Jr., Arizona
Appeared in five games with the NBA's Orlando Magic in 1998-99. Played professionally in Israel in 2000 and Italy in 2001 before joining the Dakota Wizards of the CBA where he earned 2002 Newcomer of the Year and MVP honors. Also played in Venezuela and Turkey before joining his alma mater's staff as an assistant under Lute Olson in 2005. Served as a commentator for ESPN.

1998 - Jeff Sheppard, G, Sr., Kentucky
After playing the 1998-99 season with the Atlanta Hawks, he played professionally in Italy. Married former UK women's player Stacey Reed. They own an apparel company.

1999 - Richard Hamilton, F-G, Jr., Connecticut
Averaged 17.3 ppg, 3.1 rpg and 3.4 apg with the Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls in 14 seasons from 1999-00 to 2012-13.

2000 - Mateen Cleaves, G, Sr., Michigan State
Averaged 3.6 ppg and 1.9 apg with four different NBA franchises in six seasons from 2000-01 through 2005-06 before becoming a color commentator for Fox Sports Detroit and the CBS Sports Network prior to being investigated for a sexual assault charge.

2001 - Shane Battier, F, Sr., Duke
Averaged 8.6 ppg and 4.2 rpg with four different NBA franchises in 13 seasons from 2001-02 through 2013-14 before becoming an ESPN color commentator.

2002 - Juan Dixon, G, Sr., Maryland
Averaged 8.4 ppg with five different NBA franchises in seven seasons from 2002-03 through 2008-09 before playing overseas in Greece, Spain and Turkey and subsequently becoming an assistant coach for his alma mater and head coach of Coppin State.

2003 - Carmelo Anthony, F, Fr., Syracuse
Averaged 23.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg and 2.9 apg with the Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers in 17 seasons from 2003-04 through 2019-20.

2004 - Emeka Okafor, C, Jr., Connecticut
Averaged 12 ppg, 9.7 rpg and 1.6 bpg with the Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets, Washington Wizards and New Orleans Pelicans in 10 seasons from 2004-05 to 2012-13 and 2017-18.

2005 - Sean May, C-F, Jr., North Carolina
Averaged 6.9 ppg and 4 rpg with the Charlotte Hornets and Sacramento Kings in four injury-plagued seasons from 2005-06 through 2009-10 before playing overseas. Joined his alma mater's staff under Roy Williams as assistant to the director of player development.

2006 - Joakim Noah, C, Soph., Florida
Averaged 8.9 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 2.9 apg and 1.3 bpg with the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks in 11 seasons from 2007-08 to 2017-18.

2007 - Corey Brewer, F, Jr., Florida
Averaged 8.9 ppg and 2.8 rpg with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder in 11 seasons from 2007-08 to 2017-18. He scored 51 points in a single game against the Houston Rockets.

2008 - Mario Chalmers, G, Jr., Kansas
Averaged 8.9 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.7 apg and 1.5 spg with the Miami Heat and Memphis Grizzlies in nine seasons from 2008-09 through 2015-16 and 2017-18.

2009 - Wayne Ellington, G, Jr., North Carolina
Averaged 8 ppg and 2.1 rpg with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Memphis Grizzlies, Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers, Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat, Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks in 13 seasons from 2009-10 through 2021-22.

2010 - Kyle Singler, F, Jr., Duke
Second-round draft choice by the NBA's Detroit Pistons played overseas two seasons in Spain before averaging 6.5 ppg and 2.9 rpg in six seasons from 2012-13 to 2017-18 with the Pistons and Oklahoma Thunder.

2011 - Kemba Walker, G, Jr., Connecticut
Averaged 19.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg and 5.5 apg with the Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets in eight seasons from 2011-12 through 2018-19. After signing as a free agent with the Boston Celtics, he averaged 19.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg and 4.8 apg in 2019-20 and 2020-21 prior to disappointing campaign for the New York Knicks in 2021-22 (11.6 ppg and 3.5 apg).

2012 - Anthony Davis, C, Fr., Kentucky
Averaged 23.7 ppg, 10.5 rpg and 2.4 bpg with the New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans in seven seasons from 2012-13 through 2018-19, becoming an NBA All-Star in his second season and sparking the Pelicans to the playoffs in 2015. Following a trade, he averaged 24.8 ppg, 10 rpg, 3 apg, 1.3 spg and 2.1 bpg with the Los Angeles Lakers from 2019-20 to 2022-23.

2013 - Luke Hancock, G, Jr., Louisville
Averaged 12.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg and 2.2 apg for the Cardinals as a senior, helping defeat 2014 NCAA champion-to-be Connecticut a total of three times. Briefly played professionally in Greece before tearing a muscle in his calf and becoming financial adviser in Louisville.

2014 - Shabazz Napier, G, Sr., Connecticut
Averaged 7.1 ppg and 2.5 apg with six NBA franchises (Miami Heat, Orlando Magic, Portland Trail Blazers, Brooklyn Nets, Minnesota Timberwolves and Washington Wizards) in six seasons from 2014-15 through 2019-20. Played for professional team in Russia until its invasion of Ukraine.

2015 - Tyus Jones, G, Fr., Duke
Averaged 6.8 ppg and 3.9 apg with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies in eight seasons from 2015-16 to 2022-23.

2016 - Ryan Arcidiacono, G, Sr., Villanova
Played for the San Antonio Spurs' Development League team in Austin in 2016-17 before signing a similar developmental deal with the Chicago Bulls. Averaged 4.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg and 2.3 apg for the Bulls from 2017-18 to 2020-21 before playing briefly with the New York Knicks in 2021-22.

2017 - Joel Berry II, G, Jr., North Carolina
Earned All-American status with the Tar Heels in 2017-18 before elimination in second round of NCAA playoffs by 21 points against Texas A&M. Undrafted by the NBA, he played in the G League for a couple different franchises before aligning with BSL (Basketball Super League). Played one season professionally in Turkey before retiring.

2018 - Donte DiVincenzo, G, Jr., Villanova
Missing most of season because of a foot injury, he averaged 4.9 ppg as NBA rookie with the Milwaukee Bucks. He doubled his rookie scoring average the next three years, averaging 9 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.5 apg and 1.1 spg with the Bucks and Sacramento Kings, prior to signing as a free agent with the Golden State Warriors.

2019 - Kyle Guy, G, Jr., Virginia
Appeared in only two NBA games in 2019-20 with the Sacramento Kings prior to season being postponed. Averaged 3.1 ppg with the Kings and Miami Heat in three campaigns before going overseas.

2021 - Jared Butler, G, Jr., Baylor
Second-round draft choice averaging 3.8 ppg with the Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder in 2021-22 and 2022-23.

2022 - Ochai Agbaji, G, Sr., Kansas
Averaging 7.2 ppg as Utah Jazz rookie in 2022-23.

2023 - Adama Sanogo, C, Jr., Connecticut
Post-college career to be determined after declaring for the NBA draft as an undergraduate.

*Schools that did not win NCAA Tournament championship year in question.

Lost That Winning Feeling: Five UConn Transfers Denied Championship Ring

Whether voluntary or encouraged to leave, five quality Connecticut players transferred the last several campaigns, costing them a chance to earn some championship bling. One of the dearly departed (Florida Atlantic's Jalen Gaffney) was a tick of the clock away from opposing the Huskies in the NCAA championship game.

Numerous other players have also been denied because they transferred before NCAA playoff title run. In several instances, transfers forsook a couple of rings - Ryan Appleby (Florida), Deward Compton (Kentucky) and Sandy Pomerantz (Cincinnati). A striking number of original recruits for Duke, Indiana and Kentucky are on the following alphabetical list of transfers denied receiving an NCAA championship ring because the players left a school subsequently capturing a national crown:

Transfer Player Alma Mater Original College (Title Year Missed)
Mohamed Abukar San Diego State '07 Florida (2006)
Brendan Adams George Washington '23 Connecticut (2023)
Akok Akok Georgetown '23 Connecticut (2023)
Bob Albertson Ball State '82 Louisville (1980)
Ryan Appleby Washington '08 Florida (2006 and 2007)
Tommy Baker Eastern Kentucky '81 Indiana (1981)
Craig Bardo The Citadel '87 Indiana (1987)
Larry Bird Indiana State '79 Indiana (1976)
Mario Boggan Oklahoma State '07 Florida (2006)
Adam Boone Minnesota '06 North Carolina (2005)
Bob Brannum Michigan State '48 Kentucky (1948)
Delray Brooks Providence '88 Indiana (1987)
Javonte Brown Texas A&M '23 Connecticut (2023)
Mislav Brzoja Evansville '16 Villanova (2016)
Rakeem Buckles Florida International '14 Louisville (2013)
Chris Burgess Utah '02 Duke (2001)
Marquis Burns New Mexico State '96 UCLA (1995)
*Billy Butts Ball State '90 Michigan (1989)
Altonio Campbell Idaho '89 Kansas (1988)
Deward Compton Louisville '48 Kentucky (1947 and 1948)
Olek Czyz Nevada '12 Duke (2010)
Doug Davis Miami (Ohio) '02 Michigan State (2000)
Silvio De Sousa Chattanooga '22 Kansas (2022)
Rahsool Diggins Massachusetts '23 Connecticut (2023)
Darnell Dodson Southern Mississippi '13 Kentucky (2012)
Micah Downs Gonzaga '09 Kansas (2008)
David Dunn Georgia '87 Georgetown (1984)
Dylan Ennis Oregon '17 Villanova (2016)
Tristan Enaruna Iowa State '23 Kansas (2022)
Tracy Foster UAB '87 Indiana (1987)
Bob Fowler Iowa State '80 Kentucky (1978)
Sam Funches North Texas '00 Connecticut (1999)
Jalen Gaffney Florida Atlantic '23 Connecticut (2023)
Alex Galindo Florida International '09 Kansas (2008)
Michael Gbinije Syracuse '16 Duke (2015)
C.J. Giles Oregon State '08 Kansas (2008)
Mike Giomi North Carolina State '87 Indiana (1987)
Tyon Grant-Foster DePaul '23 Kansas (2022)
Danny Hall Marshall '78 Kentucky (1978)
Andre Harris Austin Peay State '88 Indiana (1987)
Kenny Harris Virginia Commonwealth '94 North Carolina (1993)
Mark Haymore Massachusetts '79 Indiana (1976)
Scott Hazelton Rhode Island '05 Connecticut (2004)
Derek Holcomb Illinois '81 Indiana (1981)
David Huertas Mississippi '10 Florida (2007)
Rodney Hull Chicago State '89 Kansas (1988)
*Karl James South Alabama '91 UNLV (1990)
Anthony Jones UNLV '86 Georgetown (1984)
Latrell Jossell Stephen F. Austin '24 Kansas (2022)
Arlan "Bud" King Hanover (Ind.) '53 Kentucky (1951)
Taylor King Villanova '12 Duke (2010)
Ray Knight Providence '85 Georgetown (1984)
Jack Kramer UAB '91 Michigan (1989)
Michael Leblanc Vanderbilt '99 Connecticut (1999)
Darrell Lorrance Missouri '47 Kentucky (1947)
Monte Mathis Toledo '89 Kansas (1988)
Billy McCaffrey Vanderbilt '94 Duke (1992)
Malcolm McMullen Xavier '49 Kentucky (1948)
Mike Miday Bowling Green State '81 Indiana (1981)
Danny Miller Notre Dame '03 Maryland (2002)
Alex Murphy Florida '16 Duke (2015)
Gethro Muscadin New Mexico '24 Kansas (2022)
Semi Ojeleye Southern Methodist '18 Duke (2015)
Dylan Painter Delaware '22 Villanova (2018)
Crawford Palmer Dartmouth '93 Duke (1992)
Jim Pelton San Diego '88 Kansas (1988)
Sanford "Sandy" Pomerantz Washington MO '63 Cincinnati (1961 and 1962)
Stacey Poole Georgia Tech '14 Kentucky (2012)
Jarred Reuter George Mason '19 Virginia (2019)
Rodrick Rhodes Southern California '97 Kentucky (1996)
Jason Richey San Diego State '98 Arizona (1997)
Clifford Rozier Louisville '95 North Carolina (1993)
Jarvis Kelly Sanni Rice '98 Arizona (1997)
Dean Shaffer Florida State '85 North Carolina (1982)
Marty Simmons Evansville '88 Indiana (1987)
Oliver Simmons Florida State '00 Kentucky (1998)
Will Smethers Bowling Green State '51 Kentucky (1949)
Roscoe Smith UNLV '15 Connecticut (2014)
Alex Stephenson Southern California '11 North Carolina (2009)
Rasheed Sulaimon Maryland '16 Duke (2015)
Barry Sumpter Austin Peay State '87 Louisville (1986)
Andre Sweet Seton Hall '05 Duke (2001)
Jared Swopshire Northwestern '13 Louisville (2013)
Bryce Thompson Oklahoma State '24 Kansas (2022)
James Thues Detroit '05 Syracuse (2003)
Jeff Tropf Central Michigan '79 Michigan State (1979)
Jason Webber Central Michigan '00 Michigan State (2000)
Milt Wiley St. Louis '79 Michigan State (1979)
DeShaun Williams Iona '04 Syracuse (2003)
Elliot Williams Memphis '12 Duke (2010)

*Played for a junior college between four-year schools

NOTES: McCaffrey and Palmer played for an NCAA champion with Duke in 1991 and Huertas did with Florida in 2006. . . . King played only one season for Villanova in 2009-10. . . . E. Williams left Memphis after 2009-10 campaign when he declared early for the NBA draft. Likewise for Smith at UNLV following 2013-14 season.

On This Date: Former College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on April 4

Extra! Extra! As a new season gains steam, you can read news all about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players! Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Small-school HBCU hoopers Chuck Hinton (Shaw NC) and "Sweet" Lou Johnson (Kentucky State) were traded for each other in 1969. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 4 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 4

  • Arizona Diamondbacks LHP Patrick Corbin (hooper for Mohawk Valley Community College NY in 2007-08) allowed only one hit and fanned 12 opposing batters in 7 1/3 innings in a 3-0 win against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018.

  • OF-INF Chuck Hinton (played multiple sports for Shaw NC before serving two years in U.S. Army in mid-1950s) traded in 1969 by the California Angels to the Cleveland Indians.

  • LF "Sweet" Lou Johnson (Kentucky State basketball teammate of legendary HBCU coach Davey Whitney averaged 5.7 ppg and 2 rpg in 1951-52) traded in 1969 by the Cleveland Indians to the California Angels.

  • Seattle Mariners RF Leon Roberts (grabbed one rebound in four basketball games for Michigan in 1970-71 under coach Johnny Orr) smacked a go-ahead, two-run homer off Frank Tanana in sixth inning of 5-4 win against the California Angels in 1979 season opener.

On This Date: Former College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on April 4

Extra! Extra! As a new season gains steam, you can read news all about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players! Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Small-school HBCU hoopers Chuck Hinton (Shaw NC) and "Sweet" Lou Johnson (Kentucky State) were traded for each other in 1969. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 4 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 4

  • Arizona Diamondbacks LHP Patrick Corbin (hooper for Mohawk Valley Community College NY in 2007-08) allowed only one hit and fanned 12 opposing batters in 7 1/3 innings in a 3-0 win against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018.

  • OF-INF Chuck Hinton (played multiple sports for Shaw NC before serving two years in U.S. Army in mid-1950s) traded in 1969 by the California Angels to the Cleveland Indians.

  • LF "Sweet" Lou Johnson (Kentucky State basketball teammate of legendary HBCU coach Davey Whitney averaged 5.7 ppg and 2 rpg in 1951-52) traded in 1969 by the Cleveland Indians to the California Angels.

  • Seattle Mariners RF Leon Roberts (grabbed one rebound in four basketball games for Michigan in 1970-71 under coach Johnny Orr) smacked a go-ahead, two-run homer off Frank Tanana in sixth inning of 5-4 win against the California Angels in 1979 season opener.

All of Champion UConn's Defeats Came Against Six Different Big East Rivals

Notre Dame has a significant lead in compiling the most all-time victories against teams in a season the opponent went on to capture the NCAA championship. The Fighting Irish, boasting 14 such triumphs despite never winning a Final Four contest, are joined by Duke (nine), Kentucky (nine), St. John's (nine), Maryland (eight), Indiana (seven), Louisville (seven), Virginia (seven) and Wake Forest (seven) as the only schools defeating more than six eventual NCAA playoff titlists. Louisville leveled Connecticut a total of five times in 2011 and 2014.

St. John's (Georgetown '84/Villanova '85/Louisville '86) and Illinois (Indiana '87/Kansas '88/Michigan/'89) are the only schools to upend three different NCAA champions-to-be in as many years. Wake Forest knocked off four different North Carolina titlists in a 28-year span (1982, 1993, 2005 and 2009). Saint Louis, which kayoed four different national kingpins in a 13-year span from 1949 through 1961 (champions combining to win 94.3% of their other games those seasons), never has reached an NCAA tourney regional final.

Michigan State, despite advancing to eight Final Fours under coach Tom Izzo, never has beaten a school during the season the opponent eventually captured an NCAA championship. Four of Kansas' setbacks last season were virgin territory for Baylor, Dayton, Texas Christian and Texas Tech as they notched their first-ever victory over an NCAA titlist. Prominent universities with that dubious distinction include Arizona State, Brigham Young, Colorado, Penn State, Saint Joseph's, San Francisco, Texas A&M, Texas-El Paso and Virginia Tech.

Surprisingly, Northwestern has notched three triumphs against NCAA titlists despite never participating in the national tourney until 2017. Additional schools with more wins against NCAA kingpins during the regular season than playoff victories include Bowling Green (one tourney triumph), Nebraska (winless), Niagara (two tourney wins), Texas-Pan American (never appeared) and Wright State (winless). DII Alaska-Anchorage is among more than 25 non-power league members on the following alphabetical list of schools defeating NCAA DI champions-to-be:

School (Total Wins vs. Eventual DI Titlists) Pre-NCAA Tournament Victories Against National Champions-to-Be
Alabama (three) Kentucky (won title in 1978), Arkansas (1994) and Florida (2006)
Alaska-Anchorage (one) Michigan (1989)
Arizona (four) Duke (1991), Kentucky (1998), Michigan State (2000) and Maryland (2002)
Arkansas (three) Oklahoma A&M (1945), Duke (1991) and Florida (2006)
Auburn (one) Kentucky (1958)
Baylor (one) Kansas (2022)
Boston College (two) Villanova (1985) and North Carolina (2009)
Bowling Green (two) Oklahoma A&M (1946) and Loyola of Chicago (1963)
Bradley (three) Oregon (1939) and Cincinnati (1961 and 1962)
Butler (one) Villanova (2018)
California (two) UCLA (1995) and Arizona (1997)
UC Santa Barbara (one) UNLV (1990)
Canisius (one) CCNY (1950)
Cincinnati (three) Marquette (1977), Louisville (1986) and Connecticut (2014)
City College of New York (one) Oregon (1939)
Clemson (one) Indiana (1981)
Connecticut (two) Syracuse (twice in 2003)
Creighton (two) Villanova (2018) and Connecticut (2023)
Dayton (one) Kansas (2022)
DePaul (four) Oklahoma A&M (1945 and 1946), Marquette (1977) and Georgetown (1984)
Detroit (one) Marquette (1977)
Duke (nine) Kansas (1988), North Carolina (1993, 2005 and twice in 2017), Maryland (2002), Louisville (2013) and Virginia (twice in 2019)
Duquesne (two) Wyoming (1943) and Holy Cross (1947)
Florida (one) Kentucky (1998)
Florida State (three) Florida (2007), North Carolina (2009) and Virginia (2019)
Georgetown (five) Villanova (twice in 1985), Duke (1991 and 2010) and Louisville (2013)
Georgia (one) Villanova (1985)
Georgia Tech (six) Kentucky (1958), North Carolina (1993, 2005 and 2017), Connecticut (2004) and Duke (2010)
Houston (two) UCLA (1968) and Connecticut (2014)
Illinois (six) UCLA (1965), Louisville (1980), Indiana (1987), Kansas (1988) and Michigan (twice in 1989)
Indiana (seven) Ohio State (1960), Michigan State (1979 and 2000), Michigan (twice in 1989), Kentucky (2012) and North Carolina (2017)
Iona (one) Louisville (1980)
Iowa (five) UCLA (1965), Indiana (twice in 1981 and once in 1987) and Kansas (1988)
Iowa State (one) Kansas (1988)
Kansas (five) Louisville (twice in 1986), UNLV (1990), Florida (2007) and Baylor (2021)
Kansas State (six) Kansas (1952, twice in 1988 and once in 2008), Indiana (1953) and California (1959)
Kentucky (nine) Utah (1944), La Salle (1954), Ohio State (1960), Indiana (1981), Louisville (1986), Arkansas (1994), Michigan State (2000), North Carolina (2017) and Kansas (2022)
Louisiana State (three) Kentucky (1978), UNLV (1990) and Florida (2007)
Louisville (seven) North Carolina State (1983), Kentucky (1998) and Connecticut (twice in 2011 and three times in 2014)
Loyola of Chicago (two) Kentucky (1949 and 1958)
Marquette (four) Wisconsin (1941) and Connecticut (2011 and twice in 2023)
Maryland (eight) Kentucky (1958), Marquette (1977), North Carolina State (twice in 1983), Villanova (1985), Duke (2001 and 2010) and North Carolina (2009)
Massachusetts (one) Kentucky (1996)
Memphis (three) North Carolina State (1983), Louisville (1986) and Syracuse (2003)
Miami FL (three) Connecticut (1999), Duke (2015) and North Carolina (2017)
Michigan (five) Marquette (1977), Michigan State (1979), Indiana (1981), North Carolina (1993) and Arizona (1997)
Minnesota (five) Indiana (1940 and 1953), Wisconsin (1941), Marquette (1977) and Michigan (1989)
Mississippi (one) Kentucky (1998)
Mississippi State (two) Arkansas (1994) and Kentucky (1996)
Missouri (one) North Carolina State (1983)
Nebraska (one) Kansas (1988)
New Mexico (one) Arizona (1997)
New Mexico State (one) UNLV (1990)
Niagara (three) CCNY (1950) and La Salle (twice in 1954)
North Carolina (six) Indiana (1981), North Carolina State (1983), Duke (1991, 1992 and 2001) and Connecticut (2004)
North Carolina State (five) Louisville (1986), Duke (1991, 2010 and 2015) and Maryland (2002)
Northwestern (three) Indiana (1940), Holy Cross (1947) and Michigan State (1979)
Notre Dame (14) Kentucky (1948), Indiana (1953), UCLA (1971 and 1975), Michigan State (1979), Indiana (1981), North Carolina State (1983), Kansas (1988), Connecticut (2004 and twice in 2011), Louisville (2013), Duke (twice in 2015)
Ohio State (two) Indiana (1940) and Michigan State (2000)
Oklahoma (six) CCNY (1950), Kansas (twice in 1988), UNLV (1990), Maryland (2002) and Villanova (2016)
Oklahoma State (three) Kansas (1952 and 2008) and Baylor (2021)
Oregon (four) California (1959), UCLA (1970 and 1995) and Arizona (1997)
Oregon State (two) Oregon (1939) and Stanford (1942)
Pittsburgh (five) Wisconsin (1941), Villanova (1985), Syracuse (2003) and Connecticut (2004 and 2011)
Providence (four) Connecticut (2004 and 2023) and Villanova (2016 and 2018)
Purdue (four) Michigan State (1979 and 2000) and Indiana (1981 and 1987)
Rutgers (one) Syracuse (2003)
St. John's (nine) Georgetown (1984), Villanova (three times in 1985 and once in 2018), Louisville (1986), Kansas (1988) and Connecticut (2011 and 2023)
Saint Louis (four) Kentucky (1949 and 1951), California (1959) and Cincinnati (1961)
Santa Clara (two) Stanford (1942) and North Carolina (2005)
Seattle (one) Texas Western (1966)
Seton Hall (three) Cincinnati (1961), Villanova (2016) and Connecticut (2023)
South Carolina (two) Florida (twice in 2006)
Southern California (four) Stanford (1942), UCLA (1969 and 1970) and Arizona (1997)
Southern Methodist (three) Kentucky (1958) and Connecticut (twice in 2014)
Stanford (six) Oregon (1939), California (1959), UCLA (1975), Arizona (1997), Duke (2001) and Connecticut (2014)
Syracuse (six) CCNY (1950), Villanova (1985), Connecticut (1999, 2004 and 2011) and Louisville (2013)
Temple (three) Oklahoma A&M (1945), Kentucky (1948) and La Salle (1954)
Tennessee (three) Florida (twice in 2006 and once in 2007)
Texas (three) Michigan State (2000) and Kansas (2008 and 2022)
Texas Christian (one) Kansas (2022)
Texas-Pan American (one) Indiana (1981)
Texas Tech (one) Kansas (2022)
UCLA (five) CCNY (1950), San Francisco (1955), North Carolina State (1974) and Arizona (twice in 1997)
Utah (two) Ohio State (1960) and Louisville (1980)
Vanderbilt (four) Kentucky (1951 and 2012), Indiana (1987) and Florida (2007)
Villanova (two) Georgetown (1984) and Louisville (2013)
Virginia (seven) North Carolina (1982 and 2017), North Carolina State (twice in 1983), Duke (1991 and 2001) and Villanova (2016)
Wake Forest (seven) North Carolina (1982, 1993, 2005 and 2009), North Carolina State (1983) and Duke (1991 and 1992)
Washington (two) UCLA (1975) and Arizona (1997)
Washington State (one) Oregon (1939)
West Virginia (two) Kentucky (1958) and Connecticut (2011)
Wichita State (three) Cincinnati (1962), Loyola of Chicago (1963) and Marquette (1977)
Wisconsin (three) Michigan State (1979), Michigan (1989) and Duke (2010)
Wright State (one) Michigan State (2000)
Wyoming (one) Holy Cross (1947)
Xavier (three) Villanova (2016) and Connecticut (twice in 2023)

NOTE: During World War II, NCAA champions Stanford lost to the Athens Club in 1942, Wyoming lost at Denver Legion in 1943, Utah lost to Ft. Warren, Salt Lake AB and Dow Chemical in 1944 and Oklahoma A&M lost to NATTS Skyjackets in 1945.

Senior Moments: Average of 2 Seniors Among Top Scorers For Last 37 Titlists

Usually, a senior-laden lineup is not a prerequisite for capturing a national championship. Three senior transfers were among Connecticut's top eight scorers this season. An average of only two seniors were among the top seven scorers for NCAA Tournament titlists since Villanova captured the NCAA crown in 1985 when the playoff field expanded to at least 64 teams. National titlists UConn '11, Florida '06 and Arizona '97 also didn't have a senior among their top six scorers.

Eight of the 16 NCAA champions from 1991 through 2006 boasted no more than one senior among its top seven scorers, which is what ACC rival Duke had five years ago. Only three NCAA champions since Indiana '87 - UCLA (1995), Michigan (2000) and Maryland (2002) - featured seniors as their top two scorers. Following is a look at the vital seniors for the past 37 basically youthful championship teams (in reverse order):

2023 - Connecticut (one of top six scorers and three of nine-man rotations were seniors/Tristen Newton was third, Joey Calcaterra was seventh and Nahiem Alleyne was eighth)
2022 - Kansas (four of top seven scorers were seniors/Ochai Agbaji was leading scorer, David McCormack was third, Remy Martin was fifth and Mitch Lightfoot was seventh)
2021 - Baylor (two of top nine scorers were seniors/MaCio Teague was second-leading scorer and Mark Vital was seventh)
2019 - Virginia (none of top seven scorers was a senior)
2018 - Villanova (no one among eight-man rotation was a senior)
2017 - North Carolina (three of 10-man rotation were seniors/Kennedy Meeks was third-leading scorer, Isaiah Hicks was fourth and Nate Britt was eighth).
2016 - Villanova (two of eight-man rotation were seniors/Ryan Arcidiacono was third-leading scorer and Daniel Ochefu was fourth).
2015 - Duke (one of eight-man rotation was a senior/Quinn Cook was second-leading scorer).
2014 - Connecticut (four of top 10 scorers were seniors/Shabazz Napier was leading scorer, Niels Giffey was fourth, Lasan Kromah was fifth and Tyler Olander was 10th).
2013 - Louisville (one of top eight scorers was a senior/Peyton Siva was second-leading scorer).
2012 - Kentucky (one of top seven scorers was a senior/Darius Miller was fifth-leading scorer).
2011 - Connecticut (none of top six scorers was a senior).
2010 - Duke (three of nine-man rotation were seniors/Jon Scheyer was leading scorer, Brian Zoubek was fourth and Lance Thomas was sixth).
2009 - North Carolina (two of top eight in scoring average were seniors/Tyler Hansbrough was leading scorer and Danny Green was fourth).
2008 - Kansas (one of top six scorers was a senior/Darnell Jackson was fourth-leading scorer).
2007 - Florida (two of nine-man rotation were seniors/Lee Humphrey was fifth and Chris Richard was sixth).
2006 - Florida (none of top seven scorers was a senior).
2005 - North Carolina (one of top five scorers was a senior/Jawad Williams was third).
2004 - Connecticut (one of top eight scorers was a senior/Taliek Brown was sixth).
2003 - Syracuse (one of top eight scorers was a senior/Keith Duany was fourth).
2002 - Maryland (three of top eight regulars were seniors/Juan Dixon was top scorer, Lonny Baxter was second and Byron Mouton was fourth).
2001 - Duke (two of top nine scorers were seniors/Shane Battier was second and Nate James was fifth).
2000 - Michigan State (three of top 11 scorers were seniors/Morris Peterson was first, Mateen Cleaves was second and A.J. Granger was fifth).
1999 - Connecticut (one of top seven scorers was a senior/Ricky Moore was fifth).
1998 - Kentucky (two of top seven scorers were seniors/Jeff Sheppard was first and Allen Edwards was fifth).
1997 - Arizona (none of top seven scorers was a senior).
1996 - Kentucky (three of top 10 scorers were seniors/Tony Delk was first, Walter McCarty was third and Mark Pope was sixth).
1995 - UCLA (three of top seven scorers were seniors/Ed O'Bannon was first, Tyus Edney was second and George Zidek was fourth).
1994 - Arkansas (one of top 10 scorers was a senior/Roger Crawford was eighth).
1993 - North Carolina (one of top seven scorers was a senior/George Lynch was second).
1992 - Duke (two of top 10 scorers were seniors/Christian Laettner was first and Brian Davis was fifth).
1991 - Duke (one of top 10 scorers was a senior/Greg Koubek was seventh).
1990 - UNLV (two of top eight scorers were seniors/David Butler was third and Moses Scurry was sixth).
1989 - Michigan (two of top 11 scorers were seniors/Glen Rice was first and Mark Hughes was sixth).
1988 - Kansas (two of top 11 scorers were seniors/Danny Manning was first and Chris Piper was fourth).
1987 - Indiana (two of top eight scorers were seniors/Steve Alford was first and Daryl Thomas was second).
1986 - Louisville (three of top nine scorers were seniors/Billy Thompson was first, Milt Wagner was second and Jeff Hall was fifth).
1985 - Villanova (three of top eight scorers were seniors/Ed Pinckney was first, Dwayne McClain was second and Gary McLain was fourth).

Victory Map: UConn is Ninth Titlist With Winning Margin of At Least 20 PPG

There has been some smooth sailing such as Connecticut becoming the ninth NCAA champion to win its playoff games by a margin of at least 20 points. However, it usually is a rugged road en route to becoming NCAA champion such as Virginia in 2019 when the Cavaliers won their last four playoff games by an average of 4.5 points. Most titlists have near-death experiences and are severely tested at least once on the serpentine tourney trail. In 1997, Arizona won each of its playoff contests by a single-digit margin. Last year, Kansas became the 52nd champion to win a minimum of one playoff game by fewer than five, including 24 titlists to win at least one contest by just one point.

Wyoming '43 would have become the only champion to trail at halftime in every tournament game if the Cowboys didn't score the last three baskets of the first half in the national final to lead Georgetown at intermission (18-16). Four titlists trailed at intermission in both of their Final Four games - Kentucky '51, Louisville '86, Duke '92 and Kentucky '98.

UCLA '67, the first varsity season for Lew Alcindor (became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), set the record for largest average margin of victory for a champion when the Bruins started a dazzling streak of 10 consecutive Final Four appearances. They won their 12 NCAA playoff games with Alcindor manning the middle by an amazing average margin of 21.5 points.

Which of John Wooden's 10 national championship teams did the Wizard of Westwood perceive as his best?

"I've never come out and said it," Wooden said before passing away two years ago, "but it would be hard to pick a team over the 1968 team. I will say it would be the most difficult team to prepare for and play against offensively and defensively. It created so many problems. It had such great balance. We had the big center (Alcindor) who is the most valuable player of all time. Mike Warren was a three-year starter who may have been the most intelligent floor leader ever, going eight complete games once without a turnover. Lucius Allen was a very physical, talented individual who was extremely quick. Lynn Shackleford was a great shooter out of the corner who didn't allow defenses to sag on Jabbar. Mike Lynn didn't have power, but he had as fine a pair of hands around the boards as I have ever seen."

The roster for UCLA's 1968 national champion included six players with double-digit season scoring averages, but senior forward Edgar Lacey dropped off the team with an 11.9-point average following a dispute with Wooden after a ballyhooed mid-season defeat against Houston before 52,693 fans at the Astrodome. Lacey, assigned to defend Cougars star Elvin Hayes early in the game, was annoyed with Wooden for singling him out following Hayes' 29-point first-half outburst. Lacey, the leading rebounder for the Bruins' 1965 NCAA titlist when he was an All-Tournament team selection, missed the 1966-67 campaign because of a fractured left kneecap.

The three Lew-CLA teams rank among the seven NCAA champions with average margins of victory in a tournament of more than 19 points per game. It's no wonder a perceptive scribe wrote the acronym NCAA took on a new meaning during the plunderous Alcindor Era - "No Chance Against Alcindor."

"Bill Walton might have been a better all-around player (than Alcindor)," Wooden said. "If you were grading a player for every fundamental skill, Walton would rank the highest of any center who ever played. But Alcindor is the most valuable, owing to the pressure he put on the other team at both ends of the court."

UConn won all six of its playoff contests by double digits this year but the only titlist to win all of its tournament games by more than 15 points was Ohio State '60. Center Jerry Lucas, a first-team All-American as a sophomore, averaged 24 points and 16 rebounds in four playoff contests for the Buckeyes. He collected 36 points and 25 rebounds to help them erase a six-point halftime deficit in their Mideast Regional opener against Western Kentucky.

Duke's five kingpins under Mike Krzyzewski all came with average winning margin of at least 12.5 points per playoff game. Following is the breakdown of point differential and average margin of victory in NCAA playoffs for first 84 national champions:

Championship Team Coach G. Largest Smallest Average
UCLA '67 John Wooden 4 49 15 23.75
Loyola of Chicago '63 George Ireland 5 *69 2 23.0
Indiana '81 Bob Knight 5 35 13 22.6
Kentucky '96 Rick Pitino 6 38 7 21.5
UCLA '68 John Wooden 4 32 9 21.25
Michigan State '79 Jud Heathcote 5 34 11 20.8
Villanova '16 Jay Wright 6 44 3 20.67
North Carolina '09 Roy Williams 6 43 12 20.17
Connecticut '23 Danny Hurley 6 28 13 20.0
Ohio State '60 Fred Taylor 4 22 17 19.5
UCLA '69 John Wooden 4 38 3 19.5
UNLV '90 Jerry Tarkanian 6 30 2 18.67
Oklahoma State '45 Hank Iba 3 27 4 18.67
UCLA '70 John Wooden 4 23 11 18.0
UCLA '72 John Wooden 4 32 5 18.0
Villanova '18 Jay Wright 6 26 12 17.67
Kentucky '58 Adolph Rupp 4 33 1 17.5
Kentucky '49 Adolph Rupp 3 29 10 17.33
Indiana '40 Branch McCracken 3 24 9 17.0
Duke '01 Mike Krzyzewski 6 43 10 16.67
Louisville '13 Rick Pitino 6 31 4 16.17
Florida '06 Billy Donovan 6 26 4 16.0
UCLA '73 John Wooden 4 21 11 16.0
Kentucky '48 Adolph Rupp 3 23 8 15.67
North Carolina '93 Dean Smith 6 45 6 15.67
UCLA '65 John Wooden 4 24 8 15.5
Baylor '21 Scott Drew 6 24 9 15.33
Michigan State '00 Tom Izzo 6 27 11 15.33
Oregon '39 Howard Hobson 3 18 13 15.33
Kansas '52 Phog Allen 4 19 4 14.75
Duke '15 Mike Krzyzewski 6 29 5 14.67
Duke '10 Mike Krzyzewski 6 29 2 14.5
UCLA '95 Jim Harrick 6 36 1 14.33
North Carolina State '74 Norman Sloan 4 28 3 14.25
Florida '07 Billy Donovan 6 43 7 14.17
Kansas '08 Bill Self 6 24 2 14.17
Duke '91 Mike Krzyzewski 6 29 2 14.0
Kansas '22 Bill Self 6 27 3 14.0
Maryland '02 Gary Williams 6 30 8 14.0
San Francisco '56 Phil Woolpert 4 18 11 14.0
North Carolina '05 Roy Williams 6 28 1 13.83
San Francisco '55 Phil Woolpert 5 23 1 13.8
Connecticut '04 Jim Calhoun 6 20 1 13.33
Kentucky '98 Tubby Smith 6 27 1 13.3
Indiana '76 Bob Knight 5 20 5 13.2
Cincinnati '62 Ed Jucker 4 20 2 12.75
Duke '92 Mike Krzyzewski 6 26 1 12.5
Cincinnati '61 Ed Jucker 4 23 5 12.0
Connecticut '99 Jim Calhoun 6 25 3 11.83
Kentucky '12 John Calipari 6 16 8 11.83
Louisville '86 Denny Crum 6 20 3 11.83
Oklahoma A&M '46 Hank Iba 3 17 3 11.67
Holy Cross '47 Doggie Julian 3 15 8 11.33
California '59 Pete Newell 4 20 1 11.25
La Salle '54 Ken Loeffler 5 16 2 11.2
Arkansas '94 Nolan Richardson 6 19 4 11.17
North Carolina '17 Roy Williams 6 39 1 11.17
Stanford '42 Everett Dean 3 15 6 10.67
Indiana '87 Bob Knight 6 34 1 10.5
Connecticut '11 Jim Calhoun 6 29 1 10.33
Michigan '89 Steve Fisher 6 37 1 9.83
Georgetown '84 John Thompson Jr. 5 14 1 9.8
Kentucky '51 Adolph Rupp 4 16 2 9.75
Louisville '80 Denny Crum 5 20 2 9.2
Kentucky '78 Joe B. Hall 5 22 3 9.0
Syracuse '03 Jim Boeheim 6 16 1 9.0
Kansas '88 Larry Brown 6 13 3 8.83
UCLA '71 John Wooden 4 18 2 8.5
North Carolina '57 Frank McGuire 5 16 1 8.4
Marquette '77 Al McGuire 5 15 1 8.0
Connecticut '14 Kevin Ollie 6 12 5 7.83
UCLA '64 John Wooden 4 15 4 7.5
Virginia '19 Tony Bennett 6 15 1 7.5
UCLA '75 John Wooden 5 14 1 7.4
Indiana '53 Branch McCracken 4 13 1 7.25
Utah '44 Vadal Peterson 3 10 2 7.0
Texas Western '66 Don Haskins 5 15 1 6.4
Wyoming '43 Everett Shelton 3 12 3 6.33
Arizona '97 Lute Olson 6 8 3 5.33
North Carolina State '83 Jim Valvano 6 19 1 5.33
Villanova '85 Rollie Massimino 6 12 2 5.0
North Carolina '82 Dean Smith 5 10 1 4.6
Wisconsin '41 Bud Foster 3 6 1 4.0
CCNY '50 Nat Holman 3 5 1 3.0

*All-time tournament record (111-42 first-round victory over Tennessee Tech).
NOTE: Sixteen teams participated in a total of 23 overtime games en route to national titles - Utah (1944), North Carolina (two triple-overtime Final Four games in 1957), Cincinnati (1961), Loyola of Chicago (1963), Texas Western (two in 1966, including a double overtime), North Carolina State (double overtime in 1974), UCLA (two in 1975), Louisville (two in 1980), North Carolina State (double overtime in 1983), Michigan (1989), Duke (1992), North Carolina (1993), Arizona (two in 1997), Kentucky (1998), Kansas (2008), Connecticut (2014) and Virginia (two in 2019).

States of Success: Idaho Secures First National Crown By Four-Year School

Kentucky (32), buttressed by Georgetown College's two NAIA championships in the previous 10 years, is tied with California as the state with the most national titles from each level of four-year college men's basketball - NCAA Division I, NIT, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.

Illinois and Ohio are the only states to boast at least one champion from all five levels. Among the 14 states amassing a total of more than 10 national crowns, Missouri is the only one in that group without a Division I championship after Virginia's success in 2019. Drury (Mo.), Central Missouri and Northwest Missouri State won DII titles in the last decade but the state's two headline schools - Mizzou and Saint Louis - never have reached the NCAA DI Final Four.

The biggest surprise among states fond of hoops but never capturing a four-year school national title was Iowa until Graceland won NAIA crown five years ago. After College of Idaho elevated state success status this season, following is how states stack up by national four-year school titles including the NIT and various levels of small-college basketball:

State DI NIT DII DIII NAIA Total
California 15 8 5 0 4 32
Kentucky 11 3 10 0 8 32
Ohio 3 7 3 5 3 21
North Carolina 13 2 3 0 1 19
Missouri 0 1 7 2 8 18
Oklahoma 2 2 1 0 11 16
Pennsylvania 4 7 2 3 0 16
Wisconsin 2 1 0 13 0 16
Illinois 1 6 1 6 1 15
New York 2 10 0 3 0 15
Texas 2 5 0 0 8 15
Indiana 5 2 6 0 1 14
Virginia 1 4 5 3 0 13
Kansas 4 1 1 0 6 12
Minnesota 0 3 2 2 3 10
Michigan 3 3 1 2 0 9
Tennessee 0 3 1 1 4 9
Connecticut 5 1 1 0 0 7
Georgia 0 0 1 0 6 7
Massachusetts 1 1 1 4 0 7
Alabama 0 0 3 0 3 6
Florida 2 0 3 0 0 5
Maryland 1 1 2 0 1 5
Arizona 1 0 0 0 3 4
District of Columbia 1 1 1 1 0 4
Louisiana 0 0 0 0 4 4
South Carolina 0 2 0 0 2 4
Utah 1 3 0 0 0 4
West Virginia 0 2 0 0 2 4
Colorado 0 1 2 0 0 3
New Jersey 0 2 0 1 0 3
South Dakota 0 0 3 0 0 3
Arkansas 1 0 0 0 1 2
Nebraska 0 1 0 1 0 2
Rhode Island 0 2 0 0 0 2
Washington 0 0 2 0 0 2
Hawaii 0 0 0 0 1 1
Idaho 0 0 0 0 1 1
Iowa 0 0 0 0 1 1
Mississippi 0 1 0 0 0 1
Montana 0 0 0 0 1 1
Nevada 1 0 0 0 0 1
New Mexico 0 0 0 0 1 1
Oregon 1 0 0 0 0 1
Wyoming 1 0 0 0 0 1

NOTE: Six states - Alaska, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota and Vermont - never have had a four-year school win a men's national championship.

Hot or Not? UConn Becomes 7th of Last 9 Titlists Entering Tourney With Loss

Which cliche is most accurate? If a team is on a winning streak entering the NCAA Tournament, it has momentum on its side and is peaking at the right time. On the other hand, some observers contend a loss before the start of the playoffs is deemed a wake-up call. This year, Connecticut became the seventh champion in last nine tourneys to enter playoffs on a losing note.

All of Duke's champions under coach Mike Krzyzewski entered the NCAA tourney with fewer than eight straight triumphs. Since the last undefeated team in Division I (Indiana was 32-0 in 1975-76), there have been 46 national champions. Twenty-four of those squads entered the tourney on a winning streak and 22 entered with a defeat. The longest winning streak of a champion-to-be in that span was by UCLA, which won 13 in a row in 1995 before posting six more triumphs in the playoffs. Louisville accounted for two of the other double-digit victory streaks for champions-to-be entering the playoffs.

Of the 24 aforementioned squads entering on a winning note, the average winning streak was six in a row. Following in reverse order is how those 45 post-unbeaten IU titlists entered the NCAA playoffs (including conference tournaments):

Year NCAA Champion Coach Pre-NCAA Playoff Finish
2023 Connecticut Danny Hurley Lost one (Marquette)
2022 Kansas Bill Self Won five
2021 Baylor Scott Drew Lost one (Oklahoma State)
2019 Virginia Tony Bennett Lost one (Florida State)
2018 Villanova Jay Wright Won five
2017 North Carolina Roy Williams Lost one (Duke)
2016 Villanova Jay Wright Lost one (Seton Hall)
2015 Duke Mike Krzyzewski Lost one (Notre Dame)
2014 Connecticut Kevin Ollie Lost one (Louisville)
2013 Louisville Rick Pitino Won 10
2012 Kentucky John Calipari Lost one (Vanderbilt)
2011 Connecticut Jim Calhoun Won five
2010 Duke Mike Krzyzewski Won four
2009 North Carolina Roy Williams Lost one (Florida State)
2008 Kansas Bill Self Won seven
2007 Florida Billy Donovan Won four
2006 Florida Billy Donovan Won five
2005 North Carolina Roy Williams Lost one (Georgia Tech)
2004 Connecticut Jim Calhoun Won three
2003 Syracuse Jim Boeheim Lost one (Connecticut)
2002 Maryland Gary Williams Lost one (North Carolina State)
2001 Duke Mike Krzyzewski Won four
2000 Michigan State Tom Izzo Won five
1999 Connecticut Jim Calhoun Won five
1998 Kentucky Tubby Smith Won seven
1997 Arizona Lute Olson Lost two (Stanford and California)
1996 Kentucky Rick Pitino Lost one (Mississippi State)
1995 UCLA Jim Harrick Won 13
1994 Arkansas Nolan Richardson Lost one (Kentucky)
1993 North Carolina Dean Smith Lost one (Georgia Tech)
1992 Duke Mike Krzyzewski Won seven
1991 Duke Mike Krzyzewski Lost one (North Carolina)
1990 UNLV Jerry Tarkanian Won five
1989 Michigan Bill Frieder/Steve Fisher Lost one (Illinois)
1988 Kansas Larry Brown Lost one (Kansas State)
1987 Indiana Bob Knight Won one
1986 Louisville Denny Crum Won 11
1985 Villanova Rollie Massimino Lost one (St. John's)
1984 Georgetown John Thompson Jr. Won six
1983 North Carolina State Jim Valvano Won four
1982 North Carolina Dean Smith Won 11
1981 Indiana Bob Knight Won five
1980 Louisville Denny Crum Won three
1979 Michigan State Jud Heathcote Lost one (Wisconsin)
1978 Kentucky Joe B. Hall Won eight
1977 Marquette Al McGuire Lost one (Michigan)

On This Date: Former College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on April 3

Extra! Extra! With a new season underway, you can read news about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Former college hoopers/MLB executives Bill White (Hiram OH) and Chris Young (Princeton) were traded on this date. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 3 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 3

  • 1B Donn Clendenon (played basketball for Morehouse GA) ended his retirement and reported to the Montreal Expos in 1969.

  • San Diego Padres RF Tony Gwynn (All-WAC second-team selection with San Diego State in 1979-80 and 1980-81) went 4-for-4 against the Chicago Cubs in a 1996 game. He provided three hits in each of his next two outings.

  • 1B Bill White (played two years of hoops with Hiram OH in early 1950s) traded by the Philadelphia Phillies to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1969.

  • RHP Chris Young (All-Ivy League first-team selection as Princeton's leading scorer and rebounder in 1999-00) traded by the Montreal Expos to the Texas Rangers in 2004.

On This Date: Day #23 For One-and-Only NCAA Tournament Trivia Challenge

CollegeHoopedia.com hopes the rigors of this daily Q&A during the playoffs didn't give you an inferiority complex. Emphasizing a "one-and-only" theme for a "one-and-only" event, this bonanza is the climax of 23 days featuring a treasure-trove of tantalizing NCAA Tournament trivia questions (10 per day from Selection Sunday until a grand finale added value of 20 on the day of traditional championship game) tracking the only coach, conference, player or school to be linked to a distinguished or dubious achievement (click here for answers or conduct research digesting historical morsels in CollegeHoopedia.com's year-by-year highlights):

1. Name the only automatic qualifier to enter the NCAA playoffs with an overall losing record despite compiling a winning conference mark. Hint: The school lost in first round to nation's top-ranked team, an opponent the school succumbed to four seasons earlier when eventual NBA guard Lindsey Hunter scored a then school-record 48 points.

2. Name the only one of the different teams to twice defeat an eventual NCAA champion in their title season to not appear in the NCAA Tournament that year. Hint: A former NBA coach guided the school to its only NCAA playoff victory against an opponent whose coach also later coached in NBA.

3. Name the only team since seeding started to reach the Final Four without meeting a top eight seed. Hint: The team was eliminated in national semifinals.

4. Name the only school to twice be denied an at-large bid in a 10-year span despite going undefeated in regular-season conference competition. Hint: The school reached a regional final next time it went unbeaten in league play.

5. Name the only school in the 20th Century to compete for the national championship in both football and basketball in the same academic school year. Hint: The school lost both games.

6. Who is the only individual to win tournament games while coaching schools from the three conferences with the top winning percentages in NCAA Tournament competition reflecting actual membership (ACC, Big East and Big Ten)? Hint: He is the only coach to win playoff games with as many as three different schools when they were seeded ninth or worse.

7. Who is the only coach to win national championships in junior college, the NIT and the NCAA. Hint: He won the NIT in his first year as a major college head coach.

8. Who is the only leading scorer in an NCAA Tournament championship game to subsequently serve as an admiral in the U.S. Navy? Hint: He was an NCAA consensus first-team All-America the next season before eventually commanding aircraft carrier Saratoga for two years.

9. Who is the only championship game starter in the 20th Century to be the son of a former NCAA consensus All-American? Hint: The father was a U.S. Olympic team member and the star player for first black coach at a predominantly white Division I school.

10. Name the only teammate twosome to each score more than 25 points in an NCAA final. Hint: They combined for 53 points to lead their school to its first of multiple NCAA Tournament titles.

11. Name the only starting backcourt to combine for more than 50 points in a Final Four game. Hint: They combined to shoot 39 percent from the floor in two Final Four games that year.

12. Who is the only individual to coach teams in the NAIA Tournament, NCAA Division III Tournament, NCAA Division II Tournament, National Invitation Tournament and NCAA Division I Tournament? Hint: He took two different schools to the five levels of national postseason competition in a 13-year span beginning with an appearance as an interim head coach.

13. Who is the only individual to be the team-high scorer for both winning and losing teams in NCAA championship games although his season scoring average was less than half of the team leader each year? Hint: He played in the shadow of an All-American whose total of points and rebounds (4,663) is highest in NCAA history.

14. Who is the only coach to guide teams from the same school to the football Rose Bowl and basketball Final Four? Hint: The Rose Bowl and Final Four appearances were 17 years apart.

15. Name the only son of a member of one of the first classes of baseball Hall of Fame selections to start for a school in its first NCAA Tournament appearance. Hint: The son pitched for four major league teams before becoming a prominent executive. His father was a first baseman.

16. Name the only school to reach the Final Four and College World Series championship game in the same year. Hint: The school advanced to Final Four again the next season.

17. Who is the only coach to win three first-round games with teams seeded 12th or worse? Hint: The former coach was 4-1 in tournament games decided by fewer than five points. He played basketball at Fordham when NFL Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi was the Rams' freshman basketball coach.

18. Name the school that won all four of its first-round games despite being seeded eighth or worse each time. Hint: The four victories came in first five tournaments after NCAA introduced seeding.

19. Name the only school to appear in at least three NCAA Tournaments in the 20th Century and reach a regional final each time. Hint: The school's playoff appearances were in successive years.

20. Who is the only player to obtain NCAA and NBA championship rings without participating in postseason competition for either the college or pro title teams? Hint: The 7-0 center was in his first year with both of championship squads.

Answers (Day 23)
Day 22 Questions and Answers
Day 21 Questions and Answers
Day 20 Questions and Answers
Day 19 Questions and Answers
Day 18 Questions and Answers
Day 17 Questions and Answers
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Atop Pedestal: Edey Becomes Purdue's Second National Player of the Year

Center Zach Edey became Purdue's second national player of the year. Excluding specialty publications, there are five nationally-recognized Player of the Year awards. None of them, however, comes anywhere close to being the equivalent to college football's undisputed most prestigious honor, the Heisman Trophy. The basketball stalemate stems from essentially the same people voting on the major awards (writers or coaches or a combination) and the announcements usually coming one after another right around the Final Four when the playoff games dominate the sports page.

United Press International, which was a sixth venue for major awards through 1996, got all of this back slapping started in 1955. Four years later, the United States Basketball Writers Association, having chosen All-American teams in each of the two previous seasons, added a Player of the Year award to its postseason honors. In recent years, the USBWA award was sponsored by Mercedes and then RCA.

The third oldest of the awards comes from the most dominant wire service, the Associated Press. Perhaps because of its vast network of media outlets, the AP award gets more print and broadcast attention than the other honors. The AP award started in 1961 before affiliating in 1972 with the Commonwealth Athletic Club of Lexington, Ky., which was looking for a way to honor Hall of Fame Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp. The result of their merger is the Rupp Trophy.

The Atlanta Tipoff Club initially was associated with UPI before starting its own Naismith Award in 1969. Six years later, the National Association of Basketball Coaches initiated its award, which was sponsored from the outset by the Eastman Kodak Company. In 1977, the Los Angeles Athletic Club began honoring Hall of Fame UCLA coach John Wooden with the Wooden Award sponsored by Wendy's.

Duke has nine different national player of the year winners, including seven of them in a 21-year span from 1986 through 2006. UCLA is runner-up with six individuals earning POY acclaim. Incredibly, perennial power Kentucky never had a representative win one of the six principal national player of the year awards until freshman center Anthony Davis achieved the feat in 2012.

In 2015, Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky became the fourth Big Ten Conference player to capture national POY honors in a six-year span. The Big East, Pac-10 and SEC combined to go 15 straight seasons from 1996-97 through 2010-11 without a national POY. Following is a look at the seven conferences with at least three different individuals capturing one of the six principal national player of the year awards since UPI's initial winner in 1955:

ACC (17) - Shane Battier (Duke), Elton Brand (Duke), Johnny Dawkins (Duke), Tim Duncan (Wake Forest), Danny Ferry (Duke), Phil Ford (North Carolina), Tyler Hansbrough (North Carolina), Art Heyman (Duke), Antawn Jamison (North Carolina), Michael Jordan (North Carolina), Christian Laettner (Duke), J.J. Redick (Duke), Ralph Sampson (Virginia), Joe Smith (Maryland), David Thompson (North Carolina State), Jason Williams (Duke), Zion Williamson (Duke).

Big Ten (16) - Gary Bradds (Ohio State), Trey Burke (Michigan State), Dee Brown (Illinois), Calbert Cheaney (Indiana), Zach Edey (Purdue), Luka Garza (Iowa), Draymond Green (Michigan State), Jim Jackson (Ohio State), Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin), Jerry Lucas (Ohio State), Scott May (Indiana), Shawn Respert (Michigan State), Glenn Robinson Jr. (Purdue), Cazzie Russell (Michigan), Evan Turner (Ohio State), Denzel Valentine (Michigan State).

Pacific-12 (7) - Lew Alcindor (UCLA), Sean Elliott (Arizona), Walt Hazzard (UCLA), Marques Johnson (UCLA), Ed O'Bannon (UCLA), Bill Walton (UCLA), Sidney Wicks (UCLA).

Big 12 (6) - Nick Collison (Kansas), Kevin Durant (Texas), T.J. Ford (Texas), Blake Griffin (Oklahoma), Buddy Hield (Oklahoma), Frank Mason III (Kansas).

Big East (6) - Ray Allen (Connecticut), Walter Berry (St. John's), Jalen Brunson (Villanova), Patrick Ewing (Georgetown), Doug McDermott (Creighton), Chris Mullin (St. John's).

Missouri Valley (3) - Larry Bird (Indiana State), Hersey Hawkins (Bradley), Oscar Robertson (Cincinnati).

SEC (4) - Anthony Davis (Kentucky), Pete Maravich (Louisiana State), Shaquille O'Neal (Louisiana State), Oscar Tshiebwe (Kentucky).

On This Date: Former College Hoopers Providing MLB Headlines on April 2

Extra! Extra! As a new season unfolds, it might be time to read news all about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

David Justice, who hit a tie-breaking homer in his Cleveland Indians' debut on this date, was scouted by Hep Cronin (father of UCLA coach Mick Cronin) for the Atlanta Braves. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only four percent of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 2 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 2

  • In 2001, San Diego Padres RF Tony Gwynn (All-WAC basketball second-team selection with San Diego State in 1979-80 and 1980-81) became the fifth player in N.L. history to spend 20-plus years playing his entire career with one franchise.

  • New York Mets manager Gil Hodges (hooper for St. Joseph's IN in 1943 and Oakland City IN in 1947 and 1948), two days shy of his 48th birthday, suffered a fatal heart attack in 1972 after playing a round of golf in West Palm Beach with his coaches on Easter Sunday.

  • RHP Bobby Humphreys (four-year hoops letterman for Hampden-Sydney VA in mid-1950s) traded by the Chicago Cubs to the Washington Senators in 1966.

  • LF David Justice (led Thomas More KY in assists in 1984-85 while averaging 9.3 ppg and 3.5 rpg), debuting with the Cleveland Indians, whacked a tie-breaking two-run homer in the seventh inning in a 9-7 decision over the Oakland A's in 1997.

College Exam: Day #22 For One-and-Only NCAA Tournament Trivia Challenge

Unless you're busy hoarding toilet paper and face-masks for next pandemic, seeking translator to try to understand Plagiarist Biledumb/Cacklin' Kamala administration or cowering in corner in fetal position from climate-change claptrap War of the Worlds, it's your opportunity to start taking online tests for 23 quarantined days symbolic of normal time frame from Selection Sunday to Monday evening championship contest.

We need something to occupy our minds from much of the invective-infected #MessMedia. Emphasizing a "one-and-only" theme for a "one-and-only" event, here is Day 22 of a treasure-trove of tantalizing NCAA Tournament trivia questions from CollegeHoopedia.com tracking the only coach, conference, player or school to be linked to a distinguished or dubious achievement (click here for answers or conduct research digesting historical morsels in CollegeHoopedia.com's year-by-year highlights):

1. Name the only player to lead an NCAA Tournament team in season scoring and rebounding before becoming the only NCAA playoff participant to subsequently appear in both the NBA Finals and World Series. Hint: He became his alma mater's athletic director.

2. Name the only championship team to have two guards be its top two scorers for the season. Hint: It's the only school to win an NCAA title the year after losing an NCAA Tournament opener by a double-digit margin.

3. Who is the only individual to play for an NCAA champion, NBA champion and ABA champion? Hint: The 6-2 swingman averaged almost three times as many rebounds per game for back-to-back NCAA titlists as he did points per game in his pro career.

4. Name the only school to lose an NCAA Tournament game in which it connected on at least three-fourths of its field-goal attempts. Hint: The school's leading scorer in that game was a freshman who went on to average at least 22 points per game in four tourneys, including first-round games against No. 3 and No. 4 seeds his last three years.

5. Who is the only player to hit a game-winning basket in an NCAA final one year and become a consensus All-American for another university the next season? Hint: He was a second-team All-American the same season a former teammate was first-team All-American one year after being named Final Four Most Outstanding Player as freshman.

6. Name the only team to defeat three #1 seeds in a single tourney. Hint: The three #1 seeds were three winningest schools in history of major-college basketball. The champion is only team needing at least four games to win NCAA title to have all of its playoff games decided by single-digit margins. It is also the only titlist to finish as low as fifth place in its conference standings.

7. Name the only NCAA championship team to have four freshman starters. Hint: Two of the freshmen were among three starters who also excelled in a sport other than basketball.

8. Who is the only Final Four coach to previously lead the nation in a statistical category as a major-college player? Hint: He coached his alma mater to the NCAA Tournament six years later before guiding another school to Final Four twice in a four-year span.

9. Name the only school to appear in the NCAA Tournament under two coaches who subsequently became NBA coach of the year. Hint: The school participated in NCAA playoffs under these individuals in back-to-back seasons before they earned their NBA awards in a five-year span.

10. Who is the only player to average more than 20 points and 10 rebounds for an NIT semifinalist one year and an NCAA semifinalist the next season? Hint: After earning an NIT Most Valuable Player award, he helped his school become the first member of a first-year conference to reach NCAA Final Four.

Answers (Day 22)
Day 21 Questions and Answers
Day 20 Questions and Answers
Day 19 Questions and Answers
Day 18 Questions and Answers
Day 17 Questions and Answers
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Day 1 Questions and Answers

Happy Birthday! April Celebration Dates For A-As and Hall of Fame Coaches

UCLA (six; four from NCAA Tournament champions in 1960s), Illinois (five) and Kansas (four) are the schools with most All-Americans born this month. North Carolina (April 4) and Ohio State (April 8) each had two All-Americans born on the same day. April 9 is the day to celebrate the most birthdays this month for former All-Americans. It's not an April Fool's joke that Wisconsin's Bobby Cook was born 100 years ago on that day. Following are birthdates in April for All-Americans and Hall of Fame coaches:

APRIL

1: All-Americans Joel Berry II (born in 1995/attended North Carolina), Bobby Cook (1923/Wisconsin), Mark Jackson (1965/St. John's), Brook Lopez (1988/Stanford) and Etan Thomas (1978/Syracuse).
2: All-Americans Jules Bender (1914/LIU), Jim McDaniels (1948/Western Kentucky) and Les Witte (1911/Wyoming).
3: All-Americans Pervis Ellison (1967/Louisville) and Frank Mason III (1994/Kansas).
4: All-Americans Bill Bridges (1939/Kansas), Bill Garrett (1929/Indiana), Frank Kaminsky (1993/Wisconsin), Sean May (1984/North Carolina), Larry Miller (1946/North Carolina) and George Senesky (1922/St. Joseph's).
5: All-Americans Duane "Skip" Thoren (1943/Illinois) and Scottie Wilbekin (1993/Florida) plus Hall of Fame coaches Alvin "Doggie" Julian (1901/bench boss at Muhlenberg PA, Holy Cross and Dartmouth) and John McLendon (1915/North Carolina Central, Hampton, Tennessee State, Kentucky State and Cleveland State).
6: All-Americans John Shumate (1952/Notre Dame) and Melford "Mel" Waits (1918/Tarkio MO).
7: All-Americans Vinnie Cohen (1936/Syracuse), Dwight "Bo" Lamar (1951/Southwestern Louisiana) and Don Smith (1946/Iowa State).
8: All-Americans Robin Freeman (1934/Ohio State), John Havlicek (1940/Ohio State) and Jimmy Walker (1944/Providence).
9: All-Americans John Adams (1917/Arkansas), Paul Arizin (1928/Villanova), Allen Crabbe (1992/California), Bruce Douglas (1964/Illinois), Greg "Bo" Kimble (1966/Loyola Marymount), Stan Love (1949/Oregon), Kyle Macy (1957/Kentucky), Jack Nichols (1926/Washington) and Jim O'Brien (1950/Boston College).
10: All-Americans Joe Gibbon (1935/Mississippi), Paul Judson (1934/Illinois), Charles "Stretch" Murphy (1907/Purdue), Ferdinand "Fred" Pralle (1916/Kansas) and Terry Teagle (1960/Baylor).
11: All-American LeRoy "Cowboy" Edwards (1914/Kentucky).
12: All-Americans Larry Cannon (1947/La Salle), Dave Scholz (1948/Illinois) and Tyshawn Taylor (1990/Kansas).
13: All-Americans Jim "Bad News" Barnes (1941/Texas Western), Baron Davis (1979/UCLA), Alec Peters (1995/Valparaiso) and Marvin Webster (1952/Morgan State).
14: All-Americans Leo Byrd (1937/Marshall), Larry Friend (1935/California), Joe Hobbs (1936/Florida), Mark Macon (1969/Temple) and Stan Modzelewski (1920/Rhode Island State) plus HOF coach Ken Loeffler (1902/Yale, Denver, La Salle and Texas A&M).
15: All-Americans Rodney Carney (1984/Memphis), Michael Cooper (1956/New Mexico), Walt Hazzard (1942/UCLA), Filip Petrusev (2000/Gonzaga) and Anthony Roberts (1955/Oral Roberts).
16: All-Americans Lew Alcindor (1947/UCLA), Wendell Hudson (1951/Alabama), Rodney Monroe (1968/North Carolina State) and Walt Williams (1970/Maryland).
17: All-Americans Cleanthony Early (1991/Wichita State) and Horace Walker (1937/Michigan State) plus HOF coach John Kresse (1943/College of Charleston).
18: All-Americans Michael Bradley (1979/Villanova), Don Ohl (1936/Illinois), Don Otten (1921/Bowling Green State) and Caleb Swanigan (1997/Purdue).
19: All-Americans Lew Beck (1922/Oregon State), Keith Erickson (1944/UCLA), Mike Evans (1955/Kansas State), Jack Foley (1939/Holy Cross), Kelly Olynyk (1991/Gonzaga) and Russ Smith (1991/Louisville).
20: All-Americans Henry "Hank" Finkel (1942/Dayton), Allan Houston (1971/Tennessee) and Lamond Murray (1973/California).
21: All-Americans Gary Grant (1965/Michigan), Chuck Mencel (1933/Minnesota), Dave Meyers (1953/UCLA) and Bob Patterson (1932/Tulsa).
22: All-Americans DeJuan Blair (1989/Pittsburgh), Bill Garnett (1960/Wyoming), Spencer Haywood (1949/Detroit) and Dennis Hopson (Ohio State).
23: All-Americans John Bagley (1960/Boston College), Gail Goodrich (1943/UCLA), Bobby Joe Mason (1936/Bradley) and Mike Novak (1915/Loyola of Chicago).
24: All-Americans Ernie Grunfeld (1955/Tennessee) and Hank Stein (1936/Xavier).
25: All-Americans Charles Cleveland (1951/Alabama), Dave Corzine (1956/DePaul), Tim Duncan (1976/Wake Forest) and John McCarthy (1934/Canisius).
26: All-Americans Bob Boozer (1937/Kansas State), Dick Ives (1924/Iowa) and Delon Wright (1992/Utah).
27: All-American Courtney Alexander (1977/Fresno State).
28: All-Americans John Fairchild (1943/Brigham Young), Paul Hogue (1940/Cincinnati), Josh Howard (1980/Wake Forest) and Flynn Robinson (1941/Wyoming).
29: All-American Andy Wolfe (1925/California).
30: All-Americans Paul Lindemann (1918/Washington State), Isiah Thomas (1961/Indiana) and Brandon Joel "B.J." Tyler (1971/Texas) plus Hall of Fame coach Rick Byrd (1953/Belmont).

Birthdays in January for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in February for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in March for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in April for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in May for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in June for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in July for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in August for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in September for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in October for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in November for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in December for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches

On This Date: Former College Hoopers Provide MLB Headlines on April 1

Extra! Extra! This is no April Fool's prank. Insofar as a new MLB season is underway, you can enhance your knowledge by reading news all about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players! Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only four percent of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Former college hoopers Tom Dettore (Juniata PA) and Paul Popovich (West Virginia) were traded for each other at MLB level on this date. Ex-HBCU hoopers Larry Doby (Virginia Union) and Lou Johnson (Kentucky State) were also traded on this date. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is an April 1 calendar of trades focusing on several such versatile MLB athletes:

APRIL 1

  • OF Larry Doby (reserve guard for Virginia Union's 1943 CIAA basketball titlist) traded by the Baltimore Orioles to the Cleveland Indians in 1958.

  • LF "Sweet" Lou Johnson (Kentucky State teammate of legendary HBCU coach Davey Whitney averaged 5.7 ppg and 2 rpg in 1951-52) traded by the Chicago Cubs to the Los Angeles Angels in 1961.

  • OF-1B Len Matuszek (starter for Toledo's 18-7 team in 1975-76) traded by the Philadelphia Phillies to the Toronto Blue Jays in 1985.

  • OF Lou Piniella (averaged 2.5 ppg and 1.4 rpg for Tampa as freshman in 1961-62) traded by the Seattle Pilots to Kansas City Royals in 1969.

  • OF-1B John Poff (member of Duke's freshman basketball squad in 1970-71) traded by the Milwaukee Brewers to the Chicago White Sox in 1981.

  • INF Paul Popovich (averaged 3.3 ppg for West Virginia's 1960 NCAA playoff team) traded by the Chicago Cubs to the Pittsburgh Pirates for RHP Tom Dettore (averaged 14.1 ppg and 9 rpg for Juniata PA in 1965-66) and cash in 1974.

College Exam: Day #21 For One-and-Only NCAA Tournament Trivia Challenge

Unless you're busy hoarding toilet paper and face-masks for next pandemic, seeking translator to try to understand Plagiarist Biledumb/Cacklin' Kamala administration or cowering in corner in fetal position from climate-change claptrap of Orson Welles' War of the Worlds, it's your opportunity to start taking online tests for 23 quarantined days symbolic of normal time frame from Selection Sunday to Monday evening championship contest.

We need something to occupy our minds during quarantine from much of the invective-infected #MessMedia. Emphasizing a "one-and-only" theme for a "one-and-only" event, here is Day 21 of a treasure-trove of tantalizing NCAA Tournament trivia questions from CollegeHoopedia.com tracking the only coach, conference, player or school to be linked to a distinguished or dubious achievement (click here for answers or conduct research digesting historical morsels in CollegeHoopedia.com's year-by-year highlights):

1. Who is the only player to post the highest-scoring game in a single tournament the same year he also played major league baseball? Hint: He is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

2. Who is the only Final Four player to become AAU national champion in the decathlon in the same year? Hint: The Final Four team's third-leading scorer and second-leading rebounder finished third in decathlon the previous year.

3. Who is the only Final Four player to finish among the top two high jumpers in four NCAA national track meets? Hint: The starting center for a national championship team is first athlete to place in the NCAA high jump four consecutive years.

4. Name the only coach in NCAA history to reach an NCAA Division I Tournament regional final in back-to-back years with different schools. Hint: He also reached a regional final in his first season at next coaching outpost.

5. Name the only top-ranked team entering the tournament to be eliminated by an opponent it defeated by more than 40 points during the regular season. Hint: The school avenging the embarrassing defeat upended nation's second-ranked team in its next playoff game.

6. Who is the only individual to play in the NCAA Tournament before setting several major league fielding records for a second baseman? Hint: He was the second-leading scorer for his school's playoff team and one of his teammates was a prominent college basketball coach for more than 20 years.

7. Who is the only member of the College Football Hall of Fame to participate in back-to-back Final Fours? Hint: He is one of the few athletes to earn consensus football All-American honors at two positions.

8. Who is the only individual to lead a school in scoring in an NCAA Tournament before pacing a major league in doubles as a player and manage a team in a World Series? Hint: The outfielder drove in six runs in one inning of an American League game.

9. Name the only university to win a minimum of two games in four different postseason national tournaments - NAIA, NCAA Division II, NIT and NCAA Division I. Hint: Of the schools to win at least one game in all four national tourneys, it is only one with an overall losing record in postseason competition.

10. Name the only school to win back-to-back basketball championships the same academic school years it participated in New Year's Day football bowl games. Hint: One of the two basketball title teams is the only school to have as many as 26 different players appear in its games in a season winning an NCAA crown. The two titlists helped school become only university to reach NCAA championship game in its first three playoff appearances.

Answers (Day 21)
Day 20 Questions and Answers
Day 19 Questions and Answers
Day 18 Questions and Answers
Day 17 Questions and Answers
Day 16 Questions and Answers
Day 15 Questions and Answers
Day 14 Questions and Answers
Day 13 Questions and Answers
Day 12 Questions and Answers
Day 11 Questions and Answers
Day 10 Questions and Answers
Day 9 Questions and Answers
Day 8 Questions and Answers
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Day 4 Questions and Answers
Day 3 Questions and Answers
Day 2 Questions and Answers
Day 1 Questions and Answers

False Start: NIT Championship Won't Mean Much to North Texas Next Season

Don't mean to hurt "wittle" feelings of safe-space snowflakes sympathetic to roof-top dancing bartender #AOC (Always Outlandish Commentary), Jussie Smollett supporters believing fictional tale about #MAGA caps/bleach/noose/nutritional white face, Mayor Pete pundits accepting "All Lives Matters" whether you're the husband or wife and Emory students terrified by Trump chalk talk. But if history means anything, a National Invitation Tournament crown earned in a poorly-attended game won't serve as a springboard to NCAA playoff success for Xavier. Defending NIT champions combined for a 15-20 NCAA Tournament record from 1986 through 2022.

The NIT titlists from 1985 through 2004 combined for a losing national postseason tournament record (15-17) the year after capturing an NIT championship - NCAA (8-13) and NIT (7-4) - with three of them not reaching national postseason play. Four more NIT champions in the last 12 years - South Carolina '06, Penn State '09, Minnesota '14 and Stanford '16 - also failed to appear in NCAA playoffs or NIT the next season when there was competition. West Virginia '08, Ohio State '09, Wichita State '12 and TCU '17 combined for a 2-4 NCAA playoff mark the years after winning an NIT title.

This year, Xavier became only the fourth school in the last 39 years to reach an NCAA regional semifinal the year after capturing an NIT title - joining Virginia '93, West Virginia '08 and Baylor '14. Following is a breakdown of how the NIT champions fared the next season since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985:

Year NIT Champion Season Summary the Following Campaign
1985 UCLA 15-14 record in 1985-86; 9-9 in Pacific-10 (4th place); no postseason
1986 Ohio State 20-13 in 1986-87; 9-9 in Big Ten (6th); lost in NCAA 2nd round
1987 Southern Mississippi 19-11 in 1987-88; 5-7 in Metro (7th); lost in NIT 2nd round
1988 Connecticut 18-13 in 1988-89; 6-10 in Big East (T7th); lost in NIT 3rd round
1989 St. John's 24-10 in 1989-90; 10-6 in Big East (4th); lost in NCAA 2nd round
1990 Vanderbilt 17-13 in 1990-91; 11-7 in SEC (4th); lost in NCAA 1st round
1991 Stanford 18-11 in 1991-92; 10-8 in Pacific-10 (4th); lost in NCAA 1st round
1992 Virginia 21-10 in 1992-93; 9-7 in ACC (5th); lost in NCAA regional semifinal
1993 Minnesota 21-12 in 1993-94; 10-8 in Big Ten (T4th); lost in NCAA 2nd round
1994 Villanova 25-8 in 1994-95; 14-4 in Big East (2nd); lost in NCAA 1st round
1995 Virginia Tech 23-6 in 1995-96; 13-3 in Atlantic 10 (T1st/W); lost in NCAA 2nd round
1996 Nebraska 19-14 in 1996-97; 7-9 in Big 12 (4th/N); lost in NIT 3rd round
1997 Michigan 25-9 in 1997-98; 11-5 in Big Ten (4th); lost in NCAA 2nd round
1998 Minnesota 17-11 in 1998-99; 8-8 in Big Ten (6th); lost in NCAA 1st round
1999 California 18-15 in 1999-00; 7-11 in Pacific-10 (7th); lost in NIT 3rd round
2000 Wake Forest 19-11 in 2000-01; 8-8 in ACC (T5th); lost in NCAA 1st round
2001 Tulsa 27-7 in 2001-02; 15-3 in WAC (T1st); lost in NCAA 2nd round
2002 Memphis 23-7 in 2002-03; 13-3 in C-USA (1st/National); lost in NCAA 1st round
2003 St. John's 6-21 in 2003-04; 1-15 in Big East (14th); no postseason
2004 Michigan 13-18 in 2004-05; 4-12 in Big Ten (9th); no postseason
2005 South Carolina 23-15 in 2005-06; 6-10 in SEC (5th/East); won NIT championship
2006 South Carolina 14-16 in 2006-07; 4-12 in SEC (6th/Eastern); no postseason
2007 West Virginia 26-11 in 2007-08; 11-7 in Big East (T5th); lost in NCAA regional semifinals
2008 Ohio State 22-11 in 2008-09; 10-8 in Big Ten (T4th); lost in NCAA 1st round
2009 Penn State 11-20 in 2009-10; 3-15 in Big Ten (11th); no postseason
2010 Dayton 22-14 in 2010-11; 7-9 in Atlantic 10 (T8th); lost in NIT 1st round
2011 Wichita State 27-6 in 2011-12; 16-2 in Missouri Valley (1st); lost in NCAA 1st round
2012 Stanford 19-15 in 2012-13; 9-9 in Pac-12 (T6th); lost in NIT 2nd round
2013 Baylor 26-12 in 2013-14; 9-9 in Big 12 (T6th); lost in NCAA regional semifinals
2014 Minnesota 18-15 in 2014-15; 6-12 in Big Ten (T10th); no postseason
2015 Stanford 15-15 in 2015-16; 8-10 in Pac-12 (9th); no postseason
2016 George Washington 20-15 2016-17; 10-8 in Atlantic 10 (6th); lost in CBI 2nd round
2017 Texas Christian 21-12 in 2017-18; 9-9 in Big 12 (5th); lost in NCAA 1st round
2018 Penn State 14-18 in 2018-19; 7-13 in Big Ten (T10th); no postseason
2019 Texas 19-12 in 2019-20; 9-9 in Big 12 (T3rd); national postseason play cancelled because of pandemic
2021 Memphis 22-11 in 2021-22; 13-5 in American Athletic (3rd); lost in NCAA 2nd round
2022 Xavier 27-10 in 2022-23; 15-5 in Big East (2nd); lost in NCAA Sweet 16
2023 North Texas TBD

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