1943–44 NCAA men's basketball season
1943–44 NCAA men's basketball season | |
---|---|
NCAA Tournament | 1944 |
Tournament dates | March 24 – 28, 1944 |
National Championship | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
NCAA Champions | Utah |
Helms National Champions | Army |
Other champions | St. John's (NIT) |
Player of the Year (Helms) | George Mikan, DePaul |
The 1943–44 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1943, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1944 NCAA Basketball Tournament Championship Game on March 28, 1944, at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. The Utah Redskins won their first NCAA national championship with a 42–40 victory over the Dartmouth Big Green.
Season headlines[]
- The Metropolitan New York Conference and the Skyline Conference did not compete during the season. Their members played as independents.
- Arkansas was selected for the NCAA Tournament but was forced to withdraw after a March 1944 automobile accident injured two Razorbacks starters and killed a physical education teacher who traveled with the team as a coaching assistant.[1][2]
- Utah replaced Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament and became the first team to play in both the National Invitation Tournament and the NCAA Tournament in the same season.
- Army went undefeated (15–0), and the Helms Athletic Foundation selected Army rather than 1944 NCAA Tournament winner Utah as its national champion. It was the third time in history that the Helms champion differed from the NCAA champion.
- In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively selected Army as its national champion for the 1942–43 season.[3]
Conference membership changes[]
School | Former Conference | New Conference |
---|---|---|
Brooklyn Bulldogs | Metropolitan New York Conference | Independent |
CCNY Beavers | Metropolitan New York Conference | Independent |
Fordham Rams | Metropolitan New York Conference | Independent |
Georgetown Hoyas | Independent | No athletic programs |
Harvard Crimson | Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League | Independent |
Manhattan Jaspers | Metropolitan New York Conference | Independent |
NYU Violets | Metropolitan New York Conference | Independent |
Northeastern Huskies | New England Conference | Independent |
St. Francis (NY) Terriers | Metropolitan New York Conference | Independent |
St. John's Redmen | Metropolitan New York Conference | Independent |
Yale Bulldogs | Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League | Independent |
Regular season[]
Conference winners and tournaments[]
Conference | Regular Season Winner[4] |
Conference Player of the Year |
Conference Tournament |
Tournament Venue (City) |
Tournament Winner |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Big Six Conference | Iowa State & Oklahoma | None selected | No Tournament | ||
Big Ten Conference | Ohio State | None selected | No Tournament | ||
Border Conference | New Mexico & Arizona State–Flagstaff | None selected | No Tournament | ||
Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League | Dartmouth | None selected | No Tournament | ||
Metropolitan New York Conference | Did not play as conference | ||||
Missouri Valley Conference | Oklahoma A&M | None selected | No Tournament | ||
New England Conference | Connecticut | No Tournament | |||
Pacific Coast Conference | Washington (North); California (South) | No Tournament | |||
Skyline Conference | Did not play as conference | ||||
Southeastern Conference | Kentucky | None selected | Jefferson County Armory, (Louisville, Kentucky) |
Kentucky | |
Southern Conference | North Carolina | None selected | 1944 Southern Conference Men's Basketball Tournament | Thompson Gym (Raleigh, North Carolina) |
Duke[5] |
Southwest Conference | Arkansas & Rice | None selected | No Tournament |
Statistical leaders[]
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Post-Season Tournaments[]
NCAA Tournament[]
Semifinals & Finals[]
National Semifinals | National Finals | ||||||||
Dartmouth | 60 | ||||||||
Ohio State | 53 | ||||||||
Dartmouth | 40 | ||||||||
Utah | 42 | ||||||||
Iowa State | 31 | ||||||||
Utah | 40 |
National Invitation Tournament[]
Semifinals & Finals[]
Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||
Oklahoma A&M | 38 | ||||||||
DePaul | 41 | ||||||||
DePaul | 39 | ||||||||
St. John's | 47 | ||||||||
Kentucky | 45 | ||||||||
St. John's | 48 |
- Third Place – Kentucky 45, Oklahoma A&M 29
Awards[]
Consensus All-American teams[]
Player | Position | Class | Team |
---|---|---|---|
Bob Brannum | C | Sophomore | Kentucky |
Audley Brindley | F | Sophomore | Dartmouth |
Otto Graham | F | Senior | Northwestern |
Leo Klier | F | Junior | Notre Dame |
Bob Kurland | C | Sophomore | Oklahoma A&M |
George Mikan | C | Sophomore | DePaul |
Allie Paine | G | Junior | Oklahoma |
Player | Position | Class | Team |
---|---|---|---|
Bob Dille | F | Sophomore | Valparaiso |
Arnie Ferrin | F | Freshman | Utah |
Don Grate | G | Junior | Ohio State |
Dale Hall | F | Junior | Army |
Bill Henry | C | Junior | Rice |
Dick Triptow | G | Senior | DePaul |
Major player of the year awards[]
- Helms Player of the Year: George Mikan, DePaul
- Sporting News Player of the Year: Dale Hall, Army
Other major awards[]
- NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Dick McGuire, St. John's
Coaching changes[]
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A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.
Team | Former Coach |
Interim Coach |
New Coach |
Reason |
---|---|---|---|---|
North Carolina | Bill Lange | Ben Carnevale |
References[]
- ^ Chipman, Kit. "University of Utah 1944 NCAA Basketball Championship". Utah Communication History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- ^ Reed, William F. (April 1994). A Barn Raising. Sports Illustrated. p. 8.
- ^ ESPN, ed. (2009). ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. New York, NY: ESPN Books. p. 526, 529–587. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
- ^ "2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09
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