1967–68 NCAA University Division men's basketball season

1967–68 NCAA University Division men's basketball season
Preseason AP No. 1UCLA Bruins[1][2]
NCAA Tournament1968
Tournament datesMarch 8 – 23, 1968
National ChampionshipLos Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
Los Angeles, California
NCAA ChampionsUCLA Bruins
Helms National ChampionsUCLA Bruins
Other championsDayton Flyers (NIT)
Player of the Year
(Helms)		Lew Alcindor, UCLA Bruins

The 1967–68 NCAA University Division men's basketball season began in December 1967, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1968 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 23, 1968, at Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California. The UCLA Bruins won their fourth NCAA national championship with a 78–55 victory over the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Rule changes

The slam dunk — criticized as a move that rewards height rather than skill — is prohibited in NCAA basketball both during games and during pre-game warm-ups.[3][4][5] It will not become legal again until the 1976–77 season.[3][4][5]

Season headlines

Season outlook

Pre-season polls

Main article: 1967–68 NCAA University Division men's basketball rankings

The Top 10 from the AP Poll and Top 20 from the Coaches Poll during the pre-season.[8][9]

Associated Press
Ranking Team
1 UCLA
2 Houston
3 Louisville
4 North Carolina
5 Kansas
6 Dayton
7 Boston College
8 Princeton
9 Vanderbilt
10 Davidson
UPI Coaches
Ranking Team
1 UCLA
2 Houston
3 Kansas
4 Louisville
5 North Carolina
6 Dayton
7 Boston College
8 Princeton
9 Vanderbilt
10 Tennessee
11 Indiana
12 Davidson
13 Cincinnati
14 UTEP
15
(tie) 		Loyola-Chicago
St. John's
Wyoming
18 Marquette
19
(tie) 		Duke
Niagara

Conference membership changes

School Former conference New conference
Memphis State Tigers NCAA University Division independent Missouri Valley Conference
NYU Violets Metropolitan Collegiate Conference NCAA University Division independent

Regular season

Conference

Conference winners and tournaments

Conference Regular
season winner[10] 		Conference
player of the year 		Conference
tournament 		Tournament
venue (City) 		Tournament
winner
Athletic Association of Western Universities UCLA None selected No Tournament
Atlantic Coast Conference North Carolina Larry Miller,
North Carolina[11]		 1968 ACC men's basketball tournament Charlotte Coliseum
(Charlotte, North Carolina)		 North Carolina
Big Eight Conference Kansas State Donald Smith, Iowa State[12] No Tournament
Big Sky Conference Weber State None selected No Tournament
Big Ten Conference Iowa & Ohio State None selected No Tournament
Ivy League Columbia None selected No Tournament
Metropolitan Collegiate Conference St. Peter's No Tournament
Mid-American Conference Bowling Green State Fred Foster, Miami (OH)[13] No Tournament
Middle Atlantic Conference La Salle No Tournament
Missouri Valley Conference Drake & Louisville None selected No Tournament
Ohio Valley Conference East Tennessee State & Murray State Wayne Chapman, Western Kentucky, & Skeeter Swift, East Tennessee State No Tournament
Southeastern Conference Kentucky Pete Maravich, LSU[14] No Tournament
Southern Conference Davidson Ron Williams, West Virginia[15] 1968 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament Charlotte Coliseum
(Charlotte, North Carolina)		 Davidson[16]
Southwest Conference TCU Billy Arnold, Texas No Tournament
West Coast Athletic Conference Santa Clara Rick Adelman, Loyola (Calif.) No Tournament
Western Athletic Conference New Mexico None selected No Tournament
Yankee Conference Massachusetts & Rhode Island None selected No Tournament

Conference standings

1967–68 AAWU Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 2 UCLA 14 – 0   1.000 29 – 1   .967
USC 11 – 3   .786 18 – 8   .692
Washington State 8 – 6   .571 16 – 9   .640
California 7 – 7   .500 16 – 9   .640
Oregon State 5 – 9   .357 12 – 13   .480
Stanford 5 – 9   .357 11 – 15   .423
Washington 4 – 10   .286 12 – 14   .462
Oregon 2 – 12   .143 7 – 19   .269
Rankings from AP Poll[17]
1967–68 ACC men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 North Carolina † 12 – 2   .857 28 – 4   .875
No. 10 Duke 11 – 3   .786 22 – 6   .786
NC State 9 – 5   .643 16 – 10   .615
South Carolina 9 – 5   .643 15 – 7   .682
Virginia 5 – 9   .357 9 – 16   .360
Maryland 4 – 10   .286 8 – 16   .333
Clemson 3 – 11   .214 4 – 20   .167
Wake Forest 3 – 11   .214 5 – 21   .192
† 1968 ACC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Big Eight Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Kansas State 11 – 3   .786 19 – 9   .679
Kansas 10 – 4   .714 22 – 8   .733
Nebraska 8 – 6   .571 15 – 10   .600
Oklahoma 8 – 6   .571 13 – 13   .500
Iowa State 8 – 6   .571 12 – 13   .480
Missouri 5 – 9   .357 10 – 16   .385
Oklahoma State 3 – 11   .214 10 – 16   .385
Colorado 3 – 11   .214 9 – 16   .360
Rankings from AP Poll[18]
1967–68 Big Sky men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Weber State 12 – 3   .800 21 – 6   .778
Idaho 9 – 3   .750 15 – 11   .577
Idaho State 7 – 8   .467 13 – 13   .500
Montana State 6 – 9   .400 10 – 15   .400
Gonzaga 6 – 9   .400 9 – 17   .346
Montana 5 – 10   .333 8 – 17   .320
1967–68 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Ohio State 10 – 4   .714 21 – 8   .724
Iowa 10 – 4   .714 16 – 9   .640
Purdue 9 – 5   .643 15 – 9   .625
Northwestern 8 – 6   .571 13 – 10   .565
Wisconsin 7 – 7   .500 13 – 11   .542
Michigan State 6 – 8   .429 12 – 12   .500
Illinois 6 – 8   .429 11 – 13   .458
Michigan 6 – 8   .429 11 – 13   .458
Indiana 4 – 10   .286 10 – 14   .417
Minnesota 4 – 10   .286 7 – 17   .292
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Ivy League men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 7 Columbia† 12 – 2   .857 23 – 5   .821
Princeton 12 – 2   .857 20 – 6   .769
Yale 8 – 6   .571 15 – 9   .625
Cornell 6 – 8   .429 14 – 11   .560
Dartmouth 6 – 8   .429 8 – 18   .308
Brown 4 – 10   .286 9 – 16   .360
Pennsylvania 4 – 10   .286 9 – 17   .346
Harvard 4 – 10   .286 7 – 14   .333
† Regular-season championship winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Metropolitan Collegiate Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Saint Peter's 8 – 0   1.000 24 – 4   .857
LIU 7 – 1   .875 22 – 2   .917
Wagner 5 – 3   .625 21 – 8   .724
Iona 4 – 4   .500 13 – 9   .591
Fairleigh Dickinson 4 – 4   .500 10 – 12   .455
Seton Hall 4 – 4   .500 9 – 15   .375
Manhattan 3 – 5   .375 8 – 14   .364
Hofstra 1 – 7   .125 13 – 12   .520
St. Francis (NY) 0 – 8   .000 7 – 16   .304
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Bowling Green State 10 – 2   .833 18 – 7   .720
Marshall 9 – 3   .750 17 – 8   .680
Toledo 8 – 4   .667 16 – 8   .667
Western Michigan 5 – 7   .417 11 – 13   .458
Miami (Ohio) 4 – 8   .333 11 – 12   .478
Kent State 3 – 9   .250 9 – 15   .375
Ohio 3 – 9   .250 7 – 16   .304
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 MAC men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
La Salle† 8 – 0   1.000 20 – 8   .714
Delaware 7 – 2   .778 16 – 7   .696
American 5 – 2   .714 14 – 12   .538
Temple 5 – 3   .625 19 – 9   .679
Saint Joseph's 2 – 2   .500 17 – 9   .654
Lehigh 5 – 5   .500 12 – 11   .522
Gettysburg 5 – 6   .455 14 – 11   .560
Bucknell 4 – 6   .400 12 – 11   .522
Rider 1 – 6   .143 9 – 15   .375
Lafayette 1 – 11   .083 5 – 19   .208
† Regular-season championship winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 9 Louisville 14 – 2   .875 21 – 7   .750
Bradley 12 – 4   .750 19 – 9   .679
Cincinnati 11 – 5   .688 18 – 8   .692
Drake 9 – 7   .563 18 – 8   .692
Saint Louis 9 – 7   .563 15 – 11   .577
Wichita State 7 – 9   .438 12 – 14   .462
Tulsa 5 – 11   .313 11 – 12   .478
North Texas State 3 – 13   .188 8 – 18   .308
Memphis State 2 – 14   .125 8 – 17   .320
Rankings from AP Poll[19]
1967–68 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
East Tennessee State 10 – 4   .714 19 – 8   .704
Murray State 10 – 4   .714 16 – 8   .667
Western Kentucky 9 – 5   .643 18 – 7   .720
Morehead State 8 – 6   .571 12 – 9   .571
Middle Tennessee 7 – 7   .500 15 – 9   .625
Eastern Kentucky 6 – 8   .429 10 – 14   .417
Tennessee Tech 4 – 10   .286 10 – 16   .385
Austin Peay State 2 – 12   .143 8 – 16   .333
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 5 Kentucky 15 – 3   .833 22 – 5   .815
Tennessee 13 – 5   .722 20 – 6   .769
Vanderbilt 12 – 6   .667 20 – 6   .769
Georgia 11 – 7   .611 17 – 8   .680
Florida 11 – 7   .611 15 – 10   .600
LSU 8 – 10   .444 14 – 12   .538
Auburn 8 – 10   .444 13 – 13   .500
Mississippi State 5 – 13   .278 9 – 17   .346
Ole Miss 4 – 14   .222 7 – 17   .292
Alabama 3 – 15   .167 10 – 16   .385
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Southern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 8 Davidson † 9 – 1   .900 24 – 5   .828
West Virginia 9 – 2   .818 19 – 9   .679
The Citadel 6 – 5   .545 11 – 14   .440
VMI 8 – 7   .533 9 – 12   .429
Furman 6 – 6   .500 13 – 14   .481
Richmond 8 – 8   .500 12 – 13   .480
East Carolina 6 – 7   .462 9 – 16   .360
William & Mary 4 – 10   .286 6 – 18   .250
George Washington 2 – 12   .143 5 – 19   .208
† 1968 Southern Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
TCU 9 – 5   .643 15 – 11   .577
Baylor 8 – 6   .571 15 – 9   .625
Texas A&M 8 – 6   .571 14 – 10   .583
Texas 8 – 6   .571 11 – 13   .458
Arkansas 7 – 7   .500 10 – 14   .417
Rice 6 – 8   .429 8 – 16   .333
Texas Tech 5 – 9   .357 9 – 15   .375
SMU 5 – 9   .357 6 – 18   .250
Rankings from AP Poll
1967–68 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Santa Clara 11 – 1   .917 22 – 4   .846
Loyola (Calif.) 10 – 2   .833 19 – 6   .760
San Francisco 8 – 4   .667 16 – 10   .615
San Jose State –   – 13 – 12   .520
Pacific 5 – 7   .417 17 – 9   .654
UC Santa Barbara 3 – 9   .250 9 – 17   .346
Saint Mary's 3 – 9   .250 4 – 20   .167
Pepperdine 2 – 10   .167 9 – 17   .346
Rankings from AP poll
1967–68 WAC men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 6 New Mexico 8 – 2   .800 23 – 5   .821
Wyoming 5 – 5   .500 18 – 9   .667
Utah 5 – 5   .500 17 – 9   .654
BYU 4 – 6   .400 13 – 12   .520
Arizona 4 – 6   .400 11 – 13   .458
Arizona State 4 – 6   .400 11 – 17   .393
Rankings from AP Poll[20]
1967–68 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Rhode Island 8 – 2   .800 15 – 11   .577
Massachusetts 8 – 2   .800 14 – 11   .560
Connecticut 7 – 3   .700 11 – 13   .458
Vermont 5 – 5   .500 12 – 12   .500
Maine 2 – 8   .200 7 – 17   .292
New Hampshire 0 – 10   .000 1 – 22   .043

University Division independents

A total of 53 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, Houston (31–2) had both the best winning percentage (.939) and the most wins.[21]

1967–68 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 Houston –   – 31 – 2   .939
No. 3 St. Bonaventure –   – 23 – 2   .920
Army –   – 20 – 5   .800
Marquette –   – 23 – 6   .793
New Mexico State –   – 23 – 6   .793
St. Francis (PA) –   – 19 – 6   .760
Oklahoma City –   – 20 – 7   .741
Duquesne –   – 18 – 7   .720
Florida State –   – 19 – 8   .704
Fordham –   – 19 – 8   .704
St. John's –   – 19 – 8   .704
Dayton –   – 21 – 9   .700
Notre Dame –   – 21 – 9   .700
Boston College –   – 17 – 8   .680
Villanova –   – 19 – 9   .679
Holy Cross –   – 15 – 8   .652
Loyola Chicago –   – 15 – 9   .625
Fairfield –   – 16 – 10   .615
Texas Western –   – 14 – 9   .609
Miami (FL) –   – 17 – 11   .607
Rutgers –   – 14 – 10   .583
Utah State –   – 14 – 11   .560
VPI –   – 14 – 11   .560
Southern Illinois –   – 13 – 11   .542
DePaul –   – 13 – 12   .520
Detroit –   – 13 – 12   .520
Seattle –   – 14 – 13   .519
Jacksonville –   – 13 – 13   .500
Niagara –   – 12 – 12   .500
Tulane –   – 12 – 12   .500
Penn State –   – 10 – 10   .500
Georgia Tech –   – 12 – 13   .480
Georgetown –   – 11 – 12   .478
West Texas State –   – 10 – 11   .476
Colorado State –   – 11 – 13   .458
Navy –   – 9 – 11   .450
Butler –   – 11 – 14   .440
Denver –   – 11 – 14   .440
Loyola (LA) –   – 11 – 14   .440
Providence –   – 11 – 14   .440
Syracuse –   – 11 – 14   .440
Boston University –   – 10 – 14   .417
Northern Illinois –   – 10 – 14   .417
Colgate –   – 10 – 16   .385
Hardin–Simmons –   – 10 – 16   .385
Xavier –   – 10 – 16   .385
Air Force –   – 9 – 15   .375
NYU –   – 8 – 16   .333
Creighton –   – 8 – 17   .320
Pittsburgh –   – 7 – 15   .318
Canisius –   – 7 – 17   .292
Portland –   – 5 – 21   .192
Centenary –   – 3 – 23   .115
Rankings from AP Poll

Informal championships

Conference Regular
season winner 		Most Valuable Player
Philadelphia Big 5 Saint Joseph's Johnny Jones, Villanova

Saint Joseph's finished with a 3–1 record in head-to-head competition among the Philadelphia Big 5.

Statistical leaders

Post-season tournaments

NCAA tournament

Main articles: 1968 NCAA University Division basketball tournament and 1968 NCAA University Division Basketball Championship Game

Final Four

National semifinals National finals
      
E North Carolina 80
ME Ohio State 66
E North Carolina 55
W UCLA 78
MW Houston 69
W UCLA 101 Third place
ME Ohio State 89
MW Houston 85

National Invitation tournament

Main article: 1968 National Invitation Tournament

Semifinals & finals

Semifinals Finals
    
Kansas 58
St. Peter's 46
Kansas 48
Dayton 61
Dayton 76
Notre Dame 74 Third place
St. Peter's 78
Notre Dame 81

Awards

Consensus All-American teams

Main article: 1968 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans
Consensus First Team
Player Position Class Team
Lew Alcindor C Junior UCLA
Elvin Hayes F/C Senior Houston
Pete Maravich G/F Sophomore Louisiana State
Larry Miller F Senior North Carolina
Wes Unseld C Senior Louisville


Consensus Second Team
Player Position Class Team
Lucius Allen G Junior UCLA
Bob Lanier C Sophomore St. Bonaventure
Don May G/F Senior Dayton
Calvin Murphy G Sophomore Niagara
Jo Jo White G Junior Kansas

Major player of the year awards

Major coach of the year awards

Other major awards

Coaching changes

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

Team Former
Coach 		Interim
Coach 		New
Coach 		Reason
Bowling Green Bill Fitch Bob Conibear
Kansas State Tex Winter Cotton Fitzsimmons
Loyola (LA) Ron Greene Bob Luksta
Minnesota John Kundla Bill Fitch
Washington Mac Duckworth Tex Winter

References

  1. ^ ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia. Random House. 2009. p. 846. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
  2. ^ "1978 Preseason AP Men's Basketball Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  3. ^ a b orangehoops.org History of NCAA Basketball Rule Changes
  4. ^ a b Fitzpatrick, Frank, "When college basketball outlawed the dunk," Philadelphia Inquirer, March 23, 2014 Accessed April 6, 2021
  5. ^ a b "Burnsed, Brian, "A Brief History of Men's College Basketball," Champion, Fall 2018 Accessed April 6, 2021". Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  6. ^ Nguyen, Thuc Nhi - UCLA-Houston ‘Game of the Century’ still leaves impression 50 years later. Los Angeles Daily News, January 20, 2018
  7. ^ Einhorn, Eddie; Ron Rapaport (2006). How March Became Madness: How the NCAA Tournament Became the Greatest Sporting Event in America. Chicago, Illinois: Triumph Books. ISBN 1-57243-809-6.
  8. ^ ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia. Random House. 2009. p. 836. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
  9. ^ "1977 Preseason AP Men's Basketball Poll". College Poll Archive. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
  10. ^ "2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  11. ^ 2008–09 ACC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Year by Year section Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2009-02-14
  12. ^ 2008–09 Big 12 Men's Basketball Media Guide – Awards section, Big 12 Conference, retrieved 2009-02-04
  13. ^ 2008–09 MAC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Records Section, Mid-American Conference, retrieved 2009-02-14
  14. ^ 2008–09 SEC Men's Basketball Record Book, Southeastern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-06
  15. ^ 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Honors Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09
  16. ^ 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09
  17. ^ "2017-18 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. p. 72. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  18. ^ sports-reference.com 1967-68 Big Eight Conference Season Summary
  19. ^ sports-reference.com 1967-68 Missouri Valley Conference Season Summary
  20. ^ sports-reference.com 1967-68 Western Athletic Conference Season Summary
  21. ^ "1967-68 Men's Independent Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
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