1961

Cincinnati and Ohio State, again ranked 1–2 at the end of the regular season, became the first teams to play each other in two consecutive NCAA championship games. Each had something to prove in Louisville—the Bearcats that their 1961 title was not a fluke, the Buckeyes that it was.

Unlike a year ago, this game was not close. Cincy led by eight at the half and won by 12 as Paul Hogue and Tom Thacker led the way with 22 and 21 points, respectively. When it was over, the Bearcats' second year coach Ed Jucker had a pair of NCAA titles in two tries.

Ohio State's chances took a bad turn in the semifinal against Billy Packer and Wake Forest when consensus Player of the Year Jerry Lucas injured his left knee.

Wake Forest won the consolation game, beating UCLA by two points. It was the Bruins' first trip to the Final Four and John Wooden would be back.

In New York, Dayton finally won the NIT. The Flyers had reached the finals five times in the 1950s and lost them all. But that was then and this was now. Final score: Dayton 73, St. John's 67. The MVP award went to the Flyers' 6-10 center Bill Chmielewski.

The nation's leading scorer was Utah All-America Billy McGill, who averaged 38.8 points a game. The seventh-ranked Utes won the Skyline Conference, but were ineligible for tournament play.

		Before Tourns	Head Coach	Final Record
1	Ohio St.	23–1	Fred Taylor	26–2
2	Cincinnati	25–2	Ed Jucker	29–2
3	Kentucky	22–2	Adolph Rupp	23–3
4	Mississippi St.	19–6	Babe McCarthy	same
5	Bradley	21–6	Chuck Orsborn	21–7
6	Kansas St.	22–3	Tex Winter	same
7	Utah	23–3	Jack Gardner	same
8	Bowling Green	21–3	Harold Anderson	same
9	Colorado	18–6	Sox Walseth	19–7
10	Duke	20–5	Vic Bubas	same
11	Loyola, IL	21–3	George Ireland	23–4
12	St. John's	19–4	Joe Lapchick	21–5
13	Wake Forest	18–8	Bones McKinney	22–9
14	Oregon St.	22–4	Slats Gill	24–5
15	West Virginia	24–5	George King	24–6
16	Arizona St.	23–3	Ned Wulk	23–4
17	Duquesne	20–5	Red Manning	22–7
18	Utah St.	21–5	Ladell Andersen	22–7
19	UCLA	16–9	John Wooden	18–11
20	Villanova	19–6	Jack Kraft	21–7

Note: Cincinnati won the NCAAs and unranked Dayton (20–6, Tom Blackburn, 24–6) won the NIT.

1. Ohio State
2. Cincinnati
3. Kentucky
4. Mississippi State
5. Bradley
6. Kansas State
7. Utah
8. Bowling Green
9. Colorado
10. Duke

1. Ohio State
2. Cincinnati
3. Kentucky
4. Mississippi State
5. Kansas State
6. Bradley
7. Wake Forest
8. Colorado
9. Bowling Green
10. Utah

Wake Forest 92, Yale 82 (OT)
New York University 70, Massachusetts 50
Villanova 90, West Virginia 75
Butler 56, Bowling Green 55
Western Kentucky 90, Detroit 81
Texas Tech 68, Air Force 66
Creighton 87, Memphis State 83
Oregon State 69, Seattle 65 (OT)
Utah State 78, Arizona State 73
Regional Semifinals
Wake Forest 96, St. Joseph's 85 (OT)
Villanova 79, New York University 76
Kentucky 81, Butler 60
Ohio State 93, Western Kentucky 73
Colorado 67, Texas Tech 60
Cincinnati 66, Creighton 46
Oregon State 69, Pepperdine 67
UCLA 73, Utah State 62
Regional Third Place
East: New York Univ. 94, St. Joseph's 85
Mideast: Butler 87, Western Kentucky 86 (OT)
Midwest: Creighton 63, Texas Tech 61
West: Pepperdine 75, Utah State 71
Regional Finals
East: Wake Forest 79, Villanova 69
Mideast: Ohio State 74, Kentucky 64
Midwest: Cincinnati 73, Colorado 46
West: UCLA 88, Oregon State 69
National Semifinals
Ohio State 84, Wake Forest 68
Cincinnati 72, UCLA 70
National Third Place
Wake Forest 82, UCLA 80
Championship Game
Cincinnati 71, Ohio State 59

Cincinnati leaders: F Ron Bonham, So.; F-C George Wilson, So.; C Paul Hogue, Sr.; G-F Tom Thacker, Jr.; G Tony Yates, Jr.

All-NCAA Tournament Team

Leaders
Team
Offense: Loyola (Chi.), 90.2
Defense: Santa Clara, 52.1
Individual Scoring

• Wichita State def. Cincinnati 52-51 to snap the Bearcats' 27-game win streak.

• North Carolina coach Dean Smith began his career, finishing 8-9, his only losing season.

1962 Mar 02 Wilt ‘The Stilt’ Chamberlain scored 100 points and broke an NBA record as the Philadelphia Warriors beat the New York Knicks 169-147. Chamberlain broke NBA marks for the most field goal attempts (63), most field goals made (36), most free throws made (28), most points in a half (59), most field goal attempts in a half (37), most field goals made in a half (22), and most field goal attempts in one quarter (21). The 316 total points scored tied an NBA record.

At Cincinnati, satisfaction was a temporary condition. Although the Bearcats had won the 1961 national championship, they hadn't convinced skeptics that they were the best team in their own state.

To many Ohio State supporters and to some members of the media, Cincinnati's great triumph was a fluke.

Such talk goaded the Bearcats as they prepared to defend their title. They had proven something to themselves and their fans in '61. Now they faced the challenge of proving their worth to the outside world.

A nucleus of outstanding players returned to both finalists of the '61 NCAA Tournament. Paul Hogue, Tony Yates and Tom Thacker reported to coach Ed Jucker at Cincinnati.

Ohio State coach Fred Taylor had the services of consensus All-American Jerry Lucas, John Havlicek and Mel Nowell for another season.

There was every reason to believe the teams had not seen the last of each other.

The new faces at Cincinnati included 6-foot-8 George Wilson, a terrific leaper whose presence enabled Jucker to shift the 6-2 Thacker to the backcourt, and 6-5 Ron Bonham. The latter had been a celebrated high-school star in Indiana, where his jump shot was regarded as an automatic two points. Their availability significantly raised the athletic skill of the Bearcats, although they needed some time to absorb Jucker's highly disciplined system.

It didn't take long, however, for even the offense minded Bonham to fall into line.

"(Jucker) gives us three weeks of defense before we're allowed a shot in scrimmage," the sophomore forward said. "Even a lousy defensive player like me learned something."

By the midway point of the regular season, the Bearcats had lost only two games -- the first by one point, the second by two points in overtime. Applying Jucker's lessons as diligently as it had the previous season, Cincinnati soon appeared equal -- if not superior -- to the team that had surprised the nation in '61.

Still, in the minds of many, the Bearcats continued to suffer by comparison with Ohio State.

Up in Columbus, the Buckeyes were playing as well as they ever had in the Lucas era. With the addition of a strong, versatile sixth man in 6-8 Gary Bradds, Ohio State rolled to 22 consecutive victories and its smallest winning margin was eight points.

Even a late-season loss at Wisconsin, after the Buckeyes had clinched the Big Ten Conference championship, failed to loosen Ohio State's grip on the No. 1 ranking.

Of course, a victory over the Buckeyes was cause for great rejoicing in Madison, Wisc. More than 13,000 fans spilled out of the stands and applauded with such vigor that an amused Lucas picked up several timepieces from the arena floor.

If there was any doubt about the pecking order in Ohio, it was erased at a banquet in Columbus, the state capital as well as site of the state university. There, Gov. Michael DiSalle proclaimed Ohio State the No. 1 team in the country.

Although this did not differ from opinions expressed in the weekly wire-service polls, it was not well-received in Cincinnati, a sizable city that would have its say in the forthcoming election. There are those who contend DiSalle's sentiment might have contributed to losing his job.

Yet the Buckeyes did sail into the NCAA Tournament as the favorites. In many minds, they were the uncrowned champions. And their performance in the Midwest Regional at Iowa City did nothing to discourage such an assessment.

When Western Kentucky tied Lucas in knots with double- and triple-teaming, Bradds provided a spark with 10 points and seven rebounds and the Buckeyes romped, 93-73.

On the following night, Havlicek throttled Kentucky scoring ace Cotton Nash and Lucas scored 25 points in the first half -- 33 overall -- in a 74-64 victory.

Cincinnati didn't experience any difficulty working through the Midwest Regional at Manhattan, Kan. The Bearcats' problem was qualifying for the regional. Led by Chet "the Jet" Walker, an outstanding Bradley team had tied Cincinnati for the Missouri Valley Conference title, forcing a one-game playoff at Evansville, Ind., for the league's automatic NCAA berth.

If the playoff proved anything, it was that Cincinnati defense was as tight as ever. The Bearcats turned the screws on Bradley, which had been averaging 80.6 points per game, and prevailed. They yielded the same paltry point total in regional victories over Creighton and Colorado. The scores were 66-46 and 73-46, respectively.

Clearly, an all-Ohio final loomed as the teams arrived in Louisville for the Final Four.

Ohio State was a sizable favorite over Atlantic Coast Conference representative Wake Forest, and Cincinnati appeared too stingy and strong for the exciting-but-small UCLA Bruins. Even the UCLA coach, in his first national semifinals in 14 years at the school, said as much.

"I don't think we can beat Cincinnati at its slow-down game," John Wooden said, "and I don't think we can beat them at our fast one, either."

It appeared Wooden was understating his plight at the outset of the game. Grabbing every loose ball and scoring on every possession, Cincinnati gained an 18-4 advantage. The Bearcats were not in the habit of squandering leads but UCLA, a nine-time loser during the regular season, kept its poise and forced a halftime tie on the shot-making of forward Gary Cunningham and guard John Green and the leadership of sophomore Walt Hazzard.

Furthermore, the Far West Regional champion Bruins hung with the Bearcats throughout the second half. Only Hogue was playing to his potential for Cincinnati, and UCLA was getting a remarkable team effort.

The teams were deadlocked at 70-70, and the Bruins were holding for a last shot in the final two minutes.

"I was afraid," admitted the imperturbable Yates, the Air Force veteran and walk-on who set the tone for the defending national champions.

A whistle with 1:34 remaining reversed the momentum. Hazzard was assessed an offensive foul -- Wooden later said the charging call was "questionable" -- and the ball was turned over to Cincinnati.

The Bearcats ran down the clock and called a timeout with 10 seconds left. Jucker instructed his team to get the ball to Hogue, who had Cincinnati's last 14 points and 36 in all. But Hogue was covered down low and Thacker, unable to penetrate, took a long jump shot.

There was no mystery about the other semifinal. Ohio State had demoralized Wake Forest by 22 points on the Demon Deacons' home court early in season and the Deacons weren't a match for the Buckeyes the second time, either.

Havlicek harassed burly Len Chappell, Wake Forest's 6-8 consensus All-American, into errant shots and the Buckeyes took a 46-34 halftime lead en route to an 84-68 victory over the East Regional champion.

However, Ohio State paid a price in the game. With about 6 1/2 minutes left, Lucas jumped for a rebound, brushed the leg of Wake Forest's 6-11 Bob Woollard and landed awkwardly. He fell to the floor and had to be helped off the court after wrenching his left knee.

Now the long-awaited rematch of college basketball's heavyweights had a sub-plot. It was articulated by Lucas' wife, Treva, who sent a message into the Ohio State dressing room after the game.

"Will he be able to play tomorrow?" she asked on behalf of everyone in Freedom Hall, not to mention millions of television viewers.

It did. And Lucas, his left leg encased in tape, did appear at center court for the opening tap the next night. He was not the same player who had dominated games for three seasons. But Hogue had something to do with that.

Hogue, the big Cincinnati center, had become a force at both ends of the court and he was determined to show everyone he was Lucas' equal.

Indeed, this was the chance for all the Bearcats to prove they were better than their more-publicized rivals.

"We were nervous before the first (championship) game," Yates said. "But this time we were totally confident going in. We felt we had superior talent up and down the line."

They also had superior strategy. Hampered by his knee injury and matched against the aggressive Hogue, Lucas needed all the rebounding help he could get from Havlicek.

But Havlicek was assigned to guard Cincinnati's best shooter, Bonham, as Jucker suspected he would be. So the Bearcats' coach instructed Bonham to remain on the perimeter, effectively keeping Havlicek away from the backboards.

"We sort of stood there and held hands at midcourt," Havlicek said, "while the others played four-on-four."

Havlicek had 11 points and Bonham 10, effectively negating each other. But Cincinnati's other four players were far superior. Lucas was limited to 11 points and it was Bradds, the sophomore reserve, who led the Buckeyes in scoring with 15.

Meanwhile, Hogue gave a towering performance with 22 points and 19 rebounds, and Thacker added 21 points. The Bearcats boosted a 37-29 halftime lead to 18 and won easily, 71-59.

The point had been remade. Public opinion -- and a governor's vote -- to the contrary, Cincinnati once again was the nation's best team.

Rank		W-L	Post-Season Result
1.	Ohio State	26-2	NCAA 2nd Place
2.	Cincinnati	29-2	NCAA 1st Place
3	Kentucky	23-3	Lost NCAA regionals
4.	Mississippi St.	24-1	DNP
5.	Bradley	21-7	Lost NIT quarterfinals
6.	Kansas State	22-3	DNP
7.	Utah	23-3	Probation
8.	Bowling Green	21-4	Lost NCAA regionals
9.	Colorado	15-10	Lost NCAA regionals
10.	Duke	20-5	DNP

1. Bill McGill	Utah	38.8
2. Jack Foley	Holy Cross	33.3
3. Nick Werkman	Seton Hall	33.0
4. Terry Dischinger	Purdue	30.3
5. Len Chappell	Wake Forest	30.1
6. Jimmy Rayl	Indiana	29.8

1. Jerry Lucas	Ohio State	.2112
2. Paul Silas	Creighton	.2108
3. Glur	Furman	.209

First Round	Player	College
1. Chicago Zephyrs	Bill McGill	Utah
2. New York Knicks	Paul Hogue	Cincinnati
3. St. Louis Hawks	Zelmo Beaty	Prairie View
4. Syracuse Nationals	Len Chappell	Wake Forest
5. Philadelphia Warriors	Wayne Hightower	Kansas
6. Los Angeles Lakers	Leroy Ellis	St. John's
7. Boston Celtics	John Havlicek	Ohio State

Name	Cl.	Pos	Team
Len Chappell	Sr.	F-C	Wake Forest
John Havlicek	Sr.	F	Ohio State
Paul Hogue	Sr.	C	Cincinnati
Jerry Lucas	Sr.	C	Ohio State
Tom Thacker	Jr.	F-G	Cincinnati