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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2022 10:51:46 GMT -6
The 1957 College Division tournament, held in Evansville at the brand-new Roberts Stadium, had something of a regional flair -- Kentucky Wesleyan. The event was quietly tainted. Wheaton College won 89-65 over Wesleyan, in front of an announced throng of about 5,000. Mason Cope of KFC ... er KWC, was all-tournament. Mel Peterson of the Wheatons was MVP. Wheaton was also known as the Crusaders in those days, thus setting a trend that would eventually disable the nickname for all schools. They were 28-1 that year. They are now known as the Wheaton Thunder. The tournament was the NCAA's first College Division event, so it was hard to measure Wheaton's impact on the national game. The rival NAIA claimed to have more firepower. Wesleyan was 16-12 that year against a reportedly much tougher schedule. Dan Scism, in his Courier column, said the total attendance was about 8,000, "not good, not bad" but that losing the Aces in the Regional round (Buffalo beat them by 2 points) was a damper. The city and the NCAA were counting on local fans to show up to root for a local team -- that's a profit-maker but hardly a legitimate tournament tool. Once the Aces were out, local interest waned. Clarity on that: EC played its first Regional game at home, whacking Illinois State 108-96, and then went to Buffalo for the next game. Yeah, ONE-OH-EIGHT TO NINETY-SIX. Wikipedia adds this about all-Black Jackson State College, which was forced to forfeit its Regional championship game against South Dakota: Jackson State, citing policy of the Mississippi Board of Trustees, was compelled to withdraw from the tournament rather than competing in an interracial contest. Jackson State would return to the tournament in 1964.
The next year, South Dakota won the tournament before Arad's Aces came to life in 1959, which was what the NCAA was counting on when it gave the permanent event to the city and the cavernous Stadium. A more prestigious event would occur the day after. The first ever Evansville Semistate was slated, the tournament moving from Bloomington to the 11,000-seat Stadium. Evansville Lincoln's Lions, one of a handful of high schools created during the 1928 state segregation policy, was the local rep. They lost 69-67 in 2OT to Jasper. Gerstmeyer won and lost in the Final Four to Crispus Attucks, one of the other schools created in 1928 by the segregation policy. (SB Central went 30-0 to win it all.) That covers everything except Sputnik, which launched later that year.   |
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Post by E-Villan on Feb 12, 2022 11:21:48 GMT -6
You uncovered quite a bit there. Interesting the the Aces traveled to Buffalo to play them, only for Buffalo to squeak out a win and thus, travel here.
Those semi-state games until class system destroyed it were spectacular events. I find it interesting we still had segregated schools in the 50's, yet allowed both to play in the same tournament. That kind of logic still baffles my mind..can't go to school together, but can play in the same tournament and generate cash for them. I suppose that is better than what the idiots in the south were doing at that time. Knowing the racist history of Dubois County, I bet the tension was quite thick in the stadium for that Lincoln-Jasper game.
108-96 win over Illinois State, in an era there wasn't a three point line or shot clock. Obviously a Lickliter wasn't coaching that game. I am fascinated in the offenses that Arad was able to develop in that era. It also reiterates the counter argument when the less informed try to state UE has no ability to compete in the MVC. The majority of the current MVC schools, such as Illinois State, UNI, SIU, Indiana State, Valpo, and MO State were all college division teams during that time.
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Post by aceschamps6571 on Feb 12, 2022 12:13:18 GMT -6
That was a weird setup for the Regional round in that first College Division tournament. Instead of 4 teams playing at one site, the Aces won at home on a Friday night, then traveled to Buffalo to play the very next night. Would imagine that travel that far and playing less than 24 hours later had an influence on the outcome.
The Aces had a great freshman player that season, Ed Smallwood, but freshmen couldn't play at the varsity level until the early '70s. Except at Kentucky Wesleyan, where for some reason their freshmen were the exception. Their freshmen were exempted and they certainly benefited from that as well.
Smallwood eligible in 1957 and Larry Humes and Sam Watkins being able to play varsity in 1963 may have meant another banner or two for the good guys.
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Post by aceschamps6571 on Feb 12, 2022 12:33:12 GMT -6
Those Semistate tournaments were great. They were played in big arenas too, like Hinkle Fieldhouse, Mackey Arena and the Coliseum in Fort Wayne. Notre Dame's Joyce Center rotated with Fort Wayne later.
Growing up in that neighborhood, I was lucky to have attended several Semistates at Roberts Stadium. Some were sellouts, while others weren't sold out, but came close. I think there may have been a 10 year period where it was sold out 7 or 8 times. So obviously there were lots of fans from more than just the 4 schools playing.
Now the class semistates are played in high school gyms that get good turnouts, but nearly all the fans there are from the schools involved.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2022 12:47:17 GMT -6
I recall being a scribe in 1972 when Reitz took down Central 100-95 in a foul-infested Sectional game. There were not many empty seats there.
And I happened to see the North-Vincennes game at the Stadium in Nov. 1967 after North had won the State and Vincennes was favored to win it. I think about 12K were in there for that.
I was less than surprised that the Jackson State thing didn't get any traction in either Sioux Falls or in Jackson, MS. The Courier only had a couple of sentences about it. I guess that since it was a rule, it was a rule and that was that.
Of course, the legendary Mississippi State game at Loyola was the first defiance of that. MSU had forfeited at least 2 NCAA slots in the late 50s and more or less just shrugged about it and moved on.
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Post by stennisrm72 on Feb 12, 2022 14:36:31 GMT -6
My most endearing high school memory is walking down the Roberts Stadium tunnel to the floor for the Semi-State title game between Vincennes and Rex Mundi. That was a sellout as best I remember. An awesome site for a 14 year old basketball lover.
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Post by aceschamps6571 on Feb 12, 2022 15:27:33 GMT -6
My most endearing high school memory is walking down the Roberts Stadium tunnel to the floor for the Semi-State title game between Vincennes and Rex Mundi. That was a sellout as best I remember. An awesome site for a 14 year old basketball lover. You're exactly right. That one was sold out. Vincennes always brought a big crowd and had Indiana All Star Jerry Memering. Rex Mundi beat Bedford in the afternoon and Vincennes won over Scottsburg in a game between two unbeaten teams. Rex Mundi hung with the Alices for a half, maybe even until late 3rd quarter, but Vincennes ended up winning by 20. That Rex Mundi team had a pretty good player in Larry Ross, and another starter I believe was Randy Mattingly, second oldest of the 4 brothers and a great football player. Memering got hurt in the first half and there were girls from Vincennes seated to our right literally crying, afraid he might not return. Fans really took their high school basketball pretty serious. He was okay and helped them dominate the second half. |
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Post by aceschamps6571 on Feb 12, 2022 15:43:42 GMT -6
I recall being a scribe in 1972 when Reitz took down Central 100-95 in a foul-infested Sectional game. There were not many empty seats there. And I happened to see the North-Vincennes game at the Stadium in Nov. 1967 after North had won the State and Vincennes was favored to win it. I think about 12K were in there for that. I was less than surprised that the Jackson State thing didn't get any traction in either Sioux Falls or in Jackson, MS. The Courier only had a couple of sentences about it. I guess that since it was a rule, it was a rule and that was that. Of course, the legendary Mississippi State game at Loyola was the first defiance of that. MSU had forfeited at least 2 NCAA slots in the late 50s and more or less just shrugged about it and moved on. Mississippi State played in the first Holiday Tournament in the new Roberts Stadium in December, 1956. They beat the University of Denver in the first round and was supposed to play Evansville in the championship game. But the governor of Mississippi would not allow them to play against black players and ordered them to go home. So the Aces instead played Denver and the Deuces played in...and won, the 3rd place game. Also regarding that Reitz-Central Sectional game in 1972, Bob Nelson, the best player on that Reitz team, sadly passed away in December at age 67. He quarterbacked the football team the previous fall to a 10-0 record and the mythical state title. I think he scored over 30 points in that game you mentioned. He was a longtime physician in Indianapolis before passing too soon. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2022 16:47:47 GMT -6
I had intended to put that Miss. St. clip in about them in the EHT but decided the thing was getting clunky, so thanks for mentioning it.
Yeah, I recall Nelson making about 8 free throws down the stretch. If memory serves, the refs just went completely whistle-happy and by the time it was all done, it seemed like there wasn't anybody left on the floor. Lots of grumbling from fans. It was something of a joke, and I don't think Reitz was favored to win that sectional.
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Post by stennisrm72 on Feb 12, 2022 16:52:03 GMT -6
My most endearing high school memory is walking down the Roberts Stadium tunnel to the floor for the Semi-State title game between Vincennes and Rex Mundi. That was a sellout as best I remember. An awesome site for a 14 year old basketball lover. You're exactly right. That one was sold out. Vincennes always brought a big crowd and had Indiana All Star Jerry Memering. Rex Mundi beat Bedford in the afternoon and Vincennes won over Scottsburg in a game between two unbeaten teams. Rex Mundi hung with the Alices for a half, maybe even until late 3rd quarter, but Vincennes ended up winning by 20. That Rex Mundi team had a pretty good player in Larry Ross, and another starter I believe was Randy Mattingly, second oldest of the 4 brothers and a great football player. Memering got hurt in the first half and there were girls from Vincennes seated to our right literally crying, afraid he might not return. Fans really took their high school basketball pretty serious. He was okay and helped them dominate the second half. Yes Larry "Bunny" Ross head and shoulder faked Memering into the air on a shot fake and he tumbled to the floor head first. A nasty cut over an eye if memory serves me correct. I befriended one of our bench players later on Facebook and he told me Vincennes fans were shouting racial slurs at Larry. I don't recall any of that. I was sitting on the end of the bench with my clipboard and assigned stat sheet. You are correct about Randy Mattingly. He was a senior starting guard on the team. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2022 17:22:05 GMT -6
  Harrawood (36 points) with a miracle shot gives the Aces an 80-79 overtime win over Denver. Correcting you, though ... the box says the Deuces lost 60-58. |
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