A look back at Rutgers' 1976 Final Four team

[Scarlet Shack]

Do you remember him decking a fan after the game

YES I DO....another major hush job

 

[Scarlet Shack]

Do you remember him decking a fan after the game

YES I DO....another major hush job

Abdel Anderson did an amazining job on him that night....

 

[knights1212]

That was a classic. It was told by some that a young fan yelled something at Bird after the buzzer went off. Supposedly Bird punched the kid but it was all hushed up. Did this actually happen or not?

 

[Kbee3]

In the mid 50' s you could walk in at 7:45 pm, 8:00 tip and buy a ticket. By 1965, had to get there at 6 pm and sit until the game started at 8, At least in the 50' s there was a freshman game before the main event. Saw Princeton with Bradley and Army with Coach K playing. Who really knew what was to come. In those years the NIT was our " dance " and the NCAA was a pipedream. We seem to be at that point again, but with HOPE !!!

How many black players did RU have back in the 50s ?

 

[RUsince52]

I remember Bailey hitting a last minute shot over Bird at the RAC to beat ISU at the RAC in the NIT quarterfinals. It was the last game Indiana State would lose until the NCAA finals against Magic Johnson the following year. God I loved college hoops back then.

So we play Indy St in the NIT at home and then the following year they go to the NCAA Final game. We must have been in a different Region that year ? Apparently, something went wrong !!!

 

[RUsince52]

How many black players did RU have back in the 50s ?

Hard to remember any, but I'm sure there were a few. I remember Jimmy "V" playing guard and being a good shooter and playmaker. In those days when freshman couldn't play varsity, it was nice to see a preview of what kind of team RU would have going forward, as long as nobody " flunked out " ! I also remember when E. Rutherford played Woodridge at the " Barn " in the Group 1 Final and they had Les Cason, a 6' 10"" center who fans thought might choose RU. Their coach - Dickey Vitals. And yes, he didn't come to RU.

 

[RUsince52]

YES I DO....another major hush job

As I remember when the game ended there was a small commotion as Indy was leaving the court and Larry seemed to be in the center of it all. But then you had to exit right next to some of the lower seats to get to the locker room. Would really be a big deal if it happened nowadays !!!