Semi OT - 1975-1976 NCAA Final Four Story Line

[jellyman]

The thread on the documentary about RU's 1975-1976 basketball season on the Big Ten Network reminded me of an idea I pitched to a friend of mine 2 years ago. My friend is a writer, and an occasional sports program producer,with good connection s in the TV sports industry. I tried to get him interested in a program that would be shown in front of the 2016 NCAA Final Four about the 40th anniversary of the 1975-1976 Final Four.

I argued to him that that 1975-1976 Final Four was an amazing story line - a unique story line ... and story actually with MANY stories behind it, and that it would be a great documentary. After I talked to him, and sent him the e-mail I copy and past below, he loved it! And he and a producer friend went to the network that had the NCAA (NBC, maybe? Or was it ESPN and ABC?). But he was rejected, as they had their own idea about what they wanted to do in front of the NCAA. Needless to say, I think my idea was better!

Anyway, here is the story line I e-mailed to my friend:

Here are SOME for the story lines for the 1975-76 Final Four:

1. FIRST time 2 undefeated teams made the Final Four (Indiana and Rutgers) – I am pretty sure this is true.
2. LAST time, so far, that ANY team has been an undefeated champion – UNLV entered the NCAA undefeated one season, and I think another team did also. This could be timely since Kentucky look so powerful THIS year.
3. FIRST time 2 teams from the same conference made the Final Four (Indiana and Michigan) – it was not until a couple of years before this NCAA tourney that the NCAA allowed more than 1 conference team to be invited to the tourney.
4. FIRST NCAA championship for Bob Knight.
5. LAST of 10 consecutive Final Four appearances for UCLA (until 1980) – UCLA had won 7 NCAA titles in a row, and 8 of 9 coming into the 1975-76 season and that Final Four.
6. FIRST UCLA season without John Wooden in a LONG time.
7. An enormous number of NBA players played in this Final Four – though few were stars (and many just had the proverbial cup of tea) – overall, 22 players from this Final Four went on to appear in NBA games … 122 total player years:
   1. Indiana had 5 NBA players: Scott May, Kent Benson, Quinn Buckner, Bob Wilkerson and Wayne Radford
   2. UCLA had 9 (NINE) NBA players on their team: Richard Washington, Marques Johnson, David Greenwood, Andre McCarter, Ray Townsend, Ralph Drollinger, Roy Hamilton, Brad Holland and Bret Vroman
   3. Rutgers had 4 NBA players: Phil Sellers, James Bailey, Eddie Jordan and Hollis Copeland
   4. Michigan had 4 NBA players: Phil Hubbard, Rickey Green, Wyman Britt and Alan Hardy
8. Indiana had actually been favored to win the championship the year before, but Scott May got hurt (I think a broken arm or wrist) late in the season, and Indiana did not even make the Final Four
9. Rutgers actually had the easiest path to the Final Four, as this was before the NCAA tried to balance the regions, and the East was pretty weak. And that path was made easier when VMI had TWO upsets, taking out the 2nd and 3rd best teams in the region: Tennessee in the 1st round and Depaul (under Ray Meyer) in the 2nd round. And even so, RU had to survive a 1-point win over Princeton, under Pete Carrill, when Princeton’s back-up PG, Pete Malloy, a 90% FT shooter, missed the front end of a 1 and 1 very late in the game (less than 30 seconds left, maybe less than 15 seconds left).
10. Michigan had to play 3 close games to make it to the Final Four.
11. Great coaches were in this Final Four, also: Bob Knight, Gene Bartow, Johnny Orr and Tom Young (Young’s specialty was developing star players: Kermit Washington at American, Phil Sellers, James Bailey, Roy Hinson and John Battle at RU, Kenny Gattison and Chris Gatling at ODU).
12. Rutgers was fueled by Phil Sellers – one of the all time great NYC high school players of that generation. He was considered a top 10 player coming out of high school in 1972, and headed to Notre Dame, alongside another top 10 high school player, Adrian Dantley. Somehow Dick Vitale, the RU assistant coach at the time, persuaded Sellers to come to Rutgers. After just 1 season with Rutgers, Rutgers changed head coaches – Vitale wanted the position, but Rutgers wanted a coach with head coaching experience, so went with the then head coach of American, Tom Young. Vitale then left Rutgers, and ended up coaching Detroit University, followed by the Pistons, and then on to ESPN fame.
13. Odd, maybe irrelevant stat: Before 1976 there had been just 20 NCAA players who had accumulated 2000 points AND 1000 rebounds in their careers – probably because through most of the NCAA history players were only eligible to play 3 years (i.e. not as freshmen). There were TWO such players in this Final Four – and BOTH were on Rutgers: Phil Sellers (the 21st player to achieve this) and James Bailey (who achieved this by the time he finished his college career in 1979 – but by then he was 1 of 7 graduating players in 1979 to have accomplished this.
14. Michigan easily beat Rutgers in the semis – in every aspect of the game. Eddie Jordan for the 1st time that season met a PG as quick or even quicker than he – and Rickey Green dominated him. And Phi Hubbard did a great defensive job on Sellers. In the consolation/3rd place game, UCLA beat RU pretty easily, but it was an exciting game. UCLA changed its line-up to counter RU’s quickness – and Bartow decided to go with size, and started the 7’2” Drollinger, the 6’11” Washington, the 6’10“ Greenwood in the front court, moving the 6’8” Marques Johnson to guard and starting either McCarter or Townsend at PG … and RU started the game running UCLA off the court (UCLA’s big players just could not keep up with Rutgers). But UCLA’s talent and depth were just too much, and UCLA shifted back to their smaller line-up and pretty much dominated from there.
15. Rutgers’ last regular season game was a home game against St. Bonaventure, in their band box gym (the College Avenue Gym, nick named “The Barn”). The wall on which the teams’ benches were was a huge wooden sliding door, with a pool on the other side of it – when the crowd was loud the whole place echoed – an amazing sound effect. I remember that through the entire last portion of the game every time Rutgers scored a basket, the crowd simply exploded with sound, and play had to stop because the noise was so great paint chips from the ceiling would fall onto the court – and they had to stop to sweep the paint chips off the floor. The gym was a little decrepit, and it would be replaced within 2 years with the current facility.

Hope this helps.


Some links:

1. From Wikepedia – the 1976 Final Four: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_NCAA_Men's_Division_I_Basketball_Tournament
2. From Wikepedia – NCAA Final Fours History: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...basketball_tournament_Final_Four_participants

From Wikepedia - 2000 point scorers and 1000 rebounders: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...ll_players_with_2000_points_and_1000_rebounds

 

[rutger80]

It was the first and still only time 2 unbeaten teams have reached the Final Four.

 

[ScarletNut]

It was also the first time since the 1940's that a major college had an undefeated basketball and football team in the same school year since Army (and they're basketball schedule was about 20 games total).

 

[RUnTeX]

It was also the first time since the 1940's that a major college had an undefeated basketball and football team in the same school year since Army (and they're basketball schedule was about 20 games total).

It was the same calendar year (winter of '76 and the following fall of '76, respectively), but technically not the same school/academic year since hoops was 1975-76 while football was 1976-77.

 

[mrslate]

Great stuff Jelly.

 

[ScarletNut]

It was the same calendar year (winter of '76 and the following fall of '76, respectively), but technically not the same school/academic year since hoops was 1975-76 while football was 1976-77.

You're right, my bad. But the undefeated aspect in the same year (Army in the 40's) is still correct.

 

[PiscatawayMike]

Indeed, that would have made a great program!

BTW, Tom Abernathy also played in the NBA from that Indiana team.

 

[shields]

Great job Jelly!

 

[RU96inNC]

Didn't the Big East have 3 teams in the FF in the 80's!

 

[ScarletNut]

Yes, Georgetown (Patrick Ewing), St. John's (Chris Mullin), and Villanova (which upset Georgetown to win).