On the Road to 105

At the beginning of the 1973-1974 college basketball season the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) was the dominant program in the nation. Coached by the legendary John Wooden they had won seven consecutive NCAA championships, and nine of the previous ten titles. There had never been another college team to rival their dominance. And led by Bill Walton, it looked like the 1973-1974 season would end with another championship.

The Target

John Wooden, the basketball coach at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1948 until his retirement in 1975, was a man who lived by long-honored traditions and values. In many ways, he belonged to an older America—a nation of homespun virtues, the self-improvement maxims of Benjamin Franklin, the plucky plot lines of Horatio Alger, and the Christian themes of Harold Bell Wright. By 1973, he looked out of place sitting on the bench at courtside before tip-off. With short salt-and-pepper hair parted straight as a razor, large bookish glasses, a serenely beatific smile, and a conservative banker’s suit, he appeared more like a church deacon than a basketball coach. In a polyester age of florid shirts, bell-bottom slacks, and Nehru jackets, the Wizard of Westwood (a nickname he detested) was a wool and cotton man, so out of touch with the fashions of the times that it would not have occurred to him to notice—or care—how far behind he had fallen....

The Growth of the NCAA Tournament

The NCAA tournament had humble origins. Started in 1939 with eight invited teams it had grown and expanded over the years, replacing the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) as the leading college basketball tournament in the nation. There were many reasons for the growth, including the relationship between college basketball and television. NCAA executive director Walter Byers successfully managed the growth of the tournament. But there was heated debate among athletic directors and sports administrators, including Tom Scott and J.D. Morgan, about how much the tournament should grow.

Winning Shots in the Heartland

Although not as deeply talented as the ACC, the Midwest also had its share of outstanding teams and ambitious coaches. The University of Notre Dame, coached by Richard “Digger” Phelps, and Marquette University, coached by Al McGuire, were top-rated independents. And the University of Kansas, coached by Ted Owens, was a dark horse. But they proved that not all the great teams resided in coastal states.

Creating March Madness—Inadvertently

The 1974 NCAA Tournament demonstrated much of what was right—and wrong—with college basketball. It showcased great coaching and extraordinary athletic talent, close games and nail-biting excitement. But the twenty-five team format and the one team per conference rule excluded great programs from the “Big Dance.” The 1973-1974 season proved that Tom Scott’s call to reform the tournament was correct. In the next few years the size of the tournament would increase and more than one team from a conference would be eligible.

The Battle of Greensboro

Greensboro, North Carolina, hosted the 1974 NCAA Final Four Championship Tournament. UCLA, as expected, made it to Greensboro, as did North Carolina State. But the arrival of Kansas and Marquette was more unexpected. In Greensboro the athletes—Bill Walton, Tom Burleson, David Thompson, Monte Towe, and others—showed why their teams had made it to the Final Four.

The Precarious Road to the Final Four

In mid-March 1974 the struggle for the NCAA crown began, and once again UCLA, the titan in the West regional, was favoured to advance to the Final Four and to win it all. North Carolina State in the South and Notre Dame in the Mideast were also favoured to make it to the Final Four. There was no clear favourite in the Midwest. But the road to the Final Four was not smooth for any of the teams. The excitement that would become known as “March Madness” was in full swing in 1974.

The ACC’s Challenge to “You Know Who”

If there was any college team that could take the NCAA title from UCLA, it seemed likely that would be one of the talented squads from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Three teams were especially talented. The University of Maryland, coached by Charles “Lefty” Driesell, billed itself as the UCLA of the East. Coach Dean Smith’s University of North Carolina was a proven team. And North Carolina State University, coached by Norm Sloan, was deep in talent and desire.

Bracketology 1974

In 1974 only twenty-five teams qualified for the NCAA tournament, and only one team from the major conferences. Most of the conferences chose their champions based on conference standing. And independent programs gained admission into the tournament based on their season records. But there was still intense drama. Indiana University, coached by Robert “Bobby” Knight, and the University of Michigan tied for the Big 10 title and had to have a play-off to decide who would receive the NCAA invitation. But the most drama was in the ACC, where the ACC tournament decided who would go to the NCAA tournament.