Triumph in Seattle: The 1952 NCAA Basketball Championship

Introduction

The University of Kansas Jayhawks etched their name in college basketball history during the 1951-1952 season, culminating in their first NCAA national championship. Coached by the legendary F.C. "Phog" Allen, the Jayhawks navigated a challenging regular season and a demanding tournament to reach the pinnacle of collegiate basketball. This article delves into the details of their journey, highlighting key players, pivotal games, and the significance of their victory.

Regular Season Highlights

The Jayhawks began their season in December with a 57-46 victory over the Baylor Bears. However, The Kansas City Times' Bob Busby noted that, "Kansas never was in trouble, but didn't - or couldn't - apply much pressure tonight." The team quickly found its stride, setting a single-game scoring record with 84 points, surpassing the previous record of 79.

Key Games and Performances

Southern Methodist: In December, the Jayhawks narrowly escaped an upset against Southern Methodist's Mustangs, winning 58-57. The AP reported that the Mustangs "came close to pulling the basketball upset of the young season tonight before falling to the potent Kansas Jayhawks, 58 to 57, in the finale minute of play."
Clyde Lovellette's Dominance: Center Clyde Lovellette was a force to be reckoned with throughout the season. Against SMU, Lovellette scored 42 points on 18-of-30 shooting, plus 6-of-7 from the free-throw line. The AP noted, "The Methodists couldn't come close to handling him."
Big Seven Tournament: Kansas faced adversity in the Big Seven tournament. They found themselves leading by 19 points but allowed Kansas State to fight back to tie the game at 80 before winning by two in overtime in the semifinals. In the championship game, Kansas was "never behind, but always on the brink of trouble," according to The Kansas City Times. Lovellette scored 26 points but was ejected late in the game.
Record-Breaking Performance: In January, Kansas scored a record 71 points against Oklahoma, with Lovellette contributing 25 points on 11-of-19 shooting.
Close Call Against Missouri: "Kansas' unbeaten record was almost blacked out Saturday night as the No. 1 ranked Jayhawk cagers came from behind in the final minutes to defeat Missouri, 60-59," reported the AP in January.
First Loss: Kansas suffered its first loss of the season against Kansas State in January, relinquishing the lead in the Big Seven standings.
700th Career Win for Phog Allen: In February, Kansas coach Phog Allen earned his 700th career win. The AP reported that he was "too interested in the Big Seven conference stretch drive to do much gloating about it."
Big Seven Lead: Thanks to an off night for Kansas State, Kansas reclaimed the Big Seven lead in February with a win over Missouri. Lovellette broke the Kansas scoring record with 550 points after scoring 29 against Missouri.
Clinching the Big Seven Championship: On a big night in Lawrence, Kansas clinched the Big Seven championship outright and an NCAA berth as Clyde Lovellette set a record with 41 points.

NCAA Tournament Journey

By the time the sixteen-team NCAA tournament was set to tip off, coach F.C. “Phog” Allen had won his 700th career game while his Jayhawks had compiled an 11-1 record in the Big Seven Conference and an overall record of 22-2. The 1952 NCAA tournament began as well as the Jayhawk faithful could have hoped, with Kansas knocking off Texas Christian and St. Louis in its first two contests. The second game saw KU’s 6’9” center Clyde Lovellette, one of the five starting seniors and a three-time All-America selection, set a University record by scoring 44 points. (His achievement stood until Wilt Chamberlain shattered it in his first game as a Jayhawk in 1956 when he scored 52 points.) Having won their region, the team prepared to travel to Seattle for the 1952 Final Four.

The Final Four

The first game of the Final Four pitted KU against Santa Clara University in a game that Kansas won by nineteen points. This victory set up a championship showdown between KU and St. John’s University of New York, which had knocked off Illinois in the other semi-final. It was the second time Kansas had made it to the NCAA final, but in its previous trip to college basketball’s most prestigious event in 1940, KU had fallen short.

Championship Game: Kansas vs. St. John's

The championship game against St. John's University took place on March 26, 1952, at Hec Edmundson Pavilion in Seattle, Washington. Kansas secured an 80-63 victory, claiming their first NCAA national championship.

Key Moments

The first score of the final came on a Lovellette free throw, which might be considered significant for two reasons. First, it was apropos considering that sixty fouls were called during the game. Second, the Jayhawks maintained their lead for the remainder of the game. St. John’s geared its defense to stop Lovellette, but in so doing opened up Kansas perimeter players - Bob “Trigger” Kenney, Bill Lienhard, Charlie Hoag, Bill Hougland, and Dean Kelley - who sank easy baskets. Lovellette, who had been recruited from Terre Haute, Indiana, by Allen (in one of his first attempts to recruit nationally) with the promise that Allen would build a championship team around him, managed to score thirty three points despite the St. John’s defense. Kansas’s 41-27 halftime lead grew into a nineteen-point advantage after three quarters and ended in an 80-63 romp. Kansas saw four of its five starters voted onto the all-tournament team when sportswriters placed both Lovellette and Kelley on the first team and put Charlie Hoag and Bill Lienhard on the second team.

Clyde Lovellette's Impact

Lovellette’s numbers in the NCAA tournament proved particularly impressive. In the words of the University Daily Kansan, “Lovellette swept the NCAA record book clean” as he established new records for the most field goals, free throws, and points made by a single player in the tournament’s history. Lovellette scored a game-high 33 points to earn tournament MVP honors. "The 6-foot 9-inch Lovellette ran his four-game NCAA playoff scoring total to 141 points," reported the AP. "He had broken the old record of 83 points in the first three games. It had been set by Don Sunderlage of Illinois last year.

Celebrations and Aftermath

Back in Lawrence, students had huddled around radios to listen to the championship game. (Early in the third quarter, the Jayhawk faithful had to suffer through a ten-minute period in which the station had “technical line troubles” and had to interrupt the broadcast.) When the final buzzer sounded at about 1:30 AM Central Time, ecstatic students (including a “sizeable sprinkle of co-eds,” as the Kansan put it) threw coats over their pajamas and crowded into cars in search of spontaneous pep rallies. The songs and yells quickly turned into chants of “No School Today,” and eventually the mob of students found its way to the house of Dr. Laurence Woodruff, KU dean of men. Woodruff was surrounded on his lawn by undergraduates demanding cancellation of the next day’s classes. The dean explained to the students that the Big Seven Conference did not allow him to “declare athletic holidays,” to which the students rained down “good-natured boos” upon him. Apparently his expression of hope that a “similar vigor would be displayed” later that day when the team returned to Lawrence eased any tension that still lingered in the air. City and state officials joined KU students the following night when, after a delayed flight, the Jayhawks returned to Lawrence shortly after midnight. An ostentatious parade presided over by KU Chancellor Franklin Murphy saw 10,000 Kansas fans celebrate the team’s victory. A fire truck escorted the Jayhawks through the streets of Lawrence, and Lovellette was made an honorary Fire Chief.

Olympic Trials

KU’s appearance in the NCAA final gave the Jayhawks a chance to earn a spot for seven of the squad’s players on the US Olympic team that would be heading to Helsinki, Finland, the following summer. On March 31, KU achieved this goal with a victory over the NIT champion LaSalle University Explorers. But in early April, the Jayhawks lost to the AAU champion Peoria Caterpillars in the final round of the playoffs, which determined who would coach the US Olympic team.

Read also: Crafting Your NCAA Profile

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