A Legacy on the Hardwood: Exploring the History of Carthage College Basketball
Carthage College boasts a rich basketball history, woven into the fabric of both the institution and the conferences it has belonged to. From its early beginnings in the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Association (IIAA) to its current standing in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW), Carthage basketball has seen its share of triumphs and challenges.
Early Years and the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Association (IIAA)
Carthage College's basketball program traces its roots back to the early 20th century. The first men’s basketball game was a 30-20 loss to the Keokuk YMCA team in Keokuk, Iowa, on Jan. 11, 1907. Shortly after, the first home game took place on Jan. 25, 1907, with a 23-14 loss to Lombard College. From 1912 to 1941, Carthage was a member of the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Association (IIAA) for football, men's basketball, baseball, men's golf and men's track and field. The IIAA had its roots in the 1870s when a number of Illinois schools banded together for oratorical contests. The first intercollegiate football game within this association was played in 1881 between Illinois State and Knox College, and a football association was established for the 1894 season.
The IIAA was formed in April 1908 for a May 22 track and field meet with eight charter members, including the Bradley Polytechnic Institute (later Bradley University), Illinois College, Illinois State Normal University (later shortened to Illinois State University), Illinois Wesleyan University, Knox College, Lombard College (now defunct), Millikin University and Monmouth College. By the 1910-11, the league had expanded to 13 teams with the addition of Eureka College, Hedding College (now defunct), Lincoln College, Shurtleff College (now defunct) and William & Vashti College (now defunct).
Four schools were added for the 1912-13 season, including Augustana College (Ill.), Carthage College, Eastern Illinois Normal University (later shortened to Eastern Illinois University) and McKendree College. Southern Illinois Normal University (later re-named Southern Illinois University-Carbondale) became the 18th member during the 1913-14 academic year. Three more schools were added in 1914-15 to boost the membership to 21 schools. Those three were Blackburn College, St. Viator College (now defunct) and Western Illinois Normal University (later shortened to Western Illinois University). William & Vashti closed in 1917 reducing the league to 20 members, but Lake Forest College and Wheaton College (Ill.) joined the circuit in 1919-20 when the league name was changed to the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Association (IIAC), bringing the membership up to 22 schools.
Several other schools joined in the 1920s, including Mount Morris College (joined in 1920 and now defunct), Northern Illinois Normal University (joined in 1922 and later re-named Northern Illinois University), Elmhurst College in 1925 and North Central College in 1927. Blackburn withdrew following the 1923 season, and Hedding College closed in 1927 and was subsequently bought out by Illinois Wesleyan.
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Somewhere along the line, the IIAC gained the nickname of the Little 19 Conference, even though the membership ranged from the high of 24 in the 1927-28 season schools to just five by the spring of 1942. Lincoln pulled out after 1928 spring season and subsequently shifted from a four-year school to a junior college. Lombard quit after 1929, and the school closed in 1930 and was taken over by Knox College. Mount Morris closed following the 1931-32 academic year. The conference really began to falter after the 1936-37 season when 12 schools withdrew to form the Illinois College Conference. Those 12 schools were Augustana, Bradley, Illinois College, Illinois Wesleyan, Knox, Lake Forest, McKendree, Millikin, Monmouth, North Central, Shurtleff (closed after the 1956-57 academic year and absorbed by Southern Illinois University) and Wheaton. St. Viator closed in 1939, and Olivet Nazarene University took over its campus in 1947. Carthage, Elmhurst and Eureka withdrew from the IIAC in December 1941, leaving only five schools: Eastern Illinois, Illinois State, Northern Illinois, Southern Illinois and Western Illinois.
In 1950, the league changed its name from the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Association to the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference when Eastern Michigan University and Central Michigan University brought the membership to seven schools. Eastern Michigan and Southern Illinois both left after the 1961-62 academic year. Eastern Michigan went independent for several years before joining the Presidents’ Athletic Conference for two seasons in 1964-65 and 1965-66. EMI returned to independent status for a time before joining the Mid-American Conference in 1971. EMU did not begin competing in MAC men’s basketball until 1974-75 or in football until 1976.
Southern Illinois also played as an independent for several years before joining the Academic Athletic Conference of Midwestern Universities for two seasons beginning in 1970-71 and 1971-72. SIU returned to independent status for three seasons prior to joining the Missouri Valley Conference for men’s basketball in 1975-76 and for football in 1977. The MVC dropped football as a conference sport in 1985, and SIU became a charter member of the Gateway Football Conference that same year, along with former Little 19 schools Eastern Illinois, Western Illinois and Illinois State. Northern Illinois left the IIAC for the Mid-American Conference in 1966, dropping the league to four members. The final demise of the IIAC came in 1969 when Illinois State left to join the Academic Athletic Conference of Midwestern Universities. Illinois State is now a member of the Missouri Valley conference. The remaining three IIAC schools disbanded the league at the end of the 1969-70 academic year. Central Michigan joined the Mid-American Conference in 1971. Western Illinois was admitted to the Association of Mid-Continent Universities (AMCU) in 1978-79 after eight years as an independent, and Eastern Illinois joined WIU in the AMCU in 1982-83 after 12 years as an independent. The AMCU changed its name to the Mid-Continent Conference in 1989-90 and to the Summit League in 2007-08.
Among the other IIAC members, seven later helped form the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin. Those seven were Augustana (Ill.), Carthage, Elmhurst, Illinois Wesleyan, Millikin, North Central and Wheaton (Ill.). Bradley is currently a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. Blackburn and Eureka are members of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Illinois College, Knox, Lake Forest and Monmouth are members of the Midwest Conference, although Illinois College and Lake Forest were once part of the CCIW. McKendree is an NAIA affiliate and a member of the American Midwest Conference, and Lincoln is now a two-year school and a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association.
Joining and Leaving the CCIW
The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) was founded in 1946, with Carthage College as one of its nine charter members. The nine charter members were Augustana College (Ill.), Carthage College, Elmhurst College, Illinois College, Illinois Wesleyan University, Lake Forest College, Millikin University, North Central College and Wheaton College (Ill.). However, Carthage left the conference in 1952 but returned in 1961.
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As is often the case with athletic conferences, CCIW membership has experienced several changes since the league's inception. After Carthage left in 1952, Illinois College withdrew the following year. Elmhurst and Wheaton withdrew following the 1959-60 academic year. Wheaton rejoined for all sports but football in 1967 and for football in 1970. Elmhurst rejoined in the fall of 1967 for all sports but football and for football in the 1968 season. Carroll (Wis.) joined officially with the 1955 spring sports seasons. Carthage returned in the fall of 1961, and North Park College (now North Park University) entered the following fall. Lake Forest dropped out at the end of the 1962-63 year. The last change in CCIW membership came following the 1991-92 season when Carroll (Wis.) withdrew. The Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology became an associate member of the league in 2007 for both men's and women's swimming.
CCIW Championships
In NCAA competition, CCIW schools have accounted for 51 national championships, including four from conference teams either prior to the formation of the CCIW or during a period when a team was not affiliated with the league. North Central College has won a league-leading 26 national championships (16 in men’s cross country, six in men’s outdoor track and field and four in men’s indoor track and field), followed by six by Illinois Wesleyan (two in women’s outdoor track and field and one each in men’s basketball, women's basketball, women’s indoor track and field and baseball), five by North Park in men’s basketball, five for Wheaton (Ill., three in women’s soccer, two in men's soccer), four by Augustana (Ill.) in football and one by Millikin University in women’s basketball. The four national titles not included in the official CCIW records are Wheaton College’s 1957 NCAA College Division men’s basketball championship and three women’s titles won prior to the CCIW recognizing women’s athletics in 1986-87. The CCIW sanctions 23 sports: baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, football, men's and women’s golf, men's and women's lacrosse, men's and women’s soccer, softball, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's indoor track and field, men's and women's outdoor track and field, women’s volleyball and wrestling.
Illinois Wesleyan University has dominated the league in men’s basketball over the years, winning or sharing 30 titles in 71 years thru the 2018 season. Augustana College (Ill.) has won 17 times, Millikin University and Wheaton College (Ill.) have claimed nine championships each, and North Park University has won seven times. Carthage has won six CCIW championships, winning outright titles in 2000, 2002 and 2010 with shared titles in both 1964 and 2003. North Central College has also won five league championship, and Elmhurst College won its first-ever conference basketball title in 2001. Carthage won its first CCIW basketball title in 1964, sharing the honor with Illinois Wesleyan. The Red Men made their second post-season appearance that year, competing in the NAIA District 20 playoffs.
Key Figures and Program Milestones
Lewis Omer, Carthage’s head football coach (1921-35), head men’s basketball coach (1921-29) and athletic director, is credited with originating the Illinois High School Association’s state basketball tournament. Omer organized the first tournament in 1908 in Oak Park, Ill., while serving as the Northwestern University men’s basketball coach. He was inducted into the Carthage Athletic Hall of Fame in 1985.
At least three games in the 1922-23 season were broadcast on Carthage radio station WCAZ: the Jan. 19 Parsons game, the Jan. 24 Monmouth game and the Feb. 7 Mount Morris contest. Due to the paucity of radio stations at the time, WCAZ was reportedly received in as many as 40 states. A report in the Hancock County Journal said that the Mount Morris game was heard as far away as Rochester, N.Y., St. Paul, Minn., and Denver, Colo.
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Carthage’s first gymnasium and pool was begun in 1905 and opened on Jan. 11, 1907, at a reported cost of $12,500. A leak in the pool baffled all attempts at repair, and the building was subsequently converted to Biology Hall. The College broke ground for new fieldhouse on May 12, 1930, this one with a price tag of $100,000. The facility opened for varsity basketball practice on Nov. 17, 1930, and the Red Men played their first game in the new fieldhouse on Jan. 9, 1931, and defeated Culver-Stockton College, 28-19. The facility was dedicated on Jan. 16, 1931, as the Red Men lost to Augustana College (Ill.) by a 31-23 margin. The last home basketball game in the Carthage fieldhouse was on March 1, 1964, when the Red Men wrapped up their first CCIW title with a 68-54 win over Millikin.
Following the College’s move to Kenosha, Wis., in 1964, the men’s basketball team played its 1964-65 home schedule in the high school gymnasiums of Kenosha St. Joseph and Kenosha Tremper on the city’s south side and the old Kenosha Bradford gymnasium in downtown Kenosha. The 1964-65 team also had one unusual practice site, the gymnasium on the old Racine College campus, now the DeKoven Center on the that city’s south side. The Carthage Physical Education Center, constructed at a reported cost of $850,000, opened with a varsity-alumni contest on Dec. 4, 1965, followed by the first intercollegiate game, a 68-65 win over Aurora University, on Dec. 6, 1965. In a Jan. 26, 1966 preliminary game prior to the Carthage-Illinois State University varsity contest at the Carthage Physical Education Center, the Marquette University freshmen team got 24 points from George Thompson to defeat the Carthage freshmen squad, 87-80.
Coaching History and Year-by-Year Results
The Carthage College men's basketball program has been guided by a number of coaches throughout its history. Here's a glimpse at their tenures and records:
- J. Arthur Baird (1907-14): 19-41 (.317)
- Forrest Loudin (1915-18, 1920-21): 24-37 (.393)
- Verle Teeter (1919): 5-5 (.500)
- Lewis Omer (1922-27): 58-54 (.518)
- Herbert "Hub" Wagner (1928-43): 170-107 (.614)
- Charles Lynwood (1945): 0-3 (.000)
- P.T. Hersch (1945): 0-2 (.000)
- Stan Lewison (1945): 1-5 (.167)
- L. Paul LaVinn (1946-48): 26-37 (.491)
- Bill Strickland (1949): 5-16 (.238)
- Loel Frederickson (1950-52): 16-53 (.232)
- Art Keller (1953-58): 53-90 (.371)
- Dwight Marston (1959-60): 12-38 (.240)
- Larry Hamilton (1961-69, 84-85): 132-128 (.508)
- Jay Burris (1970-72): 35-37 (.496)
- Jon Swift (1973-83): 126-150 (.457)
- Jim Christopher (1986): 6-20 (.230)
- Kevin McCarthy (1987-92): 67-89 (.429)
- Tim Miller (1993-1996): 24-64 (.353)
- Gary Rudd (1996): 1-9 (.100)
- Bosko Djurickovic (1997-Present): 317-199 (.614)
Year-by-Year Men's Basketball Results (Selected Years):
| YEAR | ALL | CCIW | HEAD COACH |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 10-15 | 4-10 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2015 | 10-15 | 5-9 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2014 | 16-10 | 9-5 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2013 | 12-13 | 7-7 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2012 | 12-13 | 6-8 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2011 | 16-9 | 9-5 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2010 | 24-6 | 10-2* | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2009 | 15-10 | 7-7 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2008 | 13-12 | 7-7 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2007 | 16-9 | 7-7 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2006 | 10-15 | 6-8 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2005 | 12-13 | 6-8 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2004 | 15-10 | 7-7 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2003 | 19-6 | 11-3* | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2002 | 28-2 | 13-1* | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2001 | 24-5 | 11-3 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 2000 | 22-4 | 11-3* | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 1999 | 14-11 | 6-8 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 1998 | 17-8 | 10-4 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 1997 | 12-13 | 7-7 | Bosko Djurickovic |
| 1996 | 5-20 | 3-11 | Tim Miller/Gary Rudd |
| 1995 | 6-19 | 3-11 | Tim Miller |
| 1994 | 3-21 | 2-12 | Tim Miller |
| 1993 | 11-13 | 4-10 | Tim Miller |
| 1992 | 11-15 | 5-11 | Kevin McCarthy |
| 1991 | 15-11 | 8-8 | Kevin McCarthy |
| 1990 | 8-18 | 2-14 | Kevin McCarthy |
| 1989 | 13-11 | 4-12 | Kevin McCarthy |
| 1988 | 8-18 | 3-13 | Kevin McCarthy |
| 1987 | 12-14 | 3-11 | Kevin McCarthy |
| 1986 | 6-20 | 3-13 | Jim Christopher |
| 1985 | 9-17 | 7-9 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1984 | 11-15 | 5-11 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1983 | 9-16 | 3-13 | Jon Swift |
| 1982 | 8-17 | 3-13 | Jon Swift |
| 1981 | 7-19 | 3-13 | Jon Swift |
| 1980 | 14-11 | 9-7 | Jon Swift |
| 1979 | 16-10 | 8-8 | Jon Swift |
| 1978 | 15-11 | 10-6 | Jon Swift |
| 1977 | 11-15 | 5-11 | Jon Swift |
| 1976 | 18-8 | 11-5 | Jon Swift |
| 1975 | 17-7 | 12-4 | Jon Swift |
| 1974 | 8-18 | 5-11 | Jon Swift |
| 1973 | 3-18 | 3-13 | Jon Swift |
| 1972 | 8-17 | 4-12 | Jay Burris |
| 1971 | 16-8 | 11-5 | Jay Burris |
| 1970 | 11-12 | 5-11 | Jay Burris |
| 1969 | 12-13 | 8-8 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1968 | 14-9 | 10-6 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1967 | 16-8 | 9-3 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1966 | 12-10 | 6-6 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1965 | 9-13 | 4-8 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1964 | 15-8 | 9-3* | Larry Hamilton |
| 1963 | 11-12 | 8-6 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1962 | 11-15 | 6-6 | Larry Hamilton |
| 1961 | 12-8 | Ind. | Larry Hamilton |
| 1960 | 8-17 | Ind. | Dwight Marston |
| 1959 | 4-21 | Ind. | Dwight Marston |
| 1958 | 5-19 | Ind. | Art Keller |
| 1957 | 14-13 | Ind. | Art Keller |
| 1956 | 12-13 | Ind. | Art Keller |
| 1955 | 8-11 | Ind. | Art Keller |
| 1954 | 7-22 | Ind. | Art Keller |
| 1953 | 7-12 | Ind. | Art Keller |
| 1952 | 7-10 | 3-7 | Loel Frederickson |
| 1951 | 5-22 | 1-9 | Loel Frederickson |
| 1950 | 4-21 | 2-8 | Loel Frederickson |
| 1949 | 5-16 | 2-8 | Bill Strickland |
| 1948 | 7-12 | 3-7 | L. Paul LaVinn |
| 1947 | 10-14 | 4-6 | L. Paul LaVinn |
| 1946 | 9-11 | Ind. | L. Paul LaVinn |
| 1945 | 1-10 | Ind. | Charles Lynwood, P.T. Hersch and Stan Lewison |
| 1944 | ------ | No team-World War II | |
| 1943 | 11-4 | Ind. | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1942 | 13-6 | Ind. | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1941 | 13-7 | 5-3 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1940 | 9-11 | 2-5 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1939 | 8-8 | 2-5 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1938 | 10-8 | 5-5 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1937 | 14-5 | 7-4 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1936 | 12-5 | 7-5 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1935 | 10-7 | 6-6 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1934 | 11-6 | 5-6 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1933 | 12-8 | 7-2 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1932 | 15-1 | 9-1* | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1931 | 9-7 | 5-7 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1930 | 15-3 | 8-4 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1929 | 4-12 | 1-10 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1928 | 4-14 | 2-11 | Herbert "Hub" Wagner |
| 1927 | 5-13 | 0-10 | Lewis Omer |
| 1926 | 8-10 | 4-8 | Lewis Omer |
| 1925 | 11-10 | 6-8 | Lewis Omer |
| 1924 | 7-10 | 5-6 | Lewis Omer |
| 1923 | 17-3 | 10-2 | Lewis Omer |
| 1922 | 10-8 | 3-4 | Lewis Omer |
| 1921 | 6-8 | 4-7 | Forest A. Loudin |
| 1920 | 8-5 | 5-5 | Forest A. Loudin |
| 1919 | 5-5 | 5-4 | Verle Teeter |
| 1918 | 3-0 | 2-0 | Forest A. Loudin |
| 1917 | 2-11 | 0-6 | Forest A. Loudin |
| 1916 | 4-6 | 1-4 | Forest A. Loudin |
| 1915 | 1-7 | 0-4 | Forest A. Loudin |
| 1914 | 4-8 | 0-6 | J. Arthur Baird |
| 1913 | 4-5 | 3-4 | J. Arthur Baird |
| 1912 | 3-5 | Ind. | J. Arthur Baird |
| 1911 | 3-5 | Ind. | J. Arthur Baird |
| 1910 | 1-6 | Ind. | J. Arthur Baird |
| 1909 | 2-4 | Ind. | J. Arthur Baird |
| 1908 | 2-4 | Ind. | J. Arthur Baird |
| 1907 | 0-4 | Ind. | J. Arthur Baird |
*Denotes a CCIW or Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship
Bosko Djurickovic holds the record for most wins as head coach.
Facilities and the Move to Kenosha
Carthage’s first gymnasium and pool was begun in 1905 and opened on Jan. 11, 1907, at a reported cost of $12,500. A leak in the pool baffled all attempts at repair, and the building was subsequently converted to Biology Hall. The College broke ground for new fieldhouse on May 12, 1930, this one with a price tag of $100,000.
Following the College’s move to Kenosha, Wis., in 1964, the men’s basketball team played its 1964-65 home schedule in the high school gymnasiums of Kenosha St. Joseph and Kenosha Tremper on the city’s south side and the old Kenosha Bradford gymnasium in downtown Kenosha. The Carthage Physical Education Center, constructed at a reported cost of $850,000, opened with a varsity-alumni contest on Dec. 4, 1965, followed by the first intercollegiate game, a 68-65 win over Aurora University, on Dec. 6, 1965.
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