1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball season explained

Year:	1956
Preseason Ap:	None
Tourney Start:	March 11, 1957
Nc Date:	March 23, 1957
Champ Stad:	Municipal Auditorium
Champ City:	Kansas City, Missouri
Champ:	North Carolina Tar Heels
Helmschamp:	North Carolina Tar Heels
Nit Champ:	Bradley Braves
Helmspoy:	Lennie Rosenbluth, North Carolina

The 1956–57 NCAA men's University Division basketball season began in December 1956. It progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1957 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 23, 1957, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The North Carolina Tar Heels won their first NCAA national championship with a 54–53 triple-overtime victory over the Kansas Jayhawks.

Rule changes

The width of the free throw lane (also known as the "key"), increased from 6to.^[1]
When teams lined up along the key for a free throw, it became mandatory that the two spaces adjacent to the end line be occupied by opponents of the player shooting the free throw. Previously, one player from each team occupied the spaces adjacent to the end line, with a player from the home team occupying a space marked "H" and a player from the visiting team occupying a space marked "V."^[1]
Grasping the rim of the basket was deemed a form of unsportsmanlike conduct.^[1]

Season headlines

This was the first season in which NCAA basketball was split into two levels of play – the University Division for 156 schools competing at the highest level of play and the College Division for 285 teams playing at lower levels with limited or no scholarships. It also was the first season in which the NCAA held more than one championship tournament — a 24-team tournament for the University Division and a 32-team tournament for the College Division. In 1973, the University Division would be replaced by Division I and the College Division by Division II and Division III.^[2] ^[3]
The California Basketball Association was renamed the West Coast Athletic Conference. It would be renamed the West Coast Conference in 1989.
In the 1957 NCAA University Division basketball tournament, Forddy Anderson of Michigan State and Frank McGuire of North Carolina became the first head coaches to take two different teams to the NCAA tournament Final Four. Anderson had done it previously with Bradley in 1950 and McGuire with St. John's in 1952.^[4] McGuire also became the first head coach to take two different teams to the national championship game, having also done that with St. John's in 1952.^[4]
In 1957, the Helms Athletic Foundation retroactively selected its national champions for the seasons from 1900–01 through 1918–19.^[5]

Season outlook

Pre-season polls

See main article: 1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball rankings.

The top 20 from the AP Poll and the UP Coaches Poll during the pre-season.^[6]

Associated Press
Ranking	Team
1	Kansas
2	Louisville
3	North Carolina
4	Illinois
5	SMU
6	Dayton
7	Temple
8	San Francisco
9	Saint Louis
10	Western Kentucky State
11	West Virginia
12	Oklahoma City
13	Oregon State
14	Kentucky
15	Washington
16 (tie)	NC State
St. John's
18	Kansas State
19	Vanderbilt
20	Wyoming

UP Coaches
Ranking	Team
1	Kansas
2	Louisville
3	North Carolina
4	Illinois
5	SMU
6	Dayton
7	Temple
8	San Francisco
9	Saint Louis
10	Western Kentucky State
11	West Virginia
12	Oklahoma City
13	Oregon State
14	Kentucky
15	Washington
16 (tie)	NC State
16 (tie)	St. John's
18	Kansas State
19	Vanderbilt
20	Wyoming

Conference membership changes

School	Former conference	New conference
	Independent	Missouri Valley Conference
	Border Conference	NCAA University Division independent

Regular season

Conferences

Conference winners and tournaments

Regular season winner^[7]	Conference player of the year	Conference tournament	Tournament venue (City)	Tournament winner
	Lennie Rosenbluth, ^[8]		Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, North Carolina)	North Carolina
	Gary Thompson, ^[9]	No Tournament
Indiana &	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
Morehead State &	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected	No Tournament
	Rod Hundley,		Richmond Arena (Richmond, Virginia)	West Virginia^[10]
	None Selected	No Tournament
	Mike Farmer,	No Tournament
Canisius &		No Tournament
	None selected	No Tournament

Conference standings

University Division independents

A total of 44 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, (22–3) had the best winning percentage (.880) and finished with the most wins.^[11]

Although it played in the NCAA College Division as a non-major team during the season, ^[11] played as an independent and finished the season ranked No. 16 in the final AP Poll.^[12]

Statistical leaders

PPG	REB%	FG%	FT%

31.2	.235	56.8	87.7
30.0	.234	56.1	87.5
29.7	.229	54.4	87.2
29.6	.227	54.2	86.2
28.9	.218	53.7	86.0

Post-season tournaments

NCAA tournament

See main article: 1957 NCAA University Division basketball tournament and 1957 NCAA University Division Basketball Championship Game. Frank McGuire brought the ACC its first national championship as his undefeated North Carolina Tar Heels defeated Wilt Chamberlain and the Kansas Jayhawks in what is considered one of the best games in NCAA history – a 54–53 triple–overtime thriller. Chamberlain was named tournament Most Outstanding Player.

Final Four

Played at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri

Third Place – San Francisco 67, Michigan State 60

National Invitation tournament

See main article: 1957 National Invitation Tournament. Bradley won its first NIT title, defeating Memphis State in a one-point contest. Memphis State's Win Wilfong won the MVP in a losing cause as he poured in 89 points in the Tigers' four games, including 31 in the final.^[13]

NIT Semifinals and Final

Played at Madison Square Garden in New York City

Third Place – Temple 67, St. Bonaventure 50

Award winners

Consensus All-American teams

See main article: 1957 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans.

**Consensus First Team**
Player	Position	Class	Team
Wilt Chamberlain	C	Sophomore	Kansas
Chet Forte	G	Senior	Columbia
Rod Hundley	G/F	Senior	West Virginia
Jim Krebs	F/C	Senior	SMU
Lennie Rosenbluth	F	Senior	North Carolina
Charlie Tyra	C	Senior	Louisville

**Consensus Second Team**
Player	Position	Class	Team
Elgin Baylor	F	Sophomore	Seattle
Frank Howard	F	Junior	Ohio State
Guy Rodgers	G	Junior	Temple
Gary Thompson	G	Senior	Iowa State
Grady Wallace	F	Senior	South Carolina

Major player of the year awards

Major coach of the year awards

UPI Coach of the Year: Frank McGuire, North Carolina

Other major awards

Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Guy Rodgers, Temple
NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in NYC): Chet Forte, Columbia

Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.

Team	Former Coach	New Coach
Arizona State	Bill Kajikawa	Ned Wulk
Loyola (LA)	Jim McCafferty	Jim Harding
Texas A&M	Ken Loeffler	Bob Rogers
Virginia	Evan Male	Billy McCann
Washington & Lee	Billy McCann	Weenie Miller
West Texas A&M	Gus Miller	Borden Price
Xavier	Ned Wulk	Jim McCafferty

Notes and References

http://www.orangehoops.org/NCAA/NCAA%20Rule%20Changes.htm orangehoops.org History of NCAA Basketball Rule Changes
News: NCAA Group Opens Talks On Money Aid To Players. Kingsport Times. August 20, 1956. 7. Newspapers.com.
Web site: History of the NCAA . . NCAA.org . 14 August 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100924162754/http://www.ncaa.org/wps/portal/ncaahome?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=%2Fncaa%2Fncaa%2Fabout%20the%20ncaa%2Foverview%2Fhistory.html . 24 September 2010 . dead .
Web site: Playing Rules History . . . ncaa.org . NCAA . June 25, 2024 . 12.
Web site: Jon. Scott. Nov 9, 2010. The truth behind the Helms Committee. 2015-12-14.
- Book: ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. 978-0-345-51392-2.
News: 2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section. 2009. NCAA. 2009-02-14.
http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/acc/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/09mbkguide083112.pdf 2008–09 ACC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Year by Year section
http://www.cyclones.com//pdf5/646317.pdf Iowa State Athletic Site – Cyclone Tradition
http://www.soconsports.com/fls/4000/socon/files/0809mbkguide/standingsandresults.pdf?SPSID=35819&SPID=1798&DB_OEM_ID=4000 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section
Web site: 1956-57 Men's Independent Season Summary . . August 9, 2024.
Web site: 1956-57 Men's College Basketball AP Polls . . August 11, 2024.
Book: The National Invitation Tournament. Arcadia Publishing. 2005. 0-7385-3904-X.