1966–67 NCAA University Division men's basketball season explained

Year:	1966
Preseason Ap:	UCLA^[1] ^[2]
Tourney Start:	March 11
Nc Date:	25, 1967
Champ Stad:	Freedom Hall
Champ City:	Louisville, Kentucky
Champ:	UCLA
Helmschamp:	UCLA
Nit Champ:	Southern Illinois
Helmspoy:	Lew Alcindor, UCLA

The 1966–67 NCAA University Division men's basketball season began in December 1966, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1967 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 25, 1967, at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. The UCLA Bruins won their third NCAA national championship with a 79–64 victory over the Dayton Flyers.

Season headlines

• The NCAA tournament expanded from 22 to 23 teams.
• UCLA went undefeated (30–0) and won its first of an eventual seven NCAA championships in a row, third overall, and third in four seasons. In the Athletic Association of Western Universities, it also won its first of what ultimately would be 13 consecutive conference titles.

Season outlook

Pre-season polls

See main article: 1966–67 NCAA University Division men's basketball rankings.

The Top 10 from the AP Poll and Top 20 from the Coaches Poll during the pre-season.^{[3] [4]}

Associated Press Ranking Team 1 UCLA 2 UTEP 3 Kentucky 4 Duke 5 Louisville 6 New Mexico 7 Houston 8 Western Kentucky 9 North Carolina 10 Cincinnati

UPI Coaches Ranking Team 1 UCLA 2 UTEP 3 Kentucky 4 Duke 5 Michigan State 6 Houston 7 Louisville 8 BYU 9 Western Kentucky 10 Providence 11 Nebraska 12 Boston College 13 (tie) Dayton Kansas 15 North Carolina 16 (tie) Loyola-Chicago New Mexico 18 Cincinnati 19 Colorado State 20 St. John's

Regular season

Conferences

Conference winners and tournaments

Conference	Regular season winner^[5]	Conference player of the year	Conference tournament	Tournament venue (City)	Tournament winner
		None selected	No Tournament
		Larry Miller, North Carolina^[6]		Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, North Carolina)	North Carolina
		None selected	No Tournament
	Gonzaga &	None selected	No Tournament
	Indiana &	None selected	No Tournament
		None selected	No Tournament
	Manhattan, &		No Tournament
		None selected	No Tournament
			No Tournament
		None selected	No Tournament
				Jefferson County Armory (Louisville, Kentucky)	Tennessee Tech
		Ron Widby, Tennessee^[7]	No Tournament
		Johnny Moates, Richmond^[8]		Charlotte Coliseum (Charlotte, North Carolina)	West Virginia^[9]
			No Tournament
			No Tournament
		None selected	No Tournament
		None selected	No Tournament

Conference standings

University Division independents

A total of 51 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, (21–3) had both the best winning percentage (.875) and Houston (27–4) finished with the most wins.^[10]

Statistical leaders

Post-season tournaments

NCAA tournament

See main article: 1967 NCAA University Division basketball tournament and 1967 NCAA University Division Basketball Championship Game.

Final Four

• Third Place – Houston 84, North Carolina 62

National Invitation tournament

See main article: 1967 National Invitation Tournament.

Semifinals & finals

• Third Place – Rutgers 93, Marshall 76

Awards

Consensus All-American teams

See main article: 1967 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans.

Consensus First Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Lew Alcindor	C	Sophomore	UCLA
Clem Haskins	G	Senior	Western Kentucky
Elvin Hayes	F/C	Junior	Houston
Bob Lloyd	G	Senior	Rutgers
Wes Unseld	C	Senior	Louisville
Bob Verga	G	Senior	Duke
Jimmy Walker	G	Senior	Providence

Consensus Second Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Louie Dampier	G	Senior	Kentucky
Mel Daniels	C	Senior	New Mexico
Sonny Dove	F	Senior	St. John's
Don May	G/F	Junior	Dayton
Larry Miller	F	Junior	North Carolina

Major player of the year awards

• Helms Player of the Year: Lew Alcindor, UCLA
• Associated Press Player of the Year: Lew Alcindor, UCLA
• UPI Player of the Year: Lew Alcindor, UCLA
• Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA): Lew Alcindor, UCLA
• Sporting News Player of the Year: Lew Alcindor, UCLA

Major coach of the year awards

• Associated Press Coach of the Year: John Wooden, UCLA
• Henry Iba Award (USBWA): John Wooden, UCLA
• NABC Coach of the Year: John Wooden, UCLA
• UPI Coach of the Year: John Wooden, UCLA
• Sporting News Coach of the Year: Jack Hartman, Southern Illinois

Other major awards

• Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Cliff Anderson, St. Joseph's
• NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Sonny Dove, St. John's

Coaching changes

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

Team	Former Coach	Interim Coach	New Coach	Reason
Bowling Green	Warren Scholler		Bill Fitch
Dartmouth	Doggie Julian		Dave Gavitt
Lehigh	Pete Carril		Roy Heckman
Missouri	Bob Vanatta		Norm Stewart
Princeton	Butch van Breda Kolff		Pete Carril
West Texas A&M	Jimmy Viramontes		Dennis Walling

Notes and References

1. Book: ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia . 978-0-345-51392-2 . . 2009 . 846.
2. Web site: 1978 Preseason AP Men's Basketball Poll. College Poll Archive. August 8, 2020.
3. Book: ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia . 978-0-345-51392-2 . . 2009 . 836.
4. Web site: 1977 Preseason AP Men's Basketball Poll. College Poll Archive. August 8, 2020.
5. News: 2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section. 2009. NCAA. 2009-02-14.
6. 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
7. http://secsports.com/doc_lib/bkc_record_book.pdf 2008–09 SEC Men's Basketball Record Book
8. http://www.soconsports.com/fls/4000/socon/files/0809mbkguide/honorsandawards.pdf?SPSID=35819&SPID=1798&DB_OEM_ID=4000 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Honors Section
9. 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
10. Web site: 1966-67 Men's Independent Season Summary . . August 14, 2024.