European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 29, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday. March 29, 19b8 the stars and stripes Page 85 Mcaa tourney 50th championship despite Long Green Blue colors memories by Dave Anderson new York not it originated in 1939, when in was won by the University or Oregon s basketball team the tall firs As they were known. Liat first tournament was sponsored by the National association of basketball coaches but when it lost s2.s31, the National collegiate athletic association had 3 Sugges Tion if the Mcaa could sponsor the tournament in the future it would write a Check to pay the coaches debit. In that Era Long before sneakers contracts the coaches agreed financially. That was about As smart As calling All your team s timeouts before the Las two minutes of a game. When this year s final four teams leave Kansas City mo., after monday night s 50th championship game Cadi will have collected More than is million. To celebrate the 50th tournament this year s Mcaa logo is a Gold medallion with a red 5 Mil a Brown basketball for the 0. But aside from the absence of Green As in dollars from that logo the most symbolic color of the final four i missing. There s no Blue in any Shade. No Urcla powder Blue no North Carolina sky Blue no Villanova Navy Blue. John wooden s teams at Urcla won 10 National championships in 12 seasons beginning in 1964 and ending in 1975 with his retirement As coach. No other coach or College has come close to thai record. And when this year s final four committee polled 55 sports writers across the nation in five final four categories wooden and his univ nity of California los Angeles players dominated three Best team the 1968 champions featuring Lew Alcindor the Center now known As Karlein Abdul Jab bar beef individual performance Bill Walton s 44 Points in the 87-66 Victory Over Memphis state for the 1973 title. Best to ice John wooden who got 49 of the 55 first place Voles. Adolph Rupp got four votes. Bouknight two. Two other Blue uniformed teams finished first in the other categories. North Carolina s triple overtime 54-53 Victory Over Kansas with will Chamberlain for the 19i7 Tille was selected As he Best final four game. Ykn9ya 6-6 Triumph Over Georgetown for the1985 title was chosen As the biggest upset. In All 31 different teams were mentioned for Besl team said Bab Sprenger the final four executive vice president who supervised the balloting. Of the 10 championship teams that wooden had at Urcla seven Jot Voles As the Bucsi team. His undefeated 1973 team Irish cd third his 1969 team fourth the Only Urcla championship teams thai did t set even a fifth place vote were the 6i, 7 and 75 teams. Indiana s 1976 team with Quinn Buckler and Scott May which won the first of Knight s three titles was the runner in among the final four s Besl teams. San Francisco s 1956 team with Bill Russell and  Jones was fifth. Each of Kentucky s five championship teams who also wore Blue uniforms received some Voles notably uie 1948 squad with Alex Troia and Ralph Beard the fim of Rupp s four title teams. But none of those Kentucky squads collected enough votes to crack i chop five. For the Best individual performance Sprenger said Walton got All but three first place Voles. But he f 0141 first place votes for what he did in the 1973 Lille game and two Tim place votes for his 24-Noint game when Urcla col Florida state for the 1972 title. Bill Bradley got two first place votes for his 58 Points for Princeton in the j965 third place same and David Thompson Isol one Vole for helping North Carolina stale ups Urcla 80-77 in the 1974  in taking the poll. Springer was concerned that it might turn out to be top heavy with recent history but the 1957 title game transcended three decades. Seven feet hut Skinny Chamberlain was a freshman that season. In inc semifinals he had scored 32 Point for Kansas in a 80-56 rout of the san Francisco but Frank Mcguire. Inc North Carolina coach Hod assent bled a team of mostly new York players. For the Lille game co uric devised a defense thai surrounded Chamberlain like so Many jackals surrounding a Giraffe. Through three overtimes he is ill scored 23 Points As Kansas led 53-51, with 6 seconds remaining. But then Joe Quigg was fouled. Now Joe said Mcguire trying to Calm his Center during the timeout. As soon As you make pm Tuigg made pm both to Complete a 32-1 record thai has been Malc Mcdonly by Indiana s 1976 title com. Of Alt the upsets Kentucky s loss to the University of Scias he paso Hen known As Texas Western in inc 1966 title game was the Mosi sociologically significant. The miners the fins championship team in shirt five Black Plancis stunned Rupp s Oil White team 72-65, but in the Tol Loling it finished third Ajili 10 first place Voles. Villanova s virtually pc Feci time in 1985 against Georgetown earned 24 votes. Ortli Carolina stale s 54-s2 Triumph Over Houston in the 19s3 final on Lorenzo Charles s Buzier Basket was second with 14 votes. The memory of Jim Valvano running around after that game Sprenger said of the . Stale coach sol the most votes for inc most memorable  the other most memorable  cols in order were Al Mcguire s emotional reaction when  won the 1977 Lilc in his last game As coach Urcla s 1973 title knowing thai wooden was retiring vill Inova a 1985 upset Victory and the 1979 tiny name matchup of magic Johnson of Michigan stale and Larry Bird of Indiana state that turned out to be merely r. Preview of heir Laker celtic matchup. But maybe the most memorable moment really occurred in i9j9, when the coaches took thai Susji Check. Memories to titles enough for wooden by Ken 1 Etkes los Angeles a the Mcaa basketball tournament May spark a flood of memories for John w Ooden Bill no desire to turn Back the clock. I Don t miss in at  the retired Urcla Bruin coach said. Maybe i had enough of  wooden 77, had Marc coaching Success in the Mcaa championships than any College basketball coach before him and quite hic by More than an who will follow. In one of the most impressive reigns in sports history wooden s Bruins won a remarkable 10 Mcaa championships during a 12-Ycar stretch Between 1964 and 1975, including seven in a Row. Since then no team has won to in a Row. The soil Mcaa basketball championship will to held april 2-4 in Kansas City where wooden won his first Lilc and when it s Over wooden s teams win have won fully one Milih of All title games Ever played. Although wooden does t regret that he no longer to involved in the tournament he enjoys his memories of inc Bruins trips to the final four then Are certainly a Jol of memories there he said we played in 10 championship final games and won hem All. We lost twice in the semifinals once by two Points 72-70 to Cincinnati in 19621 and once in double overtime 80-77 to North Carolina Slac in 1974 wooden is every bit As proud of some of his squad thai did t win the National title. The first Lime we lost in the tournament in 1962and 1 am about As proud of that team As any i Ever had he said at the beginning of the season we weren t very Good and we kept improving. The game went right Down to the wire and they made a Baske right at the end. We came such a Long Way and sometimes that gives you As much Pride As  although a trip to the final four was almost a Given for Urcla with such stars As Lew Alcindor now a cum Abdul Jabbar and Dill Walton wooden Points out thai the Bruins won in a variety of ways. Each of our Mcaa championship teams was Dis Tinct each had a particular character wooden said. We won five Mcaa championships with Bill and each of John we Dan j winners was  Kareem and we won five without them. Think we won once with Pic youngest team in the tournament once with the least experienced Tram once with the shortest team. Some of the other players who weren t As ecu. Known stand Oul in my mind too. He mentioned centers Doug Mclntosh j964- 6