1944–45 NCAA men's basketball season explained

Year:	1944
Tourney Start:	March 22, 1945
Nc Date:	March 27, 1945
Champ Stad:	Madison Square Garden
Champ City:	New York City
Helmschamp:	Oklahoma A&M
Nit Champ:	DePaul
Helmspoy:	George Mikan, DePaul

The 1944–45 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1944, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1945 NCAA basketball tournament championship game on March 27, 1945, at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. The Oklahoma A&M Aggies won their first NCAA national championship with a 49–45 victory over the NYU Violets.

Rule changes

Along with the ball on the rim, defensive interference by touching the ball after it had started its downward flight during an opponent's field goal attempt was declared a goal for the shooting team.^[1]
A player fouls out after committing five fouls, including fouls committed in overtime. Previously, a player fouled out after committing four fouls in regulation or a fifth foul in overtime.^[1] An extra foul was not permitted in overtime games.
Unlimited substitution is permitted for the first time. Previously, a player could re-enter a game only twice.^[1]
It became a violation for an offensive player to remain in the free-throw lane for more than three seconds.^[1] ^[2]

Season headlines

The three-point shot — called a "long goal" at the time — was used experimentally for the first time in a college basketball game, played between Columbia and Fordham on February 7, 1945, with the three-point line from the basket. Columbia made 11 "long goals," while Fordham made nine. The game also experimented with allowing free-throw shooters to take their shots from the normal for one point or to attempt a "long foul" shot from for two points. The teams combined for eight "long fouls" during the game, which Columbia won 73–58.^[3]
The February 7, 1945, game between Columbia and Fordham also saw the first use of the 12adj=midNaNadj=mid free-throw lane, an experiment at a time when the free-throw lane was standardized at wide. The 12adj=midNaNadj=mid free-throw lane eventually was adopted for the 1955–56 season.^[4]
After its football team won the 1945 Cotton Bowl Classic on January 1, Oklahoma A&M's basketball team won the 1945 NCAA tournament on March 27, making Oklahoma A&M the first school to win both a college football bowl game and the NCAA basketball tournament in the same academic year.^[5]
More than 18,000 fans attended the final installment of an annual American Red Cross benefit game between the NCAA Tournament and NIT champions at Madison Square Garden. Oklahoma A&M, led by Bob Kurland, defeated George Mikan's DePaul 52–44.^[6] Kurland scored 14 points while Mikan scored 9 before fouling out in only 14 minutes of playing time.^[6]
In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively selected Iowa as its national champion for the 1944–45 season.^[7]

Premo-Porretta Power Poll

In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively ranked teams during the 1944–45 season as follows by reviewing results, opponents, and margins of victory.^[6] ^[7]

1945 Premo-Porretta Poll
Ranking	Team
1	Iowa (17–1)
2	Oklahoma A&M (27–4)
3	DePaul (21–3)
4	Rice (20–1)
5	Army (14–1)
6	Navy (12–2)
7	Ohio State (15–5)
8	Bowling Green (24–4)
9	Notre Dame (15–5)
10	Kentucky (22–4)
11	St. John's (21–3)
12	RPI (13–1)
13	Akron (21–2)
14	NYU (16–8)
15	Muhlenberg (24–4)
16	South Carolina (19–3)
17	Valparaiso (21–3)
18	Tennessee (18–5)
19	Rhode Island State (20–5)
20	Hamline (20–4)
21	North Carolina (22–6)
22	Temple (16–7)
23	Illinois (13–7)
24	Penn (12–5)
25	Yale (14–4)

Conference membership changes

School	Former conference	New conference
	Independent	Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League
	Independent	Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League

Regular season

Conferences

Conference winners and tournaments

Regular Season Winner^[8]	Conference player of the year	Conference Tournament	Tournament Venue (City)
	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
&	None Selected	No Tournament; Oregon defeated Washington State in North Division best-of-three championship playoff series and defeated UCLA in best-of-three conference championship playoff series
	None Selected	No Tournament
	None Selected		Jefferson County Armory (Louisville, Kentucky)
	None Selected		Thompson Gym (Raleigh,)
	None Selected	No Tournament

Conference standings

Major independents

A total of 62 college teams played as major independents. (14–1) had the best winning percentage (.933). (24–4) and (24–4) finished with the most wins.^[9]

Statistical leaders

Scoring leader – George Mikan averaged 23.3 points per game and was retroactively declared the "unofficial" season scoring leader. Between 1935–36 and 1946–47, there were no official NCAA scoring champions. The statistics during that era were compiled from the National Basketball Committee Official Basketball Guide, which was not regulated by NCAA authorities. Therefore, those players are included in the annual NCAA men's basketball media guide, but are listed as unofficial season scoring leaders.^[10] No other personal statistics were tracked during the 1944–45 basketball season.

Post-season tournaments

NCAA tournament

See main article: 1945 NCAA basketball tournament and 1945 NCAA Basketball Championship Game.

Semifinals & final

National Invitation tournament

See main article: 1945 National Invitation Tournament.

Semifinals & finals

Award winners

Consensus All-American teams

See main article: 1945 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans.

**Consensus First Team**
Player	Position	Class	Team
Arnie Ferrin	F	Sophomore	Utah
Wyndol Gray	F	Junior	Bowling Green
William Hassett	G	Junior	Notre Dame
Bill Henry	C	Senior	Rice
Walt Kirk	G/F	Junior	Illinois
Bob Kurland	C	Junior	Oklahoma A&M
George Mikan	C	Junior	DePaul

**Consensus Second Team**
Player	Position	Class	Team
Howie Dallmar	F	Junior	Pennsylvania
Don Grate	G	Senior	Ohio State
Dale Hall	F	Senior	Army
Vince Hanson	C	Sophomore	Washington State
Dick Ives	F	Sophomore	Iowa
Max Morris	F	Senior	Northwestern
Herb Wilkinson	G	Sophomore	Iowa

Major player of the year awards

Helms Foundation Player of the Year

George Mikan, DePaul

Sporting News Player of the Year

George Mikan, DePaul

Other major awards

NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in NYC area): Bill Kotsores, 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
Columbia	Elmer Ripley		Paul Mooney
Georgetown	None		Ken Engles	After a two-year suspension of all athletic programs during World War II, Georgetown University decided to reconstitute its basketball program during the 1945–46 season with a mostly walk-on team. Engles – a Georgetown player returning to school for the 1945–46 academic year after military service – was named the coach, becoming the only player-coach in Georgetown men's basketball history.^[11]
Holy Cross	Albert Riopel		Doggie Julian
Notre Dame	Clem Crowe		Elmer Ripley
Ole Miss	Edwin Hale		Buster Poole
Oregon	John A. Warren		Howard Hobson
Penn	Red Kellett		Rob Dougherty
Princeton	William Francis Logan	Leonard Hattinger	Wes Fesler

Notes and References

http://www.orangehoops.org/NCAA/NCAA%20Rule%20Changes.htm orangehoops.org History of NCAA Basketball Rule Changes
Book: 2007 . Official 2008 NCAA men's basketball records book . NCAA. p. 277
Web site: Playing Rules History . . . ncaa.org . NCAA . June 25, 2024 . 11.
Web site: Playing Rules History . . . ncaa.org . NCAA . June 25, 2024 . 3, 6, 11.
Web site: Playing Rules History . . . ncaa.org . NCAA . June 25, 2024 . 12.
Book: ESPN. ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia. Random House, Inc.. 2009. New York, NY. 372. 978-0-345-51392-2 .
Book: ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. ESPN. ESPN Books. New York, NY. 2009. 526, 529–587. 978-0-345-51392-2.
News: 2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section. 2009 . NCAA. 2010-12-24.
Web site: 1944-45 Men's Independent Season Summary . . August 5, 2024.
Web site: 2009–10 NCAA Men's Basketball Records . 2009–10 NCAA Men's Basketball Media Guide . . 2009 . PDF . January 16, 2011.
Web site: The Georgetown Basketball History Project: Head Coaches . 2014-01-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170527235527/http://www.hoyabasketball.com/coaches/bb-coach.htm . 2017-05-27 . dead .