"We played the most intelligent, the most boring, the most He treated us all poor. 1966: AP rates TWC ninth in poll; Miners Defeat Tulsa. David Lattin had 16 points, 12 rebounds, Nevil Shed had 12 points, 10 rebounds and Harry Flournoy had 12 rebounds. Texas Western's coach Don Haskins, who recruited black players, made sure it didn't happen. point to prove. I am so angry. The clutch victory kept the 6th-ranked Miners' undefeated season alive, improving their record to 16-0 in front of an excited crowd of 8,030 fans. "It was a thrill for meI'm kind of a young punkand to play a game with Mr. Rupp is quite an honor, let alone win it," Haskins, 36, told reporters after the game. He was also certain his team would secure the championship. I hate to hear him saying that. 1966: TWC beats NM Aggies 104-78, win 15th. 1966: TWC beats ASU, 84-67, breaks Tempe jinx. The Miners, playing their fourth road game in their last five outings, were led by David Lattin with 22 points, seven rebounds. the basketball but sign it. Orsten Artis had 15 points, eight rebounds. There's not much drama, very little passion, and, in No.1-ranked Kentucky, meanwhile, was the run-and-gun team. Texas Western and Kentucky are the only two unbeaten teams remaining in the nation. Haskins, who died in 2008, said he wasnt trying to make a social statement but simply starting his best players. Florida State. Athletes who had His mom told him he could go on one condition: He had to promise to let Cager and Shed take care of him if he got into any trouble. Willie Worsley had 12 points, Orsten Artis had 11, Harry Flournoy had 10 points, David Lattin had nine before fouling out and Jerry Armstrong also had nine points. Haskins says I was simply playing the best players I had. "It's just one of those things that sticks out to me about that game.". That was about it. [6] Also, they were not invited on The Ed Sullivan Show, which was customary for the NCAA Champions. 1966: Miners edge Kansas, 81-80, in overtimes. ", 1966: TWC rallies to rout Oklahoma City, 89-74. Texas Western, ranked second in the nation, fell Saturday evening. "They didn't know what to write. American sports championship would be contested by one team that was Go over and comfort each other," Riley said, not just about that game but about what he calls today's divided country. Worsley. ordinary basketball. As with most Hollywood sports biopics, although based on actual events, there are many inaccuracies in the movie. was a senior buyer with El Paso Natural Gas Co. "That game was the catalyst that opened athletic, academic and employment doors for those who followed us. Its kind like, hello, give me a break, Cager said of the flag. I was simply playing the best players on the team, and they happened to be Black.. In fact, until Texas Western coach Don Haskins did. I was completely and totally shocked, Lattin said. Did The Flock Sign Him Or Does He Have A New Trolling Target. I feel embarrassed by it., Lattin said Cager has talked about writing a controversial book for 25 years. 1-ranked Kentucky Wildcats, an all-white team. stupid sons of bitches!' Harry Flournoy scored nine points in the first half, seven more in the second half to lead the Miners with 16 points. "Without question, it was one of the most significant, impactful college sporting events in the history of our country.". 3 of 13. I couldnt stand the movie because it didnt tell the truth, said Willie Cager, a black Texas Western forward in 1966. It was the first time a starting five of all-Black players had won the title. For several years Kentucky president John W. A tight-knit group of blacks, whites and one Hispanic, the Miners played their way to the NCAA championship game against Adolph Rupp's No. It wasn't a racial issue at the time. I want to talk to them. Dave Lattin played center, and his grandson plays Saturday for Oklahoma. But what Haskins did was key, saidRichard Pierce, a professor and historian at the University of Notre Dame. The closer Texas Western (see cover) came . Browse 69 texas western 1966 photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more photos and images. In 2006, the movie Glory Road, depicting the significance of this game, was released. It wasn't until December of 1970 that a Rupp team first dressed a black First of all, we came from nowhere and no one expected us to be there. Rupp, who retired in 1972 with a 876-190 record, won four national championships and one NIT title. In College Park, Maryland onMarch 19, 1966,underdog Texas Western College defeats Kentucky, 72-65, in the NCAA mens college basketball finalthefirst NCAA title for an all-Black starting five. 1966: TWC, Cincinnati defense to clash in NCAA. "People got to see this for the first time," said Gragg. The Miners led by five with 1:17 to go in regulation but Kansas scrambled back to tie it 69-69 and force overtime. jungle wire.". Texas Western improved to 15-0 and brought the crowd to its feet over and over with the big win over rival NMSU. Get their watches. Texas Western ran over Arizona State 84-67 Thursday night, Jan. 27, 1966, in Tempe, Ariz., protecting its national ranking and extending its unbeaten streak. [5] and inspired the book and film Glory Road. 1966: Miner's late surge edges Lobos in overtime. If you get too low, it's a long way back up.". Meanwhile, though it was never mentioned until decades later, by the universities. "What a piece of history. Here's how I saw history. And so in that historic game that Lattinand his fellow players really didn't know was historic "we passed the ball a lot and we would shoot a lot. the sportswriters on press row. number of blacks on college teams jumped from 2.9 to 5.7. But does the film ("Glory Road" is being released by Disney, the parent company of . And those letters from the whites in the south, you can just imagine what they said. Nevil Shed had 12 points, eight rebounds, and Willie Worsley had 10 points. knew nothing about the team but its curious racial makeup helped sustain The watershed game highlighted the end of racial segregation in college basketball. READ MORE: Linda Brown From Historic Brown v. Board Case Passes Away. "and Ten players in laughably short pants move slowly through 40 minutes of One year before Texas Western won theNCAA title against Kentucky, 72-65, John Lewis led more than 600 people on a 54-mile march from Selma, Alabama, to the state capitol in Montgomery. Kentucky," wrote the Sun's James H. Jackson. would dissolve into chaos. What If: Duke Had Played Texas Western In 1966 Instead Of Kentucky? Nevil Shed had 11 points and 17 rebounds in the game and guard Willie Worsley added 10 more points. 1965: TWC takes 67-47 win over Pan American. David Lattin was a lot bigger than anybody, and the guards for Texas Western were really good. player, Tom Payne. historian Charles Martin. The crowd is white. "(Lattin) said, `Take that you white honky,'" recalled Riley. Arizona State cut the lead to 62-61 with five minutes remaining. 1966: Texas Western Miners win 22nd, down Rams. You can navigate days by using left and right arrows. They won their games by an average of 15.2 points. This Day In 1966: Texas Western, featuring the first all-black starting lineup, beats Adolph Rupps Kentucky team to win NCAA title. The team was presented with keys to the city of El Paso. On February 6, 2016, the now University Of Texas El Paso Miners held a reunion for the 1966 players at the Don Haskins Center. He and his all-white Kentucky program were not only the epitome of college Texas Western walked the ball up court, ran In the 60s, many people believed black men would not be able to handle the pressure of playing at a collegiate level. David Lattin added 11 points and Bobby Joe Hill had 10. GO-GO WITH BOBBY JOE - Sports Illustrated Vault | SI.com The legendary Miner defense took over after that, allowing Eastern New Mexico just two field goals in the first half and holding the visitors to a paltry 20.8 percent shooting from the field. Texas Western appeared to be dead in the water with 14 minutes to play Saturday night, Feb. 12, 1966, trailing New Mexico by 20 points. Technical and creative licensing issues aside, the movie is important because it exposes the story of the team that endured racism and changed the face of college basketball to a wider audience, paying homage to an accomplishment that would radically alter the face of NCAA hoops. That just didn't happen in those days of college basketball. "That's how coach Haskinsfound out Black guys could really play.". "You meet the same people going up you meet on the way back down," she told him. A crowd of 7,800, featuring many Miner fans, watched the game in the Lubbock Municipal Auditorium. Then he walked out of my room.". The movie erroneously paints a picture of a team of new recruits that takes a while to gel during that 1966 season. 1965: Miners beat Fresno State 75-73 in game 5. Harry Flournoy had nine points, 11 rebounds and Orsten Artis also added nine points to help the Miner cause. Antonio Brown Tweets Pic Of Himself In A Baltimore Ravens Uniform. They would never trail again. Coach Haskins did say he had some threatening mail and phone calls. How Texas Western's 1966 national championship changed college - NCAA Hill led the Miners in scoring with 15 points. Texas secession movements, also known as the Texas independence movement or Texit, refers to both the secession of Texas during the American Civil War as well as activities of modern organizations supporting such efforts to secede from the United States and become an independent sovereign state.. 4 in the nation, edged Arkansas in the other semifinal game to set up a much anticipated meeting with the Miners in the Thursday night championship. Texas secession movements - Wikipedia The opening game in Wichita will pit Colorado State and the University of Houston. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc. site: media | arena: collegebasketball | pageType: stories | Texas Western defeats Kentucky in NCAA final - History Rapoport said former Georgetown coach John Thompson recalled Texas Western-Kentucky wasnt a big deal in the black community. NBA Hall of Fame Coach Pat Riley played a key role in the historic matchup thats been immortalized in movies and books. It should have been done a long time ago as far as the commitments to all the blacks being successful. cheated by using ineligible players. What happened to the 1966 Texas Western basketball team? Miami (Ohio) WBB coach resigns after investigation, Texas joins Top 25 And 1 after landing Abmas, Five-star prospect Ron Holland decommits from Texas, Ranking college basketball's top 40 transfers of 2023, No. Cager is out of his mind. If basketball ever took a turn, that was it," said Nolan Richardson, the Arkansas coach It made it possible for kids to go to major universities, especially in the deep South, and not just for basketball. Julia Worsley never talked to her sonabout Black and white, he said. Nevil Shed led the Miners with 17 points and Hill had 16. That was it.". But in the south, it was still rare to find a college sports team that wasn't all white. Orsten Artis led the Miners with 22 points. On March 19, 1966, the Miners defeated the Kentucky Wildcats (72-65) at Cole Field House on the campus of Maryland University in College Park, MD. Don Haskins - Wikipedia The Wildcats were the favorite to win, despite the Miners 23-0 season. But UTEP's trail blazing legacy is marked by more than the historic victory on March 19, 1966. Hill led the Miners with 22 points, followed by Lattin with 15 points and 17 rebounds. Texas Western simply crushed East Texas State in the second half on the way to a 73-51 win on a Thursday night, Dec. 9, in game two of that 1965-66 championship season. 1965: TWC takes second win of young season. and a great villain must meet. The state recently launched plans to tap into a new Biden administration immigration program to bring Ukrainians fleeing the war to work in the local oil industry. That game has been sold out for weeks. Their tenacity paid off, and Texas Western won the game 72 65. The Texas-Indian wars were a series of conflicts between settlers in Texas and the Southern Plains Indians during the 19th-century. Rupp crossed paths at a sports banquet in Ohio, the younger coach nearly Artis had 12 points, seven rebounds, Shed had 12 points and Harry Flournoy hhad 11 points, eight rebounds. I knew it as the championship game. The Miners got off to a slow start and actually trailed 11-8 six minutes into the game. TWC improved to 11-0 on the season, leaving the Miners and the University of Kentucky as the only two undefeated teams in the nation perhaps a bit foreshadowing. "What the hell is in El Paso?" Riley had never heard of Texas Western, so he was shocked when the Wildcats lost. Black athletes, prevailing wisdom It was the second big upset of the day. It had been a goal of the National Association forthe Advancement of Colored People for decades. Texas Western overcame a slow start and a cold shooting night from the floor to edge Fresno State College, 75-73. Texas Western made its first big statement of the season by crushing fourth-ranked Iowa 86-68 on Thursday night, Dec. 30, 1965 in the championship game of the Southwestern Sun Carnival Basketball Tournament. Blacks now were recruited as reserves as well as starters. The Miners improved to 3-0 in that championship season while Pan American dropped to 2-2. But it was on the boards that the Miners truly dominated this game. David Lattin scored just one point in the first half but finished with 19 points to lead the Miners. He was on the Duke freshman team, Lattin said. Coach Haskins, I loved him very much. TWC held the Chiefs to just 37.3 percent shooting and outrebounded them 40-32. For example, when they won the championship no one brought out a ladder for them to cut down the net. [1] The Miners only lost one game, a road loss to Seattle by two points. Texas Western celebrated. The squad also had four Anglo-Americans (Jerry Armstrong, Louis Baudoin, Dick Meyers, and Togo Railey and one Mexican-American Dave Palacio). "'I wish I could have done one thing and I didnt do it. Heading into the 1966 NCAA semifinals -- this was before the corporate and catchy Final Four -- the prevailing opinion was that the second semifinal between Kentucky and Duke would decide the national champion. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. FILE - In this March 19, 1966, file photo, Kentucky's Thad Jaracz (55) and Texas Western's David Latin (42) reach for a rebound during the first period of the NCAA men's baksetball championship game in College Park, Md. The 196566 Texas Western basketball team faced many issues due to racism. Bobby Joe Hill had 20 points and Orsten Artis added 18. The Miners led 40-33 at the half and their defense simply smothered the Sun Devils holding them to just 39.1 percent shooting from the floor and forcing 23 turnovers. Afterward, he realized he hadnt shaken hands with his worthy opponents. Haskins stormed in, smelling of the cigarettes he'd smoked that day. The aesthetics also fall short because the Miners played in front of sellout crowds in a college arena that held thousands of fans, not in some rinky-dinky high school gym with few people dotting the bleachers. All rights reserved. Texas Western put up shot after shot after shot as the final seconds ticked off the scoreboard clock. The Miners, who shot just 37.1 percent to 54.5 percent for Arizona State, held on for the win. Haskins deserves plenty of credit for how he recruited and utilized his Black players especially guys like Bobby Joe Hill from Michigan, Harry Flourney from Gary, Indiana, Houstons David Lattin and Willie Worsley, a 5-foot-6 phenomenon out of DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx, NY but Texas Western had African-Americans on the roster before he even arrived on campus. quasi-professionals imported from Northern cities to win Haskins a Bobby Joe Hill offered a bit of foreshadowing for that championship game against Kentucky, picking off four steals from East Texas and turning each one into an easy, uncontested layup in front of 3,800 fans in Memorial Gym. It was what I had done all year.. Determined to put an end to it, Haskins fielded an all-black team on that fateful night. 2023 www.indystar.com. So are the Coach Haskins didn't think that made any sense. "We didn't see Black and white. Texas Western vs. Kentucky: 1966 National Championship | FULL GAME A Championship in 1966 Was a Step for Integration As a matter of fact, when Haskins was unloading the moving truck into his El Paso home after taking the job, one of the teams players that he inherited,Nolan Richardson, who would go on to become a legendary national championship-winning coach at the University of Arkansas in the 1990s, showed up to welcome and help him get situated. It was totally different from my perspective. The 72-65 victory over Kentucky in College Park, Maryland is considered one of the most important in the history of college basketball, as it marked the first time that a team with five African-American starters won a title game. Orsten Artis had 13 points, Nevil Shed had 11 points, eight rebounds, Bobby Joe Hill had 11 and Harry Flournoy had eight rebounds. Nomention of skin color. Hill made a free throw and Cincinnati scored twice, giving the Miners a 77-76 lead. Back then, there were very few games on TV. At Northern colleges, where the unwritten rule for coaches had been, "Two David Lattin had nine points, four rebounds before fouling out with still 9:33 left to play in the game. Bobby Joe Hill and Harry Flournoy added 12 points each, and Flournoy led the Miners with 14 rebounds. He was just coaching the only way he knew how. So, when it came to the championship game, Worsley said he wasn't thinking about Kentucky being white. "We have to cross the aisle. The Miners improved to 26-1 on the season with the win over Kansas while the Jayhawks ended their season at 23-4. Bobby Joe Hill led the Miners with 24 points. American cities. The American . outside the Southwest despite its 27-1 record and its No.3 ranking. 72-65 victory that night over No.1 Kentucky, coached by the legendary Adolph The Story Behind A Rap About The 1966 Texas Western Team Texas Western smothered Tulsa defensively on Monday night, Jan. 3, 1966 the day the Miners first moved into the Associated Press national rankings. The Miners shot 50.8 percent from the field and held the Aggies to just 34.1 percent. 1949 - College of Mines name changed to Texas Western College of the University of Texas. The Miners tried to even things with shot after shot down the stretch. Elusive point guard Bobby Joe Hill led the Miners with 16 points, including four buckets on quick drives down the middle for layups. Battle of Fort Sumter. We were successful in kicking their booty., After Texas Westerns 72-65 victory over Kentucky, there was virtually no mention in the media about race. By William Gildea. Miami Heat President Pat Riley Reflects on 50th Anniversary of Texas Learn how your comment data is processed. mid-1970s, four of Kentucky's five starters, including Dampier and Riley, Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Haskins replied, Same way I do white guys.. Fine, Hill! Haskins shouted, according to the story. The Miners held Tulsa to just 37.7 percent shooting from the field. TWC also led by seven points in the final half but Colorado State refused to go away. The Miners went into their delay game with Bobby Joe Hill and Orsten Artis handling the ball. Writing a decade later in his book, "Sports in America", James Michener document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. David Lattin had 14 points, seven rebounds. Claiborne, who was Dukes first black basketball player and became a business professor at Texas Southern. The Miners roster consisted of seven African-Americans. 1966. It was a Landmark Night. The Miner defense was again strong, holding the Wildcats to just 36.4 percent shooting from the field. Haskins coached until 1999, never reaching another Final Four. Colorado State, which has also already been selected for the NCAA Tournament, led the Miners by five, 37-32, with 15:04 to play in the game. It was March 19, 1966, the night a team with five black starters made history by winning a national championship. Dan Koeck for The New York Times . The other Overview Texas was annexed by the United States in 1845 and became the 28th state. Texas Western used its smothering defense, fierce rebounding and a balanced scoring attack to dismantle Iowa. who played for Haskins at Texas Western. had come to Tennessee (on the same day Seattle beat Texas Western), shot A crowd of 5,399 packed Memorial Gym and spilled over into the auxillary gym to watch on closed circuit television. Orsten Artis had 15, Nevil Shed and David Lattin had 13 points each. Its my legacy. Just about treating people kindly. The hate came from both sides. championship game on. His reputation was such that even those black Significance of Texas Western's 1966 NCAA title not realized at first The top rebounder for the Miners was Flournoy with 11. Hill played the second half, scored 17 points and got the Miner offense rolling, leading them to their sixth straight victory, a commanding 83-65 decision over Fresno State. Black players were no longer taboo, and basketball was never the same. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com. Texas Western College, now UTEP, defeated the University of Kentucky. They cruised on to take a 40-26 halftime lead. "I . A couple weeks ago, some Texas Western players returned to Cole Field House for the first time since 1966. The Miners beat Kentucky (an all-white program until 1969) 7265 in the historic championship game, played on Saturday, March 19, at Cole Field House on the University of Maryland campus in College Park, a suburb of Washington, D.C.[2][3][4]. History of Texas - Wikipedia The "borrowed" alligator is then placed in Professor Quinn's Geology office. But it was not to be. [1] a rigidly patterned offense, "We were more white-oriented than any of the other teams in the Final all-white and another whose starters were entirely black. A lot of stuff happened that wasnt supposed to happen, even with Don Haskins. 50 years later, Texas Western's victory resonates in civil rights You were led to believe that Don Haskins played by Gig Harbor High School grad Josh Lucas coached Texas Western to the NCAA title a year removed from. The Miners led by as many as seven points in the first half but the Rams trimmed that lead to two, 43-41, at the half. Coach Don Haskins, second from left, and Texas Western players celebrate after winning the 1966 NCAA basketball . They werent some unheard of team that came out of nowhere, as Haskins had led them to two previous NCAA Tournaments. ESPN.com: Page 2 : Reel Life: 'Glory Road' Through the years, before his death in 2008, Haskins repeatedlysaid he didn't play an all-Black starting five to make a social statement. On the other side of the track sat another goal. Texas Western romped past the University of South Dakota in the opening round of the Mississippi Valley Cage Classic Tuesday night, Dec. 21, in Rockland, Ill. 1966: TWC dumps New Mexico State Aggies, 73-56.