Illinois’ remarkable rally from 15 points behind to beat Arizona on Saturday was not the first time a school from this state had made up a 15-point deficit and won an NCAA tournament game in overtime.
On March 23, 1963, at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Loyola’s five iron men followed the script in beating defending champion Cincinnati 60-58 in OT in the NCAA title game.
Vic Rouse’s rebound basket at the buzzer earned coach George Ireland’s Ramblers the only NCAA Division I men’s basketball title won by an school in Illinois.
Comebacks: A study in styles
The 2005 Fighting Illini packed their furious rally into the final four minutes of regulation with sustained pressure defense, clutch shooting and contributions from players off the bench.
Loyola needed the final 13:56 of regulation to make up a 45-30 deficit. This was before the shot clock or the three-point basket. It also took place against a veteran team that had won the previous two NCAA titles and excelled at “stall ball.”
Loyola, which led the nation in 1963 with a 92-point average, had to endure a slow tempo forced by the nation’s stingiest defensive team. But the hare beat the tortoise.
Basketball was a different game in 1963. Loyola’s five starters–Jerry Harkness, Les Hunter Ron Miller, Jack Egan and Rouse–played the entire 45 minutes without a substitute. Cincinnati used only one sub.
Race relations: A breakthrough
Egan was Loyola’s only Chicagoan and the only white player. Ireland ignored the widespread “unwritten rule” many coaches followed regarding how many blacks they could play in that racially sensitive era: “two at home, three on the road and four when you’re behind.”
“For many years, that victory over Cincinnati meant the most to me,” Harkness said. “A lot of great players have not played on an NCAA championship team: Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West.”
Through the years, however, Harkness’ values shifted. He realized that Loyola’s 61-51 second-round victory over an all-white Mississippi State team was “even more exciting” than winning the NCAA title.
Coach Babe McCarthy’s team literally had to sneak away from its own state police, who were trying the prevent the team from breaking Mississippi segregation laws by playing in a game involving black players.
“We made history in that game, players from both teams,” Harkness recalled. “We were pioneers. We played a hard-fought, clean game. We helped change some attitudes about race.”
Easy road to final
Loyola opened the 1963 NCAA tournament by routing Tennessee Tech 111-42 at McGaw Hall in Evanston. Then it was on to East Lansing, Mich. After beating Mississippi State, Loyola stopped Illinois 79-64 for its berth in the Final Four. The Ramblers bombed Duke 94-75 in the semis to set up the title game against Cincinnati.
The Bearcats’ respected defense clicked immediately. Loyola missed 13 of its first 14 shots. Harkness, an All-American, did not score until the second-half rally began. Ron Bonham, Tom Thacker, Tony Yates and Chicagoan George Wilson helped build Cincinnati’s 45-30 lead.
“Did I think we were beaten? Absolutely,” Harkness acknowledged. “I thought of my family and friends watching on TV in New York. I was embarrassed. I thought, `If we can just make it close . . . ‘”
Harkness finally hit his first two baskets of the night to ignite the rally. Loyola’s press began to force turnovers. As the rally continued, fans from semifinalists Duke and Oregon State began pulling for the Ramblers.
“The Duke band,” Ireland marveled for years after the game, “began playing our Loyola song.”
How they won it
Harkness’ 12-foot basket tied it 54-54 with four seconds left, forcing overtime. Loyola took a 56-54 lead in OT, but Cincinnati tied it. The Ramblers went ahead again before the Bearcats tied it 58-58. Then the 5-foot-10-inch Egan won a jump ball from the taller Larry Shingleton. Loyola had the ball for the final shot.
Harkness passed to Hunter, who shot and missed. But Rouse was there for the putback to win the championship.
“I knew I was going to get the ball,” Rouse said. “I didn’t tip it in. I grabbed it tight, jumped and laid it in. I never thought we’d lose. We came too far to lose it.”
Financial footnote
For winning five games in the 1963 tournament, Loyola received a check for $25,000. After expenses, Ireland had enough left to hire his first full-time assistant coach and athletic department secretary.
In perspective: 1963
– President John F. Kennedy is assassinated Nov. 22. Two days later, his accused killer, Lee Harvey Oswald, is shot to death by Jack Ruby.
– Dr. Michael E. DeBakey implants the first artificial heart in a human being.
– WABC-AM in New York rates “I Will Follow Him” by Little Peggy March the top song of 1963.
– Skateboarding becomes a national craze.
– John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the Earth.
