USF retained its status as a basketball powerhouse into the 1970s and early 1980s, holding the distinction of being a "major" program in a "mid-major" conference (the WCC having declined somewhat in stature since the 1960s). It held the number one spot in the polls on numerous occasions. In 1977, led by All-American center Bill Cartwright, the Dons started 29–0 and were regarded as the #1 team in the nation in both major polls before dropping their last two games.
Basketball got its start at USF, then known as St. Ignatius College, in 1910. The original coach was Orno Taylor, whose subsequent achievements were lost to history. The scores had grown since 1895 but the writing was as florid as ever. The College Annual reported that "the entire team did nobly in the season just finished and the student body as a unit thanks them for their loyalty and devotion." The results weren't bad either. The St. Ignatius team won six of its seven games, losing only to Pacific (then located in San Jose) by a mere three points. Included in the victories was a sweep of Santa Clara, still a major rival, by scores of 38–31 and 22–13.[4]
Pete Newell era
After serving in the United States Navy from 1942 to 1946, Pete Newell was appointed men's basketball head coach at the University of San Francisco in 1946. During his four-year tenure at USF, Newell compiled a 70–37 record and coached the Dons to the 1949 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championship, beating Loyola (Chicago) 48-47. (At the time, the NIT was more prestigious than the NCAA Tournament.) This was the team of All-American Don Lofgran, Joe McNamee, captain John Benington, Ross Giudice, Frank Kuzara and a baby-faced guard named Rene Herrerias who often was thought to be the team's ball boy. New York's Madison Square Garden crowds were notoriously tough to please. Lofgran, Herrerias and company had them cheering in the aisles. In 1950, he accepted an appointment as head coach at Michigan State University, where he stayed until 1954. He later led the University of California to the 1959 NCAA men's basketball championship, and a year later coached the gold medal-winning U.S. team at the 1960 Summer Olympics. After his coaching career ended he ran a world-famous instructional basketball camp and served as a consultant and scout for several National Basketball Association (NBA) teams. He is often considered to be one of the most influential figures in the history of basketball.
Phil Woolpert and the Russell era
Newell left for Michigan State in 1950, and USF hired Phil Woolpert as his successor. He assumed both the posts of men's basketball coach and athletic director.
During his tenure at USF, Woolpert posted a 153–78 record, including a 60-game win streak that at the time was the longest in college basketball (surpassed later by John Wooden's 88 straight wins at UCLA.). His teams, anchored by Bill Russell, K.C. Jones, Eugene Brown and Mike Farmer, were known for their defense and held opponents below 60 points on 47 different occasions. USF won the National Championship in 1955 and 1956, and finished third in 1957. At the time the youngest college basketball coach to win a national championship, Woolpert also won Coach of the Year honors in 1955 and 1956.
Bill Russell was ignored by major college scouts, largely because he didn't even start at McClymonds High School in Oakland. He did not receive a single letter of interest until Hal DeJulio from USF watched him in a high school game. DeJulio was not impressed by Russell's meager scoring and "atrocious fundamentals",[6] but sensed that the young center had an extraordinary instinct for the game, especially in clutch situations. When DeJulio offered Russell a scholarship, the latter eagerly accepted. Sports journalist John Taylor described it as a watershed in Russell's life, because Russell realized that basketball was his one chance to escape poverty and racism; as a consequence, Russell swore to make the best of it.
The 1954–55 team that won the NCAA championship. Bill Russell (center) is holding the ball.
At USF, Russell became the new starting center. Woolpert emphasized defense and deliberate half-court play, concepts that favored defensive standout Russell.[7] Woolpert was unaffected by issues of skin color. In 1954, he became the first coach of a major college basketball squad to start three African American players: Russell, K.C. Jones and Hal Perry.[8] In his USF years, Russell used his relative lack of bulk to develop a unique style of defense: instead of purely guarding the opposing center, he used his quickness and speed to play help defense against opposing forwards and aggressively challenge their shots.[7] Combining the stature and shot-blocking skills of a center with the foot speed of a guard, Russell became the centerpiece of a USF team that soon became a force in college basketball. After USF kept Holy Cross star Tom Heinsohn scoreless in an entire half, Sports Illustrated wrote, "If [Russell] ever learns to hit the basket, they're going to have to rewrite the rules."
Nonetheless, these games were often difficult for the USF squad. Russell and his African American teammates became targets of racist jeers, particularly on the road. In one notable incident, hotels in Oklahoma City refused to admit Russell and his black teammates while they were in town for the 1954 All-College Tournament. In protest, the whole team decided to camp out in a closed college dorm, which was later called an important bonding experience for the group.[8] Decades later, Russell explained that his experiences hardened him against abuse of all kinds. "I never permitted myself to be a victim," he said.[9][10]
On the hardwood, his experiences were far more pleasant. Russell led USF to NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956, including a string of 55 consecutive victories. He became known for his strong defense and shot-blocking skills, once denying 13 shots in a game. UCLA coach John Wooden called Russell "the greatest defensive man I've ever seen".[8] While at USF, together with K. C. Jones, he also helped pioneer a play that later became known as the alley-oop.[11][12] During his college career, Russell averaged 20.7 points per game and 20.3 rebounds per game.[13]
Besides basketball, Russell represented USF in track and field events. He competed in the 440 yards (400m) race, which he could complete in 49.6 seconds.[14] He also participated in the high jump; Track & Field News ranked him as the seventh-best high jumper in the world in 1956. That year, Russell won high jump titles at the Central California AAU meet, the Pacific AAU meet, and the West Coast Relays. One of his highest jumps occurred at the West Coast Relays, where he achieved a mark of 6feet 9+1⁄4inches (2.064m).[15]
After his years at USF, the Harlem Globetrotters invited Russell to join their exhibition basketball squad. Russell, who was sensitive to any racial prejudice, was enraged by the fact that owner Abe Saperstein would only discuss the matter with Woolpert. While Saperstein spoke to Woolpert in a meeting, Globetrotters assistant coach Harry Hanna tried to entertain Russell with jokes. The USF center was livid after this snub and declined the offer: he reasoned that if Saperstein was too smart to speak with him, then he was too smart to play for Saperstein. Instead, Russell made himself eligible for the 1956 NBA draft.[16]
Woolpert stayed at USF for nine years. During his tenure, he was known for building national powers almost exclusively on Bay Area talent; the athletic department had virtually no recruiting budget and had little to offer out-of-state players.[17]
1960s and 1970s dominance
The Dons remained as a powerhouse for several years after their 1950s run. The team added four more Elite Eight appearances to its resume: 1964, 1965, 1973, and 1974.
USF retained its status as a basketball powerhouse into the 1970s and early 1980s under Bob Gaillard and Dan Belluomini, holding the distinction of being a "major" program in a "mid-major" conference (the WCC's stature declined somewhat in the 1960s). Although John Wooden and his UCLA Bruins had eclipsed San Francisco as the premier West Coast power, the Dons remained an elite program well into the early 1980s.[18] It held the number one spot in the polls on numerous occasions and six consecutive conference titles from 1977–82,[19] and all but two WCC regular-season titles from 1972 to 1982. In 1977, led by All-American center Bill Cartwright, the Dons started the season 26–0 and were regarded as the #1 team in the nation in both major polls. Sports Illustrated highlighted the 1977 team with a cover story titled "The Dandy Dons."
NCAA violations and Self Imposed Death Penalty
"All the legitimate purposes of an athletic program in an educational institution are being distorted by the athletic program as it developed.”
The Dons remained an elite program well into the early 1980s, perennially ranked in the top 20,[21] and captured six consecutive conference titles from 1977–82.[22] San Francisco's success on the court came at a price, however. The NCAA placed the Dons on probation two times in the late 1970s for booster/alumni interference with the program and recruiting improprieties by coaches.[23] Each NCAA investigation eventually led to the dismissal of a San Francisco head coach, leading San Francisco Chronicle sportswriter Glenn Dickey to call the program "totally out of control."[17] As a response to these incidents, school president Rev. John Lo Schiavo, S.J. a lifelong basketball enthusiast and all-city power forward in his youth,[23] gave an ultimatum after the second NCAA case was resolved in 1980: if there was any further incident, the program would be shut down.[24]
Despite Lo Schiavo's warning, the improprieties continued. An exclusive invite-only booster organization called the Dons Century Club committed hundreds of thousands of dollars to illegal recruiting players, paying off family members, and covering travel expenses,[21] while other alumni were also giving or "lending" players large sums of money, paying them for no-show jobs, providing lavish gifts, as well as picking up pricey restaurant and entertainment tabs.[25] Basketball players continued to receive special academic treatment; many were marginal students at best, and at least one incident occurred in which a player threatened another student, and the incident was swept under the rug by school officials.[24] It was also commonplace for "tutors" to take tests and write papers for players.[17] The situation finally came to a head in December 1981, when All-American guard Quintin Dailey was found guilty of raping a female student. During the subsequent investigation, Dailey admitted taking a no-show job for $1,000 a month at a business owned by a prominent USF booster,[26] and that another booster also paid Dailey $5,000 since 1980.
True to his word, on July 29, 1982, Lo Schiavo announced that he was shutting down the basketball program—the first time a Division I university had voluntarily shut down a major sport under such circumstances.[27][28] Lo Schiavo said that the Dons program "was once a source of inspiration, respect and pride for this university and city." By contrast, the recent scandals had resulted in USF being perceived as "being hypocritical or naïve or inept or duplicitous, or perhaps some combination of all those." Under the circumstances, Lo Schiavo felt that the only responsible course was to shutter the program. In a prepared statement, Lo Schiavo later said, "We hope that it one day may be possible to restore a men's intercollegiate basketball team. That possibility will depend upon whether those responsible for this university are convinced that the factors that destroyed the program are not going to beset it again."[25]
His decision made international headlines, to the degree that while visiting San Francisco, Queen Elizabeth II pulled Lo Schiavo aside to ask when he would reinstate the basketball program.[29] Drastic as it was, the move was widely applauded by several members of the coaching fraternity.[24]
San Francisco reinstated men's basketball in 1985, but without the overzealous Dons Century Club. The successor to the Dons Century Club is the Green and Gold Club, a group of boosters under the direct control of the athletic department.[21]
Reinstatement of Dons basketball
Lo Schiavo resurrected the program in 1985 with former star Jim Brovelli as head coach,[30] who quickly returned the program to respectability. He was not able to reach the postseason, however, and resigned in 1995. Three years later USF went to the 1998 NCAA tournament under Phil Mathews and they had a 2005 NIT berth under former coach Jessie Evans.
The program regressed the next few years, and Jessie Evans was granted a request for a 'leave of absence' on December 27, 2007. Legendary basketball coach Eddie Sutton took over on an interim basis, needing two wins for a personal milestone of 800 career coaching victories. At the time, Bob Knight was the only other Division I men's coach to have accomplished the feat. After months of speculation, Evans was finally officially fired by USF on March 20, 2008. A national coaching search was launched that included a four-man committee of Chuck Smith, vice chair of the USF Board of Trustees and former president and CEO of AT&T West; former player and coach Jim Brovelli; Walt Gmelch, dean of the USF School of Education; and Mario Prietto, rector of the USF Jesuit Community and a member of the USF Board of Trustees.
Rex Walters was named as the Dons' head coach on April 14, 2008. In 2010, the USF Dons won over 20 games and went to the quarterfinals of the postseason CIT tournament. Walters was relieved of his duties on March 9, 2016, and replaced by Kyle Smith.[31]
At the conclusion of the 2018–2019 season, Kyle Smith was hired by Washington State University after three consecutive 20-win seasons. Smith's Associate Head Coach Todd Golden was promoted to Head Men's Basketball Coach on March 27, 2019.[32] Under Golden, the 2021-22 Dons returned to the NCAA tournament for the first time in 24 years. Golden departed after the season to coach Florida and was replaced by Chris Gerlufsen.
The Dons have never approached the prominence they enjoyed from the 1940s to the 1980s, in part because Lo Schiavo significantly increased admissions standards for all student-athletes. In a 2011 interview, Lo Schiavo reiterated that he never questioned his decision, noting that all but one trustee voted in favor of shuttering the program in 1982 "because we had to make the point that we mean what we say and we intended to be good citizens."[33]
Postseason results
NCAA tournament results
The Dons have appeared in 17 NCAA Tournaments. Their combined record is 21–15. They are two time National Champions (1955, 1956).
↑ "A conversation with Bill Russell". usatoday.com. 2001-06-06. Retrieved 2007-02-09. Note: This source appears to have a typo it was corrected in this article: It reads "I did now want..." in the source, it was changed to the obviously intended form, "I did not want..."
↑ Johnson, James W. (2009). The Dandy Dons: Bill Russell, K. C. Jones, Phil Woolpert, and One of College Basketball's Greatest and Most Innovative Teams. Bison Books. p.85. ISBN9780803224445.
Peter Francis Newell was an American college men's basketball coach and basketball instructional coach. He coached for 15 years at the University of San Francisco, Michigan State University, and the University of California, Berkeley, compiling an overall record of 234 wins and 123 losses.
Philipp D. Woolpert was an American basketball coach, best known as the head coach of the University of San Francisco Dons in the 1950s. He led them to consecutive national championships in 1955 and 1956.
James Mario Brovelli is the former men's basketball head coach of the University of San Francisco (USF) Dons and hall of fame player.
Quintin "Q" Dailey was an American professional basketball player. A 6'3" guard who played collegiately at the University of San Francisco, he later went on to a career in the NBA, playing for the Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Clippers, and Seattle SuperSonics over the course of his 10-year tenure in the league.
The death penalty is the popular term for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)'s power to ban a school from competing in a sport for at least one year. It is colloquially termed the "death penalty" as a nod to capital punishment, being the harshest penalty that an NCAA member school can receive.
The San Francisco Dons is the nickname of the athletic teams at the University of San Francisco (USF). The Dons compete in NCAA Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as members of the West Coast Conference (WCC), of which USF is a charter member.
Phillip Louis Mathews is an American basketball coach who is currently head men's basketball coach at Riverside City College. A native of Riverside, California, Mathews played college basketball at Riverside City and UC Irvine.
Black people have been participating in American college basketball for over a century.
The 1955–56 San Francisco Dons men's basketball team represented the University of San Francisco as a member of the California Basketball Association during the 1955–56 NCAA men's basketball season. The Dons ended the season undefeated, becoming the first NCAA tournament champion to record a perfect season and the first team to go wire-to-wire as No. 1 in the AP and UP polls. San Francisco finished the season with a 29–0 record and had won 55 consecutive games.
The 1981–82 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 27, 1981, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1982 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship game on March 29, 1982, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The North Carolina Tar Heels won their second NCAA national championship with a 63–62 victory over the Georgetown Hoyas.
The South Florida Bulls men's basketball team represents the University of South Florida in NCAA Division I basketball competition, where they are currently a member of the American Athletic Conference. They are currently led by head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, who was hired after Brian Gregory was fired following the 2022–23 season. The Bulls play their home games at the 10,500 seat Yuengling Center on USF's campus in Tampa, Florida. USF has won two conference championships and has reached the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament 3 times in their history, with their best finish coming in 2012 when they made the round of 32.
The Loyola Marymount Lions men's basketball team represents Loyola Marymount University in men’s college basketball. The team competes in the West Coast Conference. The team has played its home game at Gersten Pavilion since 1981.
The Sobrato Center in San Francisco, California is an athletic venue on the University of San Francisco (USF) campus. It contains War Memorial Gymnasium and serves as home for the San Francisco men's and women's basketball teams as well as the women's volleyball team. It also houses athletic department offices and training facilities for the university's other athletic teams. It is currently the oldest basketball venue in the West Coast Conference. It is popularly known as "The Hilltop" because of USF's position on the summit of Lone Mountain. On some occasions, St. Ignatius College Preparatory hosts their basketball games here as well.
The 1955–56 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1955, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1956 NCAA basketball tournament championship game on March 24, 1956, at McGaw Hall in Evanston, Illinois. The San Francisco Dons won their second NCAA national championship with an 83–71 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes.
Harold L. "Hal" Perry was an American basketball player and attorney famous for being a starter on the University of San Francisco back to back NCAA championship teams of 1955 and 1956.
Eugene Austin Brown was an American basketball player. He was an All-American at the University of San Francisco and was a significant player on their undefeated 1956 NCAA championship team.
John Lo Schiavo S.J. was an American Jesuit and academic who was the 25th president of the University of San Francisco from 1977 until 1991 and later a USF chancellor.
Ross Giudice was an American college basketball coach at the University of San Francisco (USF). He is best remembered as the assistant coach for the Dons' 1955 and 1956 NCAA championship teams.
Todd Raymond Golden is an American former basketball player and current head coach of the Florida Gators men's basketball team.
The 1954–55 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1954, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1955 NCAA basketball tournament championship game on March 19, 1955, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The San Francisco Dons won their first NCAA national championship with a 77–63 victory over the La Salle Explorers.
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