1947–48 Western Kentucky State Teachers Hilltoppers basketball team
American college basketball season
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The 1947–48 Western Kentucky State Teachers Hilltoppers men's basketball team represented Western Kentucky State Teachers College (now known as Western Kentucky University) during the 1947-48 NCAA basketball season. The team was led by future Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Edgar Diddle.[1] The Hilltoppers won the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship, were NCAA Annual Team Champions,[2] and received an invitation to the 1948 National Invitation Tournament, where they advanced to the semifinals.[3] During this period, the NIT was considered by many to be the premiere college basketball tournament, with the winner being recognized as the national champion.[4][5] This was one of the finest teams in Western Kentucky history, they had the best winning percentage in the NCAA,[6] all five starters were named to the All-KIAC Team (Odie Spears, John Oldham, Don “Duck” Ray, Dee Gibson, and Oran McKinney) and three players were listed on various All-American teams, Spears, Ray, and Gibson.[7]
| 1947–48 Western Kentucky State Teachers Hilltoppers basketball | |
|---|---|
| |
NCAA Annual Team Champions KAIC champion | |
NIT Tournament, Semifinals National 3rd Place | |
| Conference | Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference |
| Record | 28–2 (10–0 KIAC) |
| Head coach |
|
| Assistant coach | Ted Hornback |
| Home arena | Health & Physical Education Building |
Schedule
| Date time, TV |
Opponent | Result | Record | Site city, state | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular Season | |||||||||||
| 12/2/1947 |
Kentucky Wesleyan | W 51–31 | 1–0 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 12/5/1947* |
vs. Canterbury | W 82–34 | 2–0 |
Jefferson County Armory Louisville, KY | |||||||
| 12/10/1947* |
at Evansville | W 58–42 | 3–0 |
Evansville, IN | |||||||
| 12/13/1947 |
Morehead State | W 78–40 | 4–0 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 12/15/1947* |
at Fort Knox | W 101–68 | 5–0 |
Fort Knox, KY | |||||||
| 12/27/1947* |
vs. Utah State | W 80–49 | 6–0 |
Jefferson County Armory Louisville, KY | |||||||
| 12/29/1947* |
at Bowling Green State | L 64–75 | 6–1 |
Bowling Green, OH | |||||||
| 1/2/1948* |
Georgetown (DC) | W 58–37 | 7–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 1/5/1948* |
Evansville | W 67–44 | 8–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 1/10/1948* |
Maryville | W 77–37 | 9–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 1/14/1948 |
at Louisville | W 71–44 | 10–1 |
Jefferson County Armory Louisville, KY | |||||||
| 1/17/1948* |
at Canisius | W 74–52 | 11–1 |
Buffalo, NY | |||||||
| 1/20/1948* |
vs. Long Island | W 62–47 | 12–1 |
Madison Square Garden New York, NY | |||||||
| 1/24/1948* |
at Saint Joseph's (PA) | W 84–73 | 13–1 |
Philadelphia, PA | |||||||
| 1/29/1948* |
Arkansas State | W 76–37 | 14–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 1/31/1948 |
at Eastern Kentucky | W 49–42 | 15–1 |
Weaver Gymnasium Richmond, KY | |||||||
| 2/2/1948 |
at Kentucky Wesleyan | W 83–52 | 16–1 |
Owensboro, KY | |||||||
| 2/4/1948* |
Bowling Green State | W 66–52 | 17–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 2/7/1948 |
at Murray State | W 59–46 | 18–1 |
Lovett Auditorium Murray, KY | |||||||
| 2/10/1948* |
North Dakota | W 62–47 | 19–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 2/14/1948 |
Murray State | W 76–65 | 20–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 2/17/1948 |
Louisville | W 77–55 | 21–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 2/19/1948 |
at Morehead State | W 43–40 | 22–1 |
Button Auditorium Morehead, KY | |||||||
| 2/21/1948 |
Eastern Kentucky | W 65–51 | 23–1 |
Health & Phys Ed Building Bowling Green, KY | |||||||
| 1948 Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament | |||||||||||
| 2/26/1948 |
vs. Berea KIAC Tournament Quarterfinal |
W 87–51 | 24–1 |
Jefferson County Armory Louisville, KY | |||||||
| 2/27/1948 |
vs. Eastern Kentucky KIAC Tournament Semifinal |
W 62–52 | 25–1 |
Jefferson County Armory Louisville, KY | |||||||
| 2/28/1948 |
at Louisville KIAC Tournament Final |
W 63–62 | 26–1 |
Jefferson County Armory Louisville, KY | |||||||
| 1948 National Invitation Tournament | |||||||||||
| 3/12/1948* |
vs. La Salle NIT Quarterfinal |
W 68–61 | 27–1 |
Madison Square Garden New York, NY | |||||||
| 3/15/1948* |
vs. Saint Louis NIT Semifinal |
L 53–60 | 27–2 |
Madison Square Garden New York, NY | |||||||
| 3/17/1948* |
vs. DePaul NIT Consolation |
W 61–59 | 28–2 |
Madison Square Garden New York, NY | |||||||
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. | |||||||||||
