1956–57 Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball team

The 1956–57 Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball team was a Division I college basketball team that represented the University of Kansas. Coached by Dick Harp, the Jayhawks posted a 24–3 win–loss record, winning the then-Big Seven Conference and qualifying for the 1957 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.[3][4] Kansas won three games in the NCAA Tournament to reach the championship game, where the Jayhawks lost to North Carolina in triple overtime.[3][5]

1956–57 Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball
Big Seven Champions
NCAA Tournament, 2nd place
Conference	Big Seven Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 2
AP	No. 2[1]
1956–57 record	24–3 (11–1 Big Seven)
Head coach	Dick Harp (1st season)
Home arena	Allen Fieldhouse[1]

1956–57 Big Seven Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 2 Kansas	11	–	1		.917			24	–	3		.889
Kansas State	8	–	4		.667			15	–	8		.652
Iowa State	6	–	6		.500			16	–	7		.696
Colorado	5	–	7		.417			14	–	9		.609
Nebraska	5	–	7		.417			11	–	12		.478
Missouri	4	–	8		.333			10	–	13		.435
Oklahoma	3	–	9		.250			8	–	15		.348
Rankings from AP Poll[2]

Season summary

Dick Harp was named the head coach of the Jayhawks before the 1956–57 season. The previous coach, Phog Allen, had been forced to leave the program due to an enforced retirement age in place at the school.[6] The 1956–57 Jayhawks featured future National Basketball Association center Wilt Chamberlain, in his first season with the varsity program. Expectations for the team were high entering the season; Allen said of the Jayhawks' new player that "Anybody could win the national championship with Wilt Chamberlain and four cheerleaders."[7] Chamberlain averaged 29.6 points and 18.8 rebounds per game over the course of the season.[3] In Kansas' opening game against Northwestern, he scored 52 points and compiled 31 rebounds in an 87–69 win.[8] Following 12 consecutive victories, Iowa State defeated Kansas 39–37.[1][9] Kansas lost one other game in the regular season, on February 20, 1957, against Oklahoma by a score of 56–54.[10] The Jayhawks wrapped up the Big Seven title, and an NCAA Tournament berth, with a 64–57 win over Kansas State on March 7. They ended the regular season with a record of 20–2,[4] and a Big Seven record of 11–1.[3]

In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Kansas faced SMU and was forced into an overtime period. Behind 36 points by Chamberlain, the Jayhawks won 73–65 to advance to the regional finals. There, the Jayhawks defeated Oklahoma City 81–61 to reach the Final Four. Chamberlain posted 30 points in the contest, adding 15 rebounds. The two-time defending NCAA Tournament champions, San Francisco, faced Kansas in the Final Four's host site, Kansas City.[11] With a field goal percentage of almost 60 percent, the Jayhawks posted an 80–56 win to advance to the championship game against undefeated North Carolina, the number one-ranked team in the country.[12] The Tar Heels defeated the Jayhawks 54–53 in triple overtime; North Carolina's Joe Quigg made the tying and go-ahead free throws in the final seconds.[5]

Roster

Bob Billings Wilt Chamberlain John Cleland Eddie Dater Gene Elstun Joe Ensley

Lee Green Blaine Hollinger Harry Jett Lew Johnson Monte Johnson Ron Johnston

Larry Kelley Lyn Kindred Maurice King Ron Loneski John Parker Gary Thompson

Roster and schedule source:[13]

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site city, state
December 3*		Northwestern	W 87–69	1–0	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
December 8*		Marquette	W 78–61	2–0	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
December 14*	No. 1	at Washington	W 77–63	3–0	Bank of America Arena  Seattle, WA
December 15*	No. 1	at Washington	W 92–78	4–0	Bank of America Arena  Seattle, WA
December 18*	No. 1	at California	W 66–56	5–0	Harmon Gym  Berkeley, CA
December 22*	No. 1	Wisconsin	W 83–62	6–0	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
December 26	No. 1	vs. No. 14 Iowa State	W 58–57	7–0	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, MO
December 28	No. 1	vs. Oklahoma	W 74–56	8–0	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, MO
December 29	No. 1	vs. Colorado	W 80–54	9–0	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, MO
January 5	No. 1	Missouri Border War	W 92–79	10–0 (1–0)	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
January 7*	No. 1	at Oklahoma	W 59–51	11–0 (2–0)	Field House  Norman, OK
January 12	No. 1	Kansas State Sunflower Showdown	W 51–45	12–0 (3–0)	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
January 14	No. 1	at No. 7 Iowa State	L 37–39	12–1 (3–1)	The Armory  Ames, IA
February 2	No. 2	No. 8 Iowa State	W 75–64	13–1 (4–1)	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
February 9	No. 2	Nebraska	W 69–54	14–1 (5–1)	Nebraska Coliseum  Lincoln, NE
February 12	No. 2	Oklahoma A&M	W 62–52	15–1	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
February 16	No. 2	at Missouri Border War	W 91–58	16–1 (6–1)	Brewer Fieldhouse  Columbia, MO
February 18	No. 2	Oklahoma	W 76–56	17–1 (7–1)	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
February 21	No. 2	at Oklahoma A&M	L 54–56	17–2	Gallagher-Iba Arena  Stillwater, OK
February 23	No. 2	Nebraska	W 87–60	18–2 (8–1)	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
March 2	No. 2	at Colorado	W 68–57	19–2 (9–1)	Balch Fieldhouse  Boulder, CO
March 6	No. 2	at Kansas State Sunflower Showdown	W 64–57	20–2 (10–1)	Ahearn Field House  Manhattan, KS
March 9	No. 2	Colorado	W 78–63	21–2 (11–1)	Allen Fieldhouse  Lawrence, KS
March 15*	No. 2	vs. No. 4 SMU NCAA Regional Semifinals	W 73–65 ^OT	22–2	Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
March 16*	No. 2	vs. No. 9 Oklahoma City NCAA Regional Finals	W 81–61	23–2	Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
March 22*	No. 2	vs. San Francisco NCAA National Semifinals	W 80–56	24–2	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, MO
March 23*	No. 2	vs. No. 1 North Carolina NCAA National Finals	L 53–54 ^3OT	24–3	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, MO
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Rankings

Main article: 1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball rankings

From the beginning of the season, the Jayhawks topped the Associated Press Poll, holding their position until mid-January. After the Jayhawks' loss to Iowa State, the team fell to number two in the poll. Kansas stayed in that position for the rest of the season.[1] In the United Press Poll, the Jayhawks held the top overall ranking at the start of the season and remained there until the January 22 rankings, when they fell to second behind North Carolina. They stayed in that position in each subsequent poll during the season.[14]

References

1. "1956–57 Kansas Jayhawks Schedule and Results". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
2. sports-reference.com 1956-57 Big Seven Conference Season Summary
3. "1956–57 Kansas Jayhawks Roster and Stats". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
4. Chandler, John (March 7, 1957). "Kansas Clinches Big 7 Title, Looks To Tourney". Times Daily. Associated Press. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
5. Lopresti, Mike (March 27, 2007). "Tar Heels' 1957 victory may be best NCAA title game ever". USA Today. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
6. Fulks, Matt (2000). CBS Sports Presents Stories From the Final Four. Taylor Trade Publishing. p. 19. ISBN 9781461703037.
7. Fulks, p. 20.
8. "Wilt Scores 52 In Cage Opener". Kentucky New Era. Associated Press. December 4, 1956. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
9. "Top Rating Kiss of Death To Kansas?". The Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. January 15, 1957. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
10. "Stilt & Co. Fall To Aggies, 56–54". Sarasota Journal. Associated Press. February 21, 1957. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
11. "Jayhawkers' Status Up As Tourney Nears". The Times-News. Associated Press. March 19, 1957. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
12. Morey, Earl (March 23, 1957). "3/23/57 – K.U. in Dream Clash With Tar Heel Quint". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
13. Theisen, Chris; Bauer, Alissa, eds. (2014). "Year-by-Year Results" (PDF). Rock Chalk. University of Kansas. p. 200. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
14. ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 652–653. ISBN 0-345-51392-4.