1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball season

1956–57 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Preseason AP No. 1None
NCAA Tournament1957
Tournament datesMarch 11, 1957 –
March 23, 1957
National ChampionshipMunicipal Auditorium
Kansas City, Missouri
NCAA ChampionsNorth Carolina Tar Heels
Helms National ChampionsNorth Carolina Tar Heels
Other championsBradley Braves (NIT)
Player of the Year
(Helms)		Lennie Rosenbluth, North Carolina

The 1956–57 NCAA men's University Division basketball season began in December 1956. It progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1957 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 23, 1957, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The North Carolina Tar Heels won their first NCAA national championship with a 54–53 triple-overtime victory over the Kansas Jayhawks.

Rule changes

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  • The width of the free throw lane (also known as the "key"), increased from 6 to 12 feet (1.8 to 3.7 m).[1]
  • When teams lined up along the key for a free throw, it became mandatory that the two spaces adjacent to the end line be occupied by opponents of the player shooting the free throw. Previously, one player from each team occupied the spaces adjacent to the end line, with a player from the home team occupying a space marked "H" and a player from the visiting team occupying a space marked "V."[1]
  • Grasping the rim of the basket was deemed a form of unsportsmanlike conduct.[1]

Season headlines

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Season outlook

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Pre-season polls

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

The top 20 from the AP Poll and the UP Coaches Poll during the pre-season.[6]

Associated Press
Ranking Team
1 Kansas
2 Louisville
3 North Carolina
4 Illinois
5 SMU
6 Dayton
7 Temple
8 San Francisco
9 Saint Louis
10 Western Kentucky State
11 West Virginia
12 Oklahoma City
13 Oregon State
14 Kentucky
15 Washington
16
(tie) 		NC State
St. John's
18 Kansas State
19 Vanderbilt
20 Wyoming
UP Coaches
Ranking Team
1 Kansas
2 Louisville
3 North Carolina
4 Illinois
5 SMU
6 Dayton
7 Temple
8 San Francisco
9 Saint Louis
10 Western Kentucky State
11 West Virginia
12 Oklahoma City
13 Oregon State
14 Kentucky
15 Washington
16
(tie) 		NC State
St. John's
18 Kansas State
19 Vanderbilt
20 Wyoming

Conference membership changes

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School Former conference New conference
Drake Bulldogs Independent Missouri Valley Conference
Texas Tech Red Raiders Border Conference NCAA University Division independent

Regular season

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Conferences

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Conference winners and tournaments

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Conference Regular
season winner[7] 		Conference
player of the year 		Conference
tournament 		Tournament
venue (City) 		Tournament
winner
Atlantic Coast Conference North Carolina Lennie Rosenbluth, North Carolina[8] 1957 ACC men's basketball tournament Reynolds Coliseum
(Raleigh, North Carolina)		 North Carolina
Big Seven Conference Kansas Gary Thompson, Iowa State [9] No Tournament
Big Ten Conference Indiana & Michigan State None Selected No Tournament
Border Conference Texas Western None Selected No Tournament
Ivy League Yale None Selected No Tournament
Metropolitan New York Conference NYU None Selected No Tournament
Mid-American Conference Miami (OH) None Selected No Tournament
Missouri Valley Conference Saint Louis None Selected No Tournament
Mountain States (Skyline) Conference BYU None Selected No Tournament
Ohio Valley Conference Morehead State & Western Kentucky State None Selected No Tournament
Pacific Coast Conference California None Selected No Tournament
Southeastern Conference Kentucky None Selected No Tournament
Southern Conference West Virginia Rod Hundley, West Virginia[10] 1957 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament Richmond Arena
(Richmond, Virginia)		 West Virginia[11]
Southwest Conference SMU None Selected No Tournament
West Coast Athletic Conference San Francisco Mike Farmer, San Francisco[12] No Tournament
Western New York Little Three Conference Canisius & St. Bonaventure No Tournament
Yankee Conference Connecticut None selected No Tournament

Conference standings

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1956–57 ACC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 North Carolina† 14 – 0   1.000 32 – 0   1.000
Maryland 9 – 5   .643 16 – 10   .615
Duke 8 – 6   .571 13 – 11   .542
No. 18 Wake Forest 7 – 7   .500 19 – 9   .679
NC State 7 – 7   .500 15 – 11   .577
South Carolina 5 – 9   .357 17 – 12   .586
Virginia 3 – 11   .214 6 – 19   .240
Clemson 3 – 11   .214 7 – 17   .292
† 1957 ACC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[13]
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[14]
1956–57 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Indiana 10 – 4   .714 14 – 8   .636
No. 11 Michigan State 10 – 4   .714 16 – 10   .615
Minnesota 9 – 5   .643 14 – 8   .636
Ohio State 9 – 5   .643 14 – 8   .636
Purdue 8 – 6   .571 15 – 7   .682
Michigan 8 – 6   .571 13 – 9   .591
Illinois 7 – 7   .500 14 – 8   .636
Iowa 4 – 10   .286 8 – 14   .364
Wisconsin 3 – 11   .214 5 – 17   .227
Northwestern 2 – 12   .143 6 – 16   .273
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Border Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Texas Western 8 – 2   .800 14 – 8   .636
Hardin–Simmons 7 – 3   .700 17 – 9   .654
Arizona 5 – 5   .500 13 – 13   .500
Arizona State–Tempe 4 – 6   .400 10 – 15   .400
West Texas State 3 – 7   .300 6 – 14   .300
New Mexico A&M 3 – 7   .300 6 – 18   .250
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Ivy League men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Yale 12 – 2   .857 18 – 8   .692
Dartmouth 10 – 4   .714 18 – 7   .720
Columbia 9 – 5   .643 18 – 6   .750
Princeton 9 – 5   .643 14 – 9   .609
Harvard 7 – 7   .500 12 – 9   .571
Brown 4 – 10   .286 8 – 16   .333
Pennsylvania 3 – 11   .214 7 – 19   .269
Cornell 2 – 12   .143 4 – 19   .174
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Metropolitan New York Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
NYU 3 – 1   .750 8 – 13   .381
St. John's 4 – 2   .667 14 – 9   .609
Fordham 2 – 2   .500 16 – 10   .615
Manhattan 2 – 2   .500 5 – 9   .357
CCNY 3 – 4   .429 11 – 8   .579
St. Francis (NY) 1 – 2   .333 12 – 14   .462
Brooklyn 1 – 3   .250 11 – 7   .611
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Miami (Ohio) 11 – 1   .917 17 – 8   .680
Marshall 8 – 4   .667 15 – 9   .625
Ohio 7 – 5   .583 15 – 8   .652
Bowling Green 7 – 5   .583 14 – 9   .609
Western Michigan 4 – 8   .333 8 – 13   .381
Toledo 3 – 9   .250 5 – 19   .208
Kent State 2 – 10   .167 5 – 18   .217
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 10 Saint Louis 12 – 2   .857 19 – 9   .679
No. 19 Bradley 9 – 5   .643 22 – 7   .759
No. 20 Oklahoma A&M 8 – 6   .571 17 – 9   .654
Wichita Municipal 8 – 6   .571 15 – 11   .577
Detroit 5 – 9   .357 11 – 15   .423
Houston 5 – 9   .357 10 – 16   .385
Tulsa 5 – 9   .357 8 – 17   .320
Drake 4 – 10   .286 8 – 16   .333
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Mountain States Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
BYU 11 – 3   .786 19 – 9   .679
Utah 10 – 4   .714 19 – 8   .704
Montana 9 – 5   .643 13 – 9   .591
Denver 8 – 6   .571 11 – 12   .478
Utah State 7 – 7   .500 11 – 13   .458
Colorado A&M 6 – 8   .429 9 – 16   .360
Wyoming 4 – 10   .286 6 – 19   .240
New Mexico 1 – 13   .071 5 – 21   .192
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Morehead State 9 – 1   .900 19 – 8   .704
Western Kentucky State 9 – 1   .900 17 – 9   .654
Murray State 5 – 5   .500 11 – 13   .458
Eastern Kentucky State 4 – 6   .400 6 – 15   .286
Middle Tennessee –   – 12 – 13   .480
Tennessee Tech 1 – 9   .100 9 – 11   .450
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 13 California 14 – 2   .875 21 – 5   .808
No. 14 UCLA 13 – 3   .813 22 – 4   .846
Washington 13 – 3   .813 17 – 9   .654
USC 9 – 7   .563 16 – 12   .571
Stanford 7 – 9   .438 11 – 15   .423
Oregon State 6 – 10   .375 11 – 15   .423
Idaho 4 – 12   .250 10 – 16   .385
Washington State 4 – 12   .250 8 – 18   .308
Oregon 2 – 14   .125 4 – 21   .160
Rankings from AP Poll[15]
1956–57 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 3 Kentucky 12 – 2   .857 23 – 5   .821
No. 8 Vanderbilt 11 – 4   .733 17 – 5   .773
Georgia Tech 12 – 5   .706 18 – 8   .692
No. 15 Mississippi State 9 – 5   .643 17 – 8   .680
Tulane 9 – 5   .643 15 – 9   .625
Auburn 8 – 7   .533 13 – 8   .619
Alabama 7 – 7   .500 15 – 11   .577
Florida 6 – 8   .429 14 – 10   .583
Tennessee 5 – 9   .357 13 – 9   .591
Ole Miss 4 – 11   .267 9 – 12   .429
Georgia 4 – 12   .250 8 – 16   .333
LSU 1 – 13   .071 6 – 19   .240
Rankings from AP Poll[16]
1956–57 Southern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 7 West Virginia † 12 – 0   1.000 25 – 5   .833
Washington and Lee 10 – 3   .769 20 – 7   .741
Virginia Tech 12 – 5   .706 14 – 8   .636
Furman 7 – 5   .583 10 – 17   .370
Richmond 9 – 7   .563 15 – 11   .577
William & Mary 7 – 11   .389 9 – 18   .333
The Citadel 5 – 9   .357 11 – 14   .440
Davidson 4 – 8   .333 7 – 20   .259
George Washington 3 – 9   .250 3 – 21   .125
VMI 1 – 13   .071 4 – 22   .154
† Southern Conference Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 SMU 11 – 1   .917 22 – 4   .846
Rice 8 – 4   .667 16 – 8   .667
TCU 6 – 6   .500 14 – 10   .583
Baylor 6 – 6   .500 9 – 15   .375
Arkansas 5 – 7   .417 11 – 12   .478
Texas 3 – 9   .250 11 – 13   .458
Texas A&M 3 – 9   .250 7 – 17   .292
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
San Francisco 12 – 2   .857 21 – 7   .750
Santa Clara 10 – 4   .714 15 – 7   .682
Saint Mary's 10 – 4   .714 17 – 9   .654
Fresno State 7 – 7   .500 16 – 10   .615
San Jose State 7 – 7   .500 13 – 12   .520
Loyola (Calif.) 5 – 9   .357 11 – 16   .407
Pacific 3 – 11   .214 9 – 17   .346
Pepperdine 2 – 12   .143 7 – 18   .280
Rankings from AP Poll[17]
1956–57 Western New York Little Three Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 20 Canisius 3 – 1   .750 22 – 6   .786
St. Bonaventure 3 – 1   .750 17 – 7   .708
Niagara 0 – 4   .000 12 – 13   .480
Rankings from AP Poll
1956–57 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Connecticut 8 – 0   1.000 17 – 8   .680
Rhode Island 6 – 3   .667 11 – 11   .500
Vermont 3 – 2   .600 15 – 5   .750
Massachusetts 4 – 4   .500 13 – 11   .542
Maine 2 – 6   .250 6 – 14   .300
New Hampshire 1 – 9   .100 3 – 16   .158

University Division independents

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A total of 44 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, Seattle (22–3) had the best winning percentage (.880) and Memphis State (24–6) finished with the most wins.[18]

Although it played in the NCAA College Division as a non-major team during the season, Idaho State (25–4)[18] played as an independent and finished the season ranked No. 16 in the final AP Poll.[19]

1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 5 Seattle –   – 22 – 3   .880
Lafayette –   – 22 – 5   .815
No. 6 Louisville –   – 21 – 5   .808
No. 12 Memphis State –   – 24 – 6   .800
Syracuse –   – 18 – 7   .720
No. 17 Notre Dame –   – 20 – 8   .714
Xavier –   – 20 – 8   .714
Saint Joseph's –   – 17 – 7   .708
Duquesne –   – 16 – 7   .696
Temple –   – 20 – 9   .690
Dayton –   – 19 – 9   .679
No. 9 Oklahoma City –   – 19 – 9   .679
Bucknell –   – 16 – 8   .667
La Salle –   – 17 – 9   .654
Muhlenberg –   – 17 – 9   .654
Navy –   – 15 – 8   .652
Iona –   – 12 – 7   .632
Seton Hall –   – 17 – 10   .630
Cincinnati –   – 15 – 9   .625
Penn State –   – 15 – 10   .600
Portland –   – 18 – 12   .600
Pittsburgh –   – 16 – 11   .593
Colgate –   – 14 – 10   .583
Loyola (Ill.) –   – 14 – 10   .583
Kentucky Wesleyan –   – 16 – 12   .571
Washington University –   – 12 – 9   .571
Loyola (La.) –   – 14 – 12   .538
Boston College –   – 12 – 11   .522
Texas Tech –   – 12 – 11   .522
Georgetown –   – 11 – 11   .500
Miami (Fla.) –   – 13 – 13   .500
Saint Francis (Pa.) –   – 12 – 12   .500
Holy Cross –   – 11 – 12   .478
Lehigh –   – 8 – 10   .444
Butler –   – 11 – 14   .440
Valparaiso –   – 11 – 14   .440
Gonzaga –   – 11 – 16   .407
Marquette –   – 10 – 15   .400
Villanova –   – 10 – 15   .400
DePaul –   – 8 – 14   .364
Army –   – 7 – 13   .350
Rutgers –   – 8 – 15   .348
Florida State –   – 9 – 17   .346
Siena –   – 5 – 15   .250
Rankings from AP Poll

Informal championships

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Conference Regular
season winner 		Most Valuable Player
Philadelphia Big 5 La Salle, St. Joseph's, & Temple Guy Rodgers, Temple

La Salle, Saint Joseph's, and Temple all finished with 3–1 records in head-to-head competition among the Philadelphia Big 5.

Statistical leaders

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Points per game
Rebound Percentage
Field goal percentage
Free throw percentage
Player School PPG Player School REB% Player School FG% Player School FT%
Grady Wallace South Carolina 31.2 Elgin Baylor Seattle .235 Bailey Howell Mississippi St. 56.8 Ernie Wiggins Wake Forest 87.7
Joe Gibbon Mississippi 30.0 Boo Ellis Niagara .234 Alvin Innis St. Francis (NY) 56.1 Jackie Murdock Wake Forest 87.5
Elgin Baylor Seattle 29.7 Charlie Tyra Louisville .229 Dennis Roth Muhlenberg 54.4 Bob Seitz NC State 87.2
Wilt Chamberlain Kansas 29.6 Wilt Chamberlain Kansas .227 Bob Holtsma William & Mary 54.2 Dave Ricketts Duquesne 86.2
Chet Forte Columbia 28.9 Gene Guarilia George Washington .218 Boo Ellis Niagara 53.7 Bobby Plump Butler 86.0

Post-season tournaments

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NCAA tournament

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Main articles: 1957 NCAA University Division basketball tournament and 1957 NCAA University Division Basketball Championship Game

Frank McGuire brought the ACC its first national championship as his undefeated North Carolina Tar Heels defeated Wilt Chamberlain and the Kansas Jayhawks in what is considered one of the best games in NCAA history – a 54–53 triple–overtime thriller. Chamberlain was named tournament Most Outstanding Player.

Final Four

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Played at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri

National semifinals National championship game
      
E North Carolina 74(3OT)
ME Michigan St. 70
E North Carolina 54(3OT)
MW Kansas 53
MW Kansas 80
W San Francisco 56 National third-place game
ME Michigan State 60
W San Francisco 67

National Invitation tournament

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Main article: 1957 National Invitation Tournament

Bradley won its first NIT title, defeating Memphis State in a one-point contest. Memphis State's Win Wilfong won the MVP in a losing cause as he poured in 89 points in the Tigers' four games, including 31 in the final.[20]

NIT Semifinals and Final

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Played at Madison Square Garden in New York City

Semifinals Final
    
St. Bonaventure 78
Memphis State 80
Memphis State 83
Bradley 84
Bradley 94
Temple 66 Third place
St. Bonaventure 50
Temple 67

Award winners

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Consensus All-American teams

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Wilt Chamberlain of Kansas
Guy Rodgers of Temple
Main article: 1957 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans
Consensus First Team
Player Position Class Team
Wilt Chamberlain C Sophomore Kansas
Chet Forte G Senior Columbia
Rod Hundley G/F Senior West Virginia
Jim Krebs F/C Senior SMU
Lennie Rosenbluth F Senior North Carolina
Charlie Tyra C Senior Louisville


Consensus Second Team
Player Position Class Team
Elgin Baylor F Sophomore Seattle
Frank Howard F Junior Ohio State
Guy Rodgers G Junior Temple
Gary Thompson G Senior Iowa State
Grady Wallace F Senior South Carolina

Major player of the year awards

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Major coach of the year awards

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Other major awards

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Coaching changes

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A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.

Team Former
Coach 		Interim
Coach 		New
Coach 		Reason
Arizona State Bill Kajikawa Ned Wulk
Loyola (LA) Jim McCafferty Jim Harding
Texas A&M Ken Loeffler Bob Rogers
Virginia Evan Male Billy McCann
Washington & Lee Billy McCann Weenie Miller
West Texas A&M Gus Miller Borden Price
Xavier Ned Wulk Jim McCafferty

References

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  1. ^ a b c orangehoops.org History of NCAA Basketball Rule Changes
  2. ^ "NCAA Group Opens Talks On Money Aid To Players". Kingsport Times. August 20, 1956. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "History of the NCAA". NCAA.org. National Collegiate Athletic Association. Archived from the original on September 24, 2010. Retrieved August 14, 2010.
  4. ^ a b "Playing Rules History" (PDF). ncaa.org. NCAA. p. 12. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
  5. ^ Scott, Jon (November 9, 2010). "The truth behind the Helms Committee". Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  6. ^ *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
  7. ^ "2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
  8. ^ 2008–09 ACC Men's Basketball Media Guide – Year by Year section Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2010-08-14
  9. ^ Iowa State Athletic Site – Cyclone Tradition Archived 2010-04-08 at the Wayback Machine, Iowa State University, retrieved 2010-08-14
  10. ^ 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Honors Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2010-08-14
  11. ^ 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2010-08-14
  12. ^ 2008–09 WCC Men's Basketball Media Guide Archived 2011-05-23 at the Wayback Machine, West Coast Conference, retrieved 2010-08-14
  13. ^ sports-reference.com 1956-57 Atlantic Coast Conference Season Summary
  14. ^ "1956–57 Big Seven Conference Season Summary". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
  15. ^ "2017-18 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. p. 72. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  16. ^ sports-reference.com 1956-57 Southeastern Conference Season Summary
  17. ^ sports-reference.com 1956-57 West Coast Athletic Conference Season Summary
  18. ^ a b "1956-57 Men's Independent Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 9, 2024.
  19. ^ "1956-57 Men's College Basketball AP Polls". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 11, 2024.
  20. ^ The National Invitation Tournament. Arcadia Publishing. 2005. ISBN 0-7385-3904-X.
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