The greatest programs: No. 22, Notre Dame
Posted: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 7:41 PM
Filed Under:
Greatest hoops programs
One win doesn't propel a team into the ranks of the greatest college basketball programs.
But it's a good place to start.
Notre Dame's win against undefeated and seemingly unbeatable UCLA in 1974 ranks among the game's all-time great stories. After all, the Irish not only ended the Bruins' 88-game win streak -- the best in NCAA history by a wide margin -- they were also the previous team UCLA had lost to, back in 1971. For nearly three seasons, the Bruins had been perfect behind Bill Walton & Co until a trip to South Bend.
"This is the greatest thing that could happen for collegiate basketball," said then coach Digger Phelps.
A slight overstatement, but cut Phelps a small break. Who wouldn't be excited?
Still, the Irish didn't land at No. 22 in our list of the greatest programs because of a few big wins. They sport an impressive résumé when it comes to wins (1,630, five fewer than Indiana), win percentage (.6461, better than Arizona), NCAA tournament berths (29, more than UConn), consensus first-team All-Americans, NBA players produced and NIT performance.
What they lack is a title.
Notre Dame has been to one Final Four. It has finished as NIT runner-up four times and third another (easily the most by any team without an NIT crown). And, because it played as an independent until 1995 when it joined the Big East in basketball, the Irish have never won a regular-season conference or a tournament title.
(That status may have boosted Notre Dame’s profile during the ‘70s and ‘80s when it received 15 NCAA berths, Maryland coach Lefty Driesell claimed in ’76.)
To be clear, the Irish were awarded Helms foundation national titles in 1927 and 1936, but the NCAA does not recognize those as official titles. So they don't get credit for those here.
Instead, Notre Dame's consistent performance through the years -- combined with some awfully good teams and brilliant individual players -- is responsible for their spot here.
Ten Irish players have been named consensus first-team All-Americans 19 times, tied for third most in NCAA history (same as UNC, and just behind Kentucky and UCLA). That includes three players who snagged the honor three consecutive years, all in the ‘30s – Ed Krause, Paul Nowak and John Moir.
But the most memorable players may have been two stars: Austin Carr and Adrian Dantley.
Carr was one of the game’s greatest scorers, averaging 38.1 ppg as a junior and 38.0 as a senior (missing out on a scoring title both times; once to Pistol Pete, the other to Ole Miss’ Johnny Neumann). And that was with the 6-3 guard hitting better than 50 percent of his field goal attempts and no three-point line (which Carr would’ve loved).
His March feats were even more impressive. He holds NCAA tournament records for most points in a game (61), field goals (25) and FGs attempted (44) while playing Ohio in 1970.
Carr’s most memorable game? The first of the bookend wins against UCLA when Carr torched the No. 1 Bruins for 46 points in an 89-82 win. From Curry Kirkpatrick’s article, via SI Vault:
“Carr did much of the whipping-up on his own, and did it with a touch of everything: breaking the fearsome UCLA zone press, hurling baskets in from outside, flipping them up from inside, throwing some while turning and falling out of bounds, driving for others through the trumpeted UCLA front line.”
The Bruins, of course, didn’t lose again until their trip to South Bend in 1974.
By then, Phelps was in his third season in South Bend and Notre Dame was coming off a runner-up finish at the NIT. Phelps won 393 games in 20 seasons and guided Notre Dame to its only Final Four berth, but that shining moment in 1974 may have been his best (his teams beat the No. 1 ranked school seven times during his tenure, most in NCAA history).
The second-ranked Irish were, to say the least, prepared to face UCLA, especially the fans and Dantley, Notre Dame’s rising star.
"All I've been thinking about is UCLA," he told SI. "I don't believe I've ever been more mentally ready for a team. When I was a little boy, that's all I ever thought about, UCLA."
Even 30 years later, with Notre Dame and the NBA years removed, that game remains a bright memory for Dantley, who would emerge as one of college hoops’ greatest players during his All-America seasons in 1974-75 and 1975-76 before going on to play for the U.S. Olympic team in 1976 and a lengthy NBA career.
"UCLA was definitely the best team. They were the team back in those days," he recently told the South Bend Observer.
Today, Notre Dame has been a consistent winner under coach Mike Brey, but still experiences the same NCAA disappointment. The school hasn’t has been to the Sweet 16 once 1988. With reigning Big East player of the year Luke Harangody leading the way next season, that could signal a change for future success.
Next Tuesday, No. 21 on the list of greatest college basketball programs.
No. 23: Temple.
No. 24: Oklahoma.
No. 25: N.C. State.
