My three favorites had a few things in common. Each had 4 players averaging in double figures, over 71% on free throws, and while they had to work out the kinks of blending new players with old, they developed into teams that could win down the stretch.
For me, # 3 was the 1974/5 team that featured Mike Evans and Chuckie Williams who lit up #20 Penn and B.C. in the Northeast regional before finally falling to #20 Syracuse in the finals. They went 12-4 at the end of the season and ended up 15th in the polls.
#2 was the 1980/81 team that belonged to Rolando Blackman and beat S.F., #19 Illinois, and #2 Oregon State in the Western regional before falling to #5 U.N.C. in the finals. That team went 13-4 down the stretch.
#1 was the 1976/7 team that had a couple of freshman from Brooklyn in Curtis Redding and NYC POY Tyrone Ladson. They won 11 in a row (including the Big 8 Tournament) before losing to eventual National Champion #7 Marquette after beating #13 Providence. In the off-season the NCAA changed the rule that stated a tip wasn't considered a shot which cost us a shot at the Marquette game.
The '87/88 team that went 11-3 down the stretch and lost to KU in the regional finals was a close 4th. The '07/08 team was fun after such a long drought but they lost 7 of their last 11.
My favorite game was in 1978 when we beat the Russians in Ahearn. When we (Redding) came up with several steals in the last couple minutes the crowd just kept getting louder and louder. I truly thought the building could have collapsed. By the confused looks on the Russian faces you could tell they had never experienced a crowd like that either. I still get goose bumps thinking about it.
For me, # 3 was the 1974/5 team that featured Mike Evans and Chuckie Williams who lit up #20 Penn and B.C. in the Northeast regional before finally falling to #20 Syracuse in the finals. They went 12-4 at the end of the season and ended up 15th in the polls.
#2 was the 1980/81 team that belonged to Rolando Blackman and beat S.F., #19 Illinois, and #2 Oregon State in the Western regional before falling to #5 U.N.C. in the finals. That team went 13-4 down the stretch.
#1 was the 1976/7 team that had a couple of freshman from Brooklyn in Curtis Redding and NYC POY Tyrone Ladson. They won 11 in a row (including the Big 8 Tournament) before losing to eventual National Champion #7 Marquette after beating #13 Providence. In the off-season the NCAA changed the rule that stated a tip wasn't considered a shot which cost us a shot at the Marquette game.
The '87/88 team that went 11-3 down the stretch and lost to KU in the regional finals was a close 4th. The '07/08 team was fun after such a long drought but they lost 7 of their last 11.
My favorite game was in 1978 when we beat the Russians in Ahearn. When we (Redding) came up with several steals in the last couple minutes the crowd just kept getting louder and louder. I truly thought the building could have collapsed. By the confused looks on the Russian faces you could tell they had never experienced a crowd like that either. I still get goose bumps thinking about it.
