Clippings Serve As a Reminder of Wooden Impact
Every time I watch a college basketball game, the image of John Wooden always seems to pop into my mind.
I am not sure why. In truth, I was never much of a UCLA fan. During the Bruins’ winning years, I often rooted against the Bruins, always hoping they would fail. But, in the end, the Wooden-led teams most often prevailed and in a classy way.
Coach Wooden was always kind and respectful of opponents and everyone he met or talked with; was a keen mind and brilliant strategist on the basketball court.
At least from this writer’s perspective, Wooden, who died in 2010, was not only the greatest-ever college basketball coach but also a great man.
Nearly every day, I am reminded about Wooden from clippings that hang in a frame on my bedroom wall. Years ago when my uncle Ed Ralston passed away, he left some old clippings, including several from the San Diego Union about Wooden’s final championship, his 10thin his 12 years.
While I did not root for UCLA, I always respected the school’s accomplishments and as a sports historian of sorts, sending them to file 13 was out of the question.
Those clippings of the 1975 championship victory by UCLA over Kentucky, 92-85, include a column by the legendary Jack Murphy, another by columnist Joe Hamelin, as well as a game story and a picture of Wooden with the championship nets adorned around his neck.
Wooden's final championship was some 36 years ago, before the three-point shot (adopted by NCAA in 1986) and 35-second shot clock (adopted in 1993-94) change the pace and philosophy of the game.
I know those changes have advanced the game in the right direction; but they were not part of the Wooden era. When, he directed the Bruins, the game was grounded on fundamentals as he utilized a fast-paced offense and a zone press.
San Diego Union columnist Joe Hamelin captured the essence of Wooden: “As young as his players are, it is doubtful they’ll live to see that record (10 championships in 12 years) equaled. No coached stressed fundamentals more. His practices were the sort of thing you’d run at the pre-prep level. Layup drills. Passing drills. And shooting, mostly shooting, much of it from the wings off the backboard - the shot that has come to characterize a Wooden-coached ballplayers. Simple stuff, hammered home by repetition. Ballgames, Wooden discovered long ago, are won with simple stuff. They are won, too, with psychology,” he said.
A native of Hall, Ind., Wooden was a three-time All-American guard at Purdue, helping lead that team to a mythical national championship in 1932 as the NCAA Tournament wasn’t created until 1939 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
Later he served as a basketball coach at two high schools Dayton, Kentucky and South Bend Central for 11 years, finishing with a 218-42 record. His only losing record was a 6-11 mark in his first coaching stint at Dayton.
He left coaching to join the U.S. Armed Forces and serve in World War II. Upon his return he took over at Indiana State Teachers College (Indiana State) before agreeing to take the UCLA job after the 1947-48 season.
It is interesting to note that Wooden nearly took the head job at Minnesota but inclement weather kept him from learning about the Minnesota offer, which came after he had accepted a three-year deal at UCLA.
While he loved the Midwest, he had agreed to take the job with the Bruins and would not back out on his word. That, my friends, was another great trait of Wooden. He always stuck firm to his beliefs and values and had unsinkable integrity.
At UCLA all he did was win, rolling up 17 20-win seasons and four 30-win campaigns, en route to 620 career victories at the school (714 overall).
In his first season, he transformed a 12-13 team into one that set a school record for wins in a 22-7 season and the school's first NCAA berth. The next season, UCLA won 24 games to break the school mark yet again.
Until he arrived on campus, UCLA had not made an tournament appearance and often played second fiddle to city rival USC.
While it took the Wizard of Westwood 16 years to win his first title, it was memorable as the 1963-64, was the first of four teams to finish unbeaten under Wooden's direction.
From that point until he retired in 1975, Wooden led the Bruins to nine more titles. His 10 titles in 12 years remains unmatched as was the seven straight titles from 1967 to 1973. In 1974, UCLA finished third at the tournament or he would have had 12 straight titles.
During Wooden’s tenure run, he finished with a 47-10 record in NCAA play, including an NCAA record 38-straight unbeaten win streak in tournament play. In his final 12 seasons, he had an unreal 335-22 record.
Wooden, who was loyal to the core, never made more than $35,000 at UCLA, including his final year at the helm. Pretty modest for the first individual named to both the National Basketball Hall of Fame as a player (1960) and as a coach (1972).
The pictures in those clippings in my room show a happy Wooden with a cut down net around his neck. While the paper came out on April 1, it was not April Fools day in L.A., but a day of joyous celebration. Maybe, it should have been a little sad with the exit of one of the game's coaching icons.
Wooden and UCLA had walked out of the San Diego Sports Arena with a championship in his final game against perhaps a more talented opponent in Kentucky.
Rewinding back to that game, UCLA faced long odds against Joe B. Hall’s Kentucky club, which would have four players drafted by the NBA, including guard Kevin Grevey. This Wildcat crew, which finished 26-5, had defeated unbeaten heavily-favored Indiana and Coach Bobby Knight, 92-90, in a region final.
In the semifinals, they rolled past Syracuse, 95-79. UCLA inched past Louisville and former protégé Denny Crum, 75-74, after which Wooden announced the championship would be his final game as a coach.
While the announcement shocked the basketball nation, Wooden always lived his life under his own terms.
The 1974-75 UCLA Bruins, which finished 28-3, had to overcome a Kentucky team that received 34 points from Grevey, who would be a first-round selection (18th) in the NBA draft later that year. In fact three of Grevey’s teammates (Jimmy Dan Conner, Bob Guyette and Mike Flynn) would also be drafted by the NBA.
Hall’s team was deep while UCLA had a short bench. On that night, Hall used 12 players while Wooden went with six.
While short on the bench, Wooden had a team that loved their coach and found a way to win. Dave Meyer had 24 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks while tournament MVP Richard Washington scored 28 points. Pete Trgovich had 16 while seven-foot center Ralph Drollinger supplied 10 points and 13 rebounds and point guard Andre McCarter had 14 assists.
Perhaps the team’s most talented player, Marques Johnson, was still a young guy, and finished with six points. He would later be the third pick in the 1977 NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks.
UCLA, which hit nearly 49 percent from the field while Kentucky was at 38.4, led 43-40 at halftime and then outscored a physical Kentucky team , 49-45, in the second half. Recall that Kentucky team had a pair of 6-10 behemoths in Rick Robey, who had 13 rebounds, and Mike Phillips.
In the game Kentucky traded the lead with UCLA 15 times in the first half. In the second half, the Wildcats pulled within one point twice in the final six minutes. But, it was the Bruins and Wooden that prevailed.
Prophetically, Wooden disciple and Louisville head coach Denny Crum said after the game to Hamelin: “I doubt very seriously if anyone will come close to doing what he has done in basketball Once he found what it takes to win, he did it better than anyone’s ever done it.”
While Wooden has 10 titles, the next closest is Coach K of Duke and legendary Adolph Rupp with four.
Columnist Jack Murphy wrote: “Wooden’s teams have been in the championship round 10 times and won every game. He seems to know something about this sport."
Indeed.
Wooden's legacy will always be part of the game of basketball and life, I think.
The coach always told his players (and others) to be “true to yourself, help others, and drink deeply in a good book (such as the Bible).” He also advocated that “failing to prepare is preparing to fail; flexibility is the key to stability; and be quick, but don’t hurry.”
Good advice whatever one's vocation.
In the Beatles, song, “Let it be.” Paul McCartney sings: “When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me, Speaking Words of Wisdom…Let it Be.”
So, it was with John Wooden - he was basketball's "Mother Mary", speaking words of wisdom all his life.
While he isn't around anymore, his words and accomplishments continue to resonate.
So, "Let It Be."
I am not sure why. In truth, I was never much of a UCLA fan. During the Bruins’ winning years, I often rooted against the Bruins, always hoping they would fail. But, in the end, the Wooden-led teams most often prevailed and in a classy way.
Coach Wooden was always kind and respectful of opponents and everyone he met or talked with; was a keen mind and brilliant strategist on the basketball court.
At least from this writer’s perspective, Wooden, who died in 2010, was not only the greatest-ever college basketball coach but also a great man.
Nearly every day, I am reminded about Wooden from clippings that hang in a frame on my bedroom wall. Years ago when my uncle Ed Ralston passed away, he left some old clippings, including several from the San Diego Union about Wooden’s final championship, his 10thin his 12 years.
While I did not root for UCLA, I always respected the school’s accomplishments and as a sports historian of sorts, sending them to file 13 was out of the question.
Those clippings of the 1975 championship victory by UCLA over Kentucky, 92-85, include a column by the legendary Jack Murphy, another by columnist Joe Hamelin, as well as a game story and a picture of Wooden with the championship nets adorned around his neck.
Wooden's final championship was some 36 years ago, before the three-point shot (adopted by NCAA in 1986) and 35-second shot clock (adopted in 1993-94) change the pace and philosophy of the game.
I know those changes have advanced the game in the right direction; but they were not part of the Wooden era. When, he directed the Bruins, the game was grounded on fundamentals as he utilized a fast-paced offense and a zone press.
San Diego Union columnist Joe Hamelin captured the essence of Wooden: “As young as his players are, it is doubtful they’ll live to see that record (10 championships in 12 years) equaled. No coached stressed fundamentals more. His practices were the sort of thing you’d run at the pre-prep level. Layup drills. Passing drills. And shooting, mostly shooting, much of it from the wings off the backboard - the shot that has come to characterize a Wooden-coached ballplayers. Simple stuff, hammered home by repetition. Ballgames, Wooden discovered long ago, are won with simple stuff. They are won, too, with psychology,” he said.
A native of Hall, Ind., Wooden was a three-time All-American guard at Purdue, helping lead that team to a mythical national championship in 1932 as the NCAA Tournament wasn’t created until 1939 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
Later he served as a basketball coach at two high schools Dayton, Kentucky and South Bend Central for 11 years, finishing with a 218-42 record. His only losing record was a 6-11 mark in his first coaching stint at Dayton.
He left coaching to join the U.S. Armed Forces and serve in World War II. Upon his return he took over at Indiana State Teachers College (Indiana State) before agreeing to take the UCLA job after the 1947-48 season.
It is interesting to note that Wooden nearly took the head job at Minnesota but inclement weather kept him from learning about the Minnesota offer, which came after he had accepted a three-year deal at UCLA.
While he loved the Midwest, he had agreed to take the job with the Bruins and would not back out on his word. That, my friends, was another great trait of Wooden. He always stuck firm to his beliefs and values and had unsinkable integrity.
At UCLA all he did was win, rolling up 17 20-win seasons and four 30-win campaigns, en route to 620 career victories at the school (714 overall).
In his first season, he transformed a 12-13 team into one that set a school record for wins in a 22-7 season and the school's first NCAA berth. The next season, UCLA won 24 games to break the school mark yet again.
Until he arrived on campus, UCLA had not made an tournament appearance and often played second fiddle to city rival USC.
While it took the Wizard of Westwood 16 years to win his first title, it was memorable as the 1963-64, was the first of four teams to finish unbeaten under Wooden's direction.
From that point until he retired in 1975, Wooden led the Bruins to nine more titles. His 10 titles in 12 years remains unmatched as was the seven straight titles from 1967 to 1973. In 1974, UCLA finished third at the tournament or he would have had 12 straight titles.
During Wooden’s tenure run, he finished with a 47-10 record in NCAA play, including an NCAA record 38-straight unbeaten win streak in tournament play. In his final 12 seasons, he had an unreal 335-22 record.
Wooden, who was loyal to the core, never made more than $35,000 at UCLA, including his final year at the helm. Pretty modest for the first individual named to both the National Basketball Hall of Fame as a player (1960) and as a coach (1972).
The pictures in those clippings in my room show a happy Wooden with a cut down net around his neck. While the paper came out on April 1, it was not April Fools day in L.A., but a day of joyous celebration. Maybe, it should have been a little sad with the exit of one of the game's coaching icons.
Wooden and UCLA had walked out of the San Diego Sports Arena with a championship in his final game against perhaps a more talented opponent in Kentucky.
Rewinding back to that game, UCLA faced long odds against Joe B. Hall’s Kentucky club, which would have four players drafted by the NBA, including guard Kevin Grevey. This Wildcat crew, which finished 26-5, had defeated unbeaten heavily-favored Indiana and Coach Bobby Knight, 92-90, in a region final.
In the semifinals, they rolled past Syracuse, 95-79. UCLA inched past Louisville and former protégé Denny Crum, 75-74, after which Wooden announced the championship would be his final game as a coach.
While the announcement shocked the basketball nation, Wooden always lived his life under his own terms.
The 1974-75 UCLA Bruins, which finished 28-3, had to overcome a Kentucky team that received 34 points from Grevey, who would be a first-round selection (18th) in the NBA draft later that year. In fact three of Grevey’s teammates (Jimmy Dan Conner, Bob Guyette and Mike Flynn) would also be drafted by the NBA.
Hall’s team was deep while UCLA had a short bench. On that night, Hall used 12 players while Wooden went with six.
While short on the bench, Wooden had a team that loved their coach and found a way to win. Dave Meyer had 24 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks while tournament MVP Richard Washington scored 28 points. Pete Trgovich had 16 while seven-foot center Ralph Drollinger supplied 10 points and 13 rebounds and point guard Andre McCarter had 14 assists.
Perhaps the team’s most talented player, Marques Johnson, was still a young guy, and finished with six points. He would later be the third pick in the 1977 NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks.
UCLA, which hit nearly 49 percent from the field while Kentucky was at 38.4, led 43-40 at halftime and then outscored a physical Kentucky team , 49-45, in the second half. Recall that Kentucky team had a pair of 6-10 behemoths in Rick Robey, who had 13 rebounds, and Mike Phillips.
In the game Kentucky traded the lead with UCLA 15 times in the first half. In the second half, the Wildcats pulled within one point twice in the final six minutes. But, it was the Bruins and Wooden that prevailed.
Prophetically, Wooden disciple and Louisville head coach Denny Crum said after the game to Hamelin: “I doubt very seriously if anyone will come close to doing what he has done in basketball Once he found what it takes to win, he did it better than anyone’s ever done it.”
While Wooden has 10 titles, the next closest is Coach K of Duke and legendary Adolph Rupp with four.
Columnist Jack Murphy wrote: “Wooden’s teams have been in the championship round 10 times and won every game. He seems to know something about this sport."
Indeed.
Wooden's legacy will always be part of the game of basketball and life, I think.
The coach always told his players (and others) to be “true to yourself, help others, and drink deeply in a good book (such as the Bible).” He also advocated that “failing to prepare is preparing to fail; flexibility is the key to stability; and be quick, but don’t hurry.”
Good advice whatever one's vocation.
In the Beatles, song, “Let it be.” Paul McCartney sings: “When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me, Speaking Words of Wisdom…Let it Be.”
So, it was with John Wooden - he was basketball's "Mother Mary", speaking words of wisdom all his life.
While he isn't around anymore, his words and accomplishments continue to resonate.
So, "Let It Be."
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