Historic NCAA Rematches

There are some historic rematches in the Regional semi finals of the 2012 NCAA Basketball Tournament. Cincinnati and Ohio State, who are meeting in the East Region semi finals, met in a game for the NCAA Title 50 years ago. Cincinnati won that game as well as the 1961 Final when Ohio State came into the game as defending national champions.

Cincinnati was denied a 3rd straight title when Loyola of Chicago upset them in the 1963 Final in a great game. Vic Rouse’s offensive rebound basket was decisive. Those Bearcats of Cincinnati came the closest by far of any team to win 3 straight titles, other than, of course, the famed John Wooden coached the UCLA Bruins, who won seven straight titles from 1967-1973.

Oddly, Cincinnati began that great 3 year run, that produced two titles and a second place finish, after their greatest player Oscar Robertson graduated and began his career with the Cincinnati Royals–who now are the Sacramento Kings. That franchise started in Rochester as the Royals where they won their only Title in 1950-1951. Subsequent to playing in Rochester the team moved to Cincinnati and then became the Kansas City Omaha Kings. The Rochester Royals, by the way, kept the Minneapolis Lakers from winning a third straight NBA Title and the 1950-1951 season was the only season in which Minneapolis did not win the crown from (1949-1954).

Another historic rematch is also a clash between two great basketball schools from two great basketball states. Of course that is the Kentucky vs Indiana South Regional semi final matchup. Kentucky is the favorite to win its 8th NCAA Title and they are second only to UCLA which has the most titles with eleven.   Meanwhile, Indiana has won 5 Titles which ties them with North Carolina for third place, the Tar Heels being the current 2nd choice in this tournament. Kentucky beat an undefeated Indiana team in the 1975 Regional Finals in a game whose TV announcers were Marv Albert and Jerry Lucas. Albert, a magnificent basketball broadcaster, is working his second straight NCAA tournament after a 30 year absence from the event. Lucas was the star of the Ohio State NCAA winner in 1960 and the 2nd place teams of 1961 and 1962. His  teammates for all or part of that period of excellence included John Havlicek, Larry Seigfried and one Bob Knight, the latter best known as a volatile basketball coach. Knight was the Indiana coach whose undefeated team lost that 1975 Regional Final to Kentucky.

Oscar Robertson