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1970–71 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team

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1970–71 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball
NCAA Mideast Region Champion (Vacated)
Ohio Valley Conference Champion
NCAA Tournament, Final Four Third Place (Vacated)
ConferenceOhio Valley Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 7
APNo. 7
Record24–6 (Official record 20–5) (12–2 OVC)
Head coach
Assistant coachJim Richards
Home arenaE. A. Diddle Arena
Seasons
1970–71 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 7 Western Kentucky 12 2   .857 24 6   .800
Murray State 10 4   .714 19 5   .792
Eastern Kentucky 10 4   .714 16 8   .667
East Tennessee State 8 6   .571 12 12   .500
Austin Peay State 5 9   .357 10 14   .417
Morehead State 4 10   .286 8 17   .320
Tennessee Tech 4 10   .286 7 17   .292
Middle Tennessee 3 11   .214 11 15   .423
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1970–71 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers men's basketball team represented Western Kentucky University during the 1970–71 NCAA University Division men's basketball season. The Hilltoppers were led by Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year John Oldham and consensus All-American player Jim McDaniels.[1] WKU won the OVC season championship, as well as the conference's automatic bid to the 1971 NCAA University Division basketball tournament. No conference tournament was held, so the conference bid was awarded to the season champion.[2] The Hilltoppers advanced to the NCAA Final Four, though the tournament games were later vacated by the NCAA due to McDaniels having signed a contract with an agent.[3]

For the second consecutive year, McDaniels was OVC Player of the Year and set the school record for most points scored in season and career, and highest scoring average. Jerry Dunn and Jim Rose joined McDaniels on the All-OVC Team.[4] This team was one of the most talented in school history with several players being drafted by the NBA and ABA including McDaniels, Dunn, Rose, Clarence Glover, and Jerome Perry.[5][6]

Cultural Relevance

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This year's Western Kentucky team was the first non-historically black Kentucky college to start five African-American players: McDaniels, Rose, Glover, Dunn, and Rex Bailey.[7] Coach Oldham was pressured, and even threatened, not to start all five together, but resisted the pressure saying "they are my best five players".[8]

NCAA Sanctions

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WKU's NCAA tournament games were later vacated by the NCAA after it was discovered that McDaniels had signed with a professional agent prior to the tournament. "I admit I made a mistake," McDaniels told the Courier-Journal in an interview. "There was a lot of pressure. I got around some people who did not have my best interests at heart."[9] The sanctions reduced their officially recognized record to 20–5.

Schedule

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[10]

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular Season
12/3/1970*
No. 9 ODU W 96–82  1–0
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
12/5/1970*
No. 9 UC Davis W 88–65  2–0
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
12/10/1970*
No. 13 VCU W 96–71  3–0
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
12/12/1970*
No. 13 Duquesne W 69–62  4–0
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
12/19/1970*
No. 11 at Butler W 100–90  5–0
Hinkle Fieldhouse 
Indianapolis, IN
12/23/1970*
No. 10 vs. No. 4 Jacksonville W 97–84  6–0
Freedom Hall 
Louisville, KY
12/26/1970*
No. 10 vs. Saint Peter's
ECAC Holiday Festival
W 108–97  7–0
Madison Square Garden 
New York, NY
12/28/1970*
No. 10 at No. 19 St. John's
ECAC Holiday Festival
W 86–67  8–0
Madison Square Garden 
New York, NY
12/30/1970*
No. 5 vs. No. 2 South Carolina
ECAC Holiday Festival
L 84–86  8–1
Madion Square Garden 
New York, NY
1/2/1971
No. 5 at East Tennessee W 86–83  9–1 (1-0)
Memorial Center 
Johnson City, TN
1/4/1971
No. 5 at Tennessee Tech W 95–82  10–1 (2-0)
Memorial Gymnasium 
Cookeville, TN
1/9/1971
No. 6 Eastern Kentucky W 83–64  11–1 (3-0)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
1/11/1971
No. 6 Morehead State W 85–63  12–1 (4-0)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
1/16/1971*
No. 5 at La Salle L 76–91  12–2
Palestra 
Philadelphia, PA
1/23/1971
No. 7 at Murray State L 71–73  12–3 (4-1)
Racer Arena 
Murray, KY
1/25/1971
No. 7 Austin Peay W 117–72  13–3 (5-1)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
1/30/1971
No. 7 Middle Tennessee W 80–66  14–3 (6-1)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
2/2/1971
No. 12 at Middle Tennessee W 87–73  15–3 (7-1)
Murphy Center 
Murfreesboro, TN
2/8/1971*
No. 12 at Dayton L 60–63  15–4
UD Arena 
Dayton, OH
2/13/1971
No. 7 Tennessee Tech W 67–57  16–4 (8-1)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
2/15/1971
No. 7 East Tennessee W 83–65  17–4 (9-1)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
2/20/1971
No. 9 at Morehead State W 89–70  18–4 (10-1)
Wetherby Gymnasium 
Morehead, KY
2/22/1971
No. 9 at Eastern Kentucky W 94–93 OT 19–4 (11-1)
Alumni Coliseum 
Richmond, KY
2/27/1971
No. 9 Murray State
Record attendance 14,277
W 73–59  20–4 (12-1)
E. A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, KY
3/1/1971
No. 9 at Austin Peay L 94–96  20–5 (12-2)
Memorial Health Gymnasium 
Clarksville, TN
1971 NCAA University Division basketball tournament
3/13/1971*
No. 7 vs. No. 9 Jacksonville
Mideast Region First Round
W 74–72  21–5
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, IN
3/18/1971*
No. 7 vs. No. 8 Kentucky
Sweet Sixteen
W 107–83  22–5
Georgia Coliseum 
Athens, GA
3/20/1971*
No. 7 vs. No. 10 Ohio State
Mideast Regional Final
W 81–78 OT 23–5
Georgia Coliseum 
Athens, GA
3/25/1971*
No. 7 vs. No. 19 Villanova
Final Four
L 89–92 2OT 23–6
Astrodome 
Houston, TX
3/25/1971*
No. 7 vs. No. 4 Kansas
Final Four Consolation
W 77–75  24–6
Astrodome 
Houston, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll
NCAA Tournament Games Vacated. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

References

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  1. ^ Ruby, Earl (1979). Red Towel Territory : A History of Athletics at Western Kentucky University. American National Bank and Trust Co.
  2. ^ "(PDF) - Ohio Valley Conference" (PDF). ovcsports.com. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  3. ^ Harrison, Lowell (1987). Western Kentucky University. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0813116204.
  4. ^ "2019-20 Hilltopper Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Western Kentucky University Athletics. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  5. ^ 1971 NBA Draft, Basketball Reference, retrieved 7 May 2020
  6. ^ Bradley, Robert D. (2013). The Basketball Draft Fact Book: A History of Professional Basketball's College Drafts. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810890695.
  7. ^ Thamel, Pete (March 27, 2008). "Recalling Forward Thinking at Western Kentucky". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  8. ^ Pratt, Elliott. "Standing Alone: WKU's 1971 Final Four team remains in a league of its own". College Heights Herald. Archived from the original on May 21, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  9. ^ "Looking Back on the Life of Jim McDaniels". www.allen.kyschools.us. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  10. ^ 1970-71 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Schedule and Results, Sports Reference, retrieved 6 May 2020