W. Victor Rouse (March 15, 1943May 31, 1999) was an American college

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player. He was an All-American at

Loyola University of Chicago Loyola University Chicago (Loyola or LUC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1870 by the Society of Jesus, Loyola is one of the largest Catholic universities in the United States. Its namesake is Saint Ign ...

and is best remembered for hitting the game-winning shot as time expired in the overtime period of the 1963 NCAA championship game. 1963 Loyola v Miss State - Vic Rouse shoots

1963 Loyola v Miss State - Vic Rouse shoots

Rouse, a 6'7" forward from Pearl High School in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

, played college basketball for Loyola for coach

George Ireland George Ireland (June 15, 1913 – September 14, 2001) was an American basketball coach who led the Loyola Ramblers to the 1963 NCAA championship. Background Born in Madison, Wisconsin, Ireland was an All-American basketball player at the Univer ...

. He, along with high school teammate Les Hunter, joined the Ramblers and helped them become the first NCAA champion to feature four African-American starters in his junior year. Rouse anchored the middle, leading the team in rebounding as a sophomore (11.3 per game) and junior (12.1 per game). In the championship season of 1962–63, Rouse averaged 13.5 points. Rouse is best known for following Hunter's miss as time expired to defeat

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

and spoil that school's bid to win a third straight NCAA title. The shot gave Loyola its first, and so far only, NCAA basketball championship. Rouse and the four other Loyola starters played the entire championship game, without substitution.2010-11 Loyola Ramblers men's basketball media guide
accessed November 7, 2011 In his senior year, Loyola returned four starters and had eyes on repeating as champions. Rouse upped his averages to 15.6 points and 12.5 rebounds per game. However, he dislocated his shoulder early in the season, hampering his effectiveness. Rouse was still named an honorable mention All-American at the close of the season. Rouse scored 1,169 points and grabbed 982 rebounds in his Loyola career. His #40 jersey was retired in 1993. Following the close of his college career, Rouse was drafted by the

Cincinnati Royals The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

in the

1964 NBA draft The 1964 NBA draft was the 18th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 4, 1964, before the 1964–65 season. In this draft, nine NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players ...

(seventh round, 60th pick); however, he never played in the league. Instead, Rouse earned three master's degrees and a PhD. During his postgraduate academic study, he served as a student member of the

Southern Illinois University Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois. Board of trustees The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of Tr ...

Board of Trustees from 1971 to 1974. He owned his own educational consulting firm and taught courses at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

. On July 11, 2013, to observe the 50th anniversary of the national championship, President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

welcomed surviving Loyola players Hunter,

Jerry Harkness Jerald B. Harkness (May 7, 1940 – August 24, 2021) was an American professional basketball player. He played for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association (ABA ...

, John Egan and Ron Miller to the

Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the President of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is located in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval-shaped room ...

to honor the team. The entire squad was then inducted in November of that year by the

College Basketball Hall of Fame The National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, located in Kansas City, Missouri, is a hall of fame and museum dedicated to men's college basketball. The museum is an integral portion of the College Basketball Experience created by the National ...

. He died on May 31, 1999, in

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

at age 56.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rouse, Vic 1943 births 1999 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball players from Nashville, Tennessee Cincinnati Royals draft picks Loyola Ramblers men's basketball players Power forwards (basketball) University of Maryland, College Park faculty