The 1955–56 San Francisco Dons men's basketball team represented the

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a private Jesuit university in San Francisco, California. The university's main campus is located on a setting between the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park. The main campus is nicknamed "The Hil ...

as a member of the California Basketball Association during the 1955–56 NCAA men's basketball season. The Dons ended the season undefeated, becoming the first NCAA tournament champion to record a

perfect season A perfect season is a sports season, including any requisite playoff portion, in which a team remains and finishes undefeated and untied. The feat is extremely rare at the professional level of any team sport, and has occurred more commonly at the ...

and the first team to go wire-to-wire as No. 1 in the AP and UP polls. San Francisco finished the season with a 29–0 record (14–0 CBA) and had won 55 consecutive games.

Season summary

San Francisco won two straight NCAA titles behind a punishing defense led by

Bill Russell William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Va ...

, who turned shot blocking into an art form. He was also better scorer than history gives him credit for, averaging more than 20 points in both championship seasons. In 1956, Russell had support from guard K.C. Jones and a balanced lineup; besides Russell, five other players averaged between 7.1 and 9.8 points per game.

Roster

Schedule and results

, - !colspan=9 style=, Regular Season , - !colspan=9 style=, NCAA Tournament

Rankings

Awards and honors

– Consensus First Team All-America selection, Helms Foundation College Basketball Player of the Year (2x),

UPI College Basketball Player of the Year The UPI College Basketball Player of the Year was an annual basketball award given to the best men's basketball player in NCAA Division I competition. The award was first given following the 1954–55 season and was discontinued following the 199 ...

, California Basketball Association Player of the Year *

K. C. Jones K. C. Jones (May 25, 1932 – December 25, 2020) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is best known for his association with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA), with whom he won 11 of his 12 ...

– Consensus Second Team All-America selection *

Phil Woolpert Philipp D. Woolpert (December 15, 1915 – May 5, 1987) was an American basketball coach, best known as the head coach of the University of San Francisco Dons in the 1950s. He led them to consecutive national championships in 1955 Biography Bor ...

– UPI College Basketball Coach of the Year

Team players drafted into the NBA

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1955-56 San Francisco Dons Men's Basketball Team

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

San Francisco Dons men's basketball seasons NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship seasons NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Final Four seasons

San Francisco Dons San Francisco Dons