1959–60 Ohio State Buckeyes Men's Basketball Team
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The 1959–60 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team is the only basketball team to win a national title in Ohio State history. They were coached by Hall of Fame coach Fred Taylor and had three future Hall of Famers on their roster— center
Jerry Lucas Jerry Ray Lucas (born March 30, 1940) is an American former basketball player. He was a nationally awarded high school player, national college star at Ohio State University, and 1960 Olympic medal, gold medal Olympian and international player be ...
, forward
John Havlicek John Joseph Havlicek (often nicknamed Hondo) ( ; April 8, 1940 – April 25, 2019) was an American professional basketball player who spent his entire career with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A swingman, Hav ...
, and reserve forward
Bob Knight Robert Montgomery Knight (October 25, 1940 – November 1, 2023) was an American men's college basketball coach (basketball), coach. Nicknamed "the General", he won 902 NCAA Division I men's basketball games, a record at the time of his retire ...
, who entered the Hall for his storied coaching career, most notably at
Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...
.


Roster


Season summary

Coach Fred Taylor started two sophomores at the beginning of the season, Lucas and Mel Nowell, with returnees Joe Roberts, Larry Siegfried and Dick Furry. An injury to Furry got Havlicek inserted into that first game, and he started thereafter. In this era, freshman could not play varsity college basketball. The recruiting class of Lucas, Nowell, Havlicek, Knight, and Gary Gearhart were not eligible to lead the Buckeyes until 1959–60. This was their first college season of play as the game is considered today. The 1959–60 team posted the best shooting, highest-scoring team in college basketball that season at over 90 points per game. The key to the attack was the rebounding and outlet passing of Lucas. The other four athletes routinely overwhelmed opponents with fast break baskets. In 1960, this kind of offensive play was then the cutting edge of the game, and a big reason why all five starters were later drafted into the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
. There were only eight NBA teams at this time, so this was not an easy feat. Lucas shot a then-record 63% from the floor that season in an era when some college starters commonly shot 35% from the floor. More than just a great rebounder, he also had a great shooting eye from as far out as 25 feet (there was no three-point line then), and also had a hook shot that was nearly automatic. While the statistic was not well-kept then, Lucas probably led this team in assists, at 5–6 per game, he was an outstanding passer as well. He came very close to leading the country in both individual scoring and rebounding as well as shooting. After the outstanding Lucas, the Bucks may have had the best backcourt in the country in Siegfried and Nowell. Siegfried was then rated very highly as an all-around guard at both ends of the court. With Havlicek looked to contribute to the great offensive team with his hustling defense, Siegfried became active this season in this area as well and was outstanding. Nowell had one-on-one playground skills that were well-developed and effective immediately that season. With three sophomores now starting, Ohio State did have two early-season losses to
Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
and
Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
, but then clicked through the rest of the schedule. A late-season loss to Indiana came after they had clinched the Big Ten. The Buckeyes steamrolled through the NCAA tournament by an average of 19.5 points a game, dusting off defending national champion
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
75–55 in the final behind two future NBA stars, Jerry Lucas and John Havlicek, two excellent guards in Larry Siegfried and Mel Nowell and a defensive work ethic that limited opponents to .388 shooting over the course of the season. The team was also very well-coached. After Hall-of-Famer Taylor, Graf had coached at
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
and was very strong on defense. Truitt later led as a college coach at several NCAA schools.


NCAA basketball tournament

*Mideast **Ohio State 98, Western Kentucky 79 **Ohio State 86,
Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...
69 *Final Four **Ohio State 76,
NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a non-denominational all-male institutio ...
54 **Ohio State 75,
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
55


NCAA Basketball Championship

In that game, the Buckeyes shooting was off the charts, but it was also defense that won them the championship. Lucas gave Darrall Imhoff room only when he was far away from the basket; in close, he was always between Imhoff and the ball. Still, very few in the noisy capacity audience at the
Cow Palace The Cow Palace (originally the California State Livestock Pavilion) is an indoor arena and events center located in Daly City, California, situated on the city's northern border with neighboring San Francisco. Because the border passes through t ...
in
Daly City, California Daly City () is the second-most populous city in San Mateo County, California, United States. Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, and immediately south of San Francisco (sharing its northern border with almost all of San Francisco's southern ...
-most of them
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
partisans- were ready to concede defeat to the Big Ten champions. Often enough in the past, California had come from behind to win on the wings of its mistake-inducing press.
Pete Newell Peter Francis Newell (August 31, 1915 – November 17, 2008) was an American college men's basketball coach and basketball instructional coach. He coached for 15 years at the University of San Francisco, Michigan State University, and the Unive ...
brought his team back into play in the second half, with a crushing defense and within five minutes, Cal scored 10 points to Ohio State's 5. Ironically, though, it was this fanatical defense that eventually proved to be Cal's undoing. Covering on the Ohio State man with the ball, the Golden Bears were obliged to uncover a free man somewhere else. After a short period of fumbling, Ohio State began to find him. Two or three furiously quick breaks with more than five minutes to go destroyed California for good. When the flurry was over, Ohio State's shooting percentage was a remarkable 67.4 percent, and its victory margin was the largest in the 22-year history of the NCAA finals.


Rankings

*


Awards and honors

*
Jerry Lucas Jerry Ray Lucas (born March 30, 1940) is an American former basketball player. He was a nationally awarded high school player, national college star at Ohio State University, and 1960 Olympic medal, gold medal Olympian and international player be ...
, NCAA Men's MOP Award * Jerry Lucas, All-America selection * Jerry Lucas, Chicago Tribune Silver Basketball * Jerry Lucas, First-Team All Big Ten


Team players drafted in the NBA


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1959-60 Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball team
Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...
Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball seasons NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship seasons NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Final Four seasons
Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...
Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...
Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tree, ...