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Post by hchoops on Mar 14, 2022 18:58:53 GMT -5
The NBA is going all out for its 75th Will the NCAA celebrate the 75th anniversary of HC’s1947 title ? Is the Cooz the only survivor ?
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Post by timholycross on Mar 14, 2022 19:36:26 GMT -5
75ths are tough overall because of the survivor factor (there aren't many; I guess maybe CBS might interview Cousy, that's about it; he's not traveling to the Final Four, I'm pretty sure of that unless they take him in a private jet). Did we do anything for our Orange Bowl team (would have been in the spring or fall of 2021 due to the pandemic)? I know BC didn't commemorate the 75th of their Sugar Bowl team.
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Post by hchoops on Mar 14, 2022 19:45:16 GMT -5
We should have honored that team with the Cooz speaking possibly through Zoom as the Celtics did.
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Post by Tom on Mar 15, 2022 7:56:06 GMT -5
75ths are tough overall because of the survivor factor (there aren't many; I guess maybe CBS might interview Cousy, that's about it; he's not traveling to the Final Four, I'm pretty sure of that unless they take him in a private jet). Did we do anything for our Orange Bowl team (would have been in the spring or fall of 2021 due to the pandemic)? I know BC didn't commemorate the 75th of their Sugar Bowl team. If Cousy couldn't make it to the Garden to celebrate Celtics of the 50's, I don't think there's much chance of him going to the Final Four even in a private Jet
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Post by HCFC45 on Mar 25, 2022 11:59:57 GMT -5
From today's Telegram....
'Cinderella kids': Holy Cross marks 75th anniversary of NCAA basketball tournament title
Jennifer Toland
Telegram & Gazette
The Holy Cross men's basketball team celebrates after beating Oklahoma to win the 1947 NCAA men's basketball title at Madison Square Garden.
In May 2008, the Holy Cross Leadership Council of New York honored Bob Cousy and the upcoming unveiling of his bronze statue in front of the Hart Center, where Cousy delivered an appreciative speech to those in attendance, including fellow Holy Cross alumnus Dave Anderson, the late Pulitzer Prize-winning sportswriter.
“The theme of my remarks,” Cousy recalled during an interview Wednesday, “was it’s surreal to be alive and have a statue, but what would please me most is if when people walk by it, they are reminded of Holy Cross’ wonderful history.”
Cousy went on to proudly reference the Holy Cross football team’s epic football clash with Miami in the 1946 Orange Bowl, HC’s 1952 College World Series baseball title, 1954 National Invitation Tournament men's basketball championship, and, of course, the Crusaders’ 1947 NCAA men's basketball crown.
“I remember pointing down to Dave from the podium,” Cousy said of his dear friend, “and saying, ‘David, before you ride off into the sunset, write one more story that will win you another Pulitzer on the unique history of such a small school accomplishing what Holy Cross had accomplished.’ ”
Friday marks the 75th anniversary of Holy Cross’ shocking 58-47 victory over Oklahoma in the NCAA Tournament final. The “Cinderella kids of college basketball,” as the late, great Paul N. Johnson, former Telegram sports editor and Holy Cross beat writer, called them in his game account, carried tournament MVP George Kaftan off the Madison Square Garden court on their shoulders, and coach Alvin “Doggie” Julian, surrounded by his players, later beamed when he held the championship trophy.
Holy Cross was the first New England college to win the NCAA Tournament.
“It is a highlight,” said the 93-year-old Cousy, the last surviving member of the ’47 team.
In June, Worcester paid tribute to Cousy, its most famous resident, with a bronze statue outside the DCU Center.
Visible from near the statue on the DCU’s Arena Plaza is Union Station, where, in late March 1947, a crowd of about 10,000 gathered to welcome home their Holy Cross heroes, including Cousy, who was a freshman on the title team.
“We were saying, ‘What did we do?' ” Cousy said with a laugh.
In 1947, there were just eight teams in the NCAA Tournament field. That number, of course, has expanded to 68. The Crusaders defeated Navy and CCNY, before taking down Oklahoma behind Kaftan’s team-high 18 points.
“The NCAA Tournament didn’t have quite the impact it does today,” Cousy said. “Now, it’s a national happening, but it was still quite an accomplishment.”
Holy Cross had discontinued basketball for several years, first from 1909 to20, and again in the 1930s.
In 1945, Holy Cross hired Julian, the football team’s backfield coach, to also coach the basketball team part time. The Crusaders practiced in a barn and played their “home” games at Boston Garden and the old South High in Worcester.
The 1946-47 Holy Cross team was a mix of World War II veterans, like Worcester’s Andy Laska, Cousy’s backcourt mate, and kids right out of high school, like Cousy (“a snot-nosed 18-year-old,” as Cousy described himself).
Cousy, like teammates Kaftan, Dermie O’Connell, Frank Oftring, Ken Haggerty, Joe Mullaney and Bob McMullan, was a high school star in New York. Cousy told his famous recruiting story.
Before the season, Haggerty, who co-captained the 1946-47 team with Mullaney, told Julian about a “hot shot” at his alma mater, Andrew Jackson High School in New York, that he might be interested in adding to the roster.
Soon enough, Cousy, the aforementioned “hot shot,” received a letter in the mail from Julian.
“It said, ‘If you want a scholarship, fill out this form,’ ” Cousy said. “That was the extent of it.”
Bob Curran of Worcester, Charlie Bollinger, Jim Riley and Charlie Graver rounded out the 1946-47 roster and the Crusaders won their first four games. After a three-game losing streak, they finished the year with 23 straight victories.
“So many things had to fall into place,” Cousy said. “The school had given up the sport, they asked a football coach to be a basketball coach, and a dozen of us wandered into Holy Cross, one way or another, and we win the freakin’ NCAA championship. That’s what has always been amazing to me and when I think about it, those are the things I think about.”
After Holy Cross, Cousy won six NBA championships with the Boston Celtics. He was inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1971.
Cousy regularly visited Laska until his death in 2019. Kaftan died in 2018.
On Monday, Cousy was on a conference call with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame selection committee to discuss the five finalists for the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award. The annual honor is in its 19th year.
Cousy said he hasn’t watched much of this year’s NCAA Tournament, but last weekend, he did check out Villanova’s games against Delaware and Ohio State. Villanova senior Collin Gillespie is a finalist for the Cousy award.
Cousy said he knows retiring Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski a little bit from playing in his golf tournament in years past, so he may watch the Blue Devils, as well.
One New England school, Providence College, which Mullaney coached from 1955 to 1969 and 1981 to 1985, remains entering the Sweet 16.
“What (the 1947 championship) did, in my judgment,” Cousy said, “and what I’m most proud of, is it ignited the basketball spark in New England. The Celtics took care of the rest five or six years later, but at the time (Holy Cross’ victory) had an impact. That’s when hoops started going up around the city, on garages and trees.”
Contact Jennifer Toland at jennifer.toland@telegram.com. Follow her on Twitter @jentandg
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Post by breezy on Mar 25, 2022 13:53:24 GMT -5
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Post by Tom on Mar 25, 2022 14:35:54 GMT -5
I DVR'd and saved that special about HC basketball in the 50's (and some 40's) that came out a couple of years ago. I might watch that tonight. Less depressing that reading most posts in this forum
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Post by rgs318 on Mar 25, 2022 15:15:24 GMT -5
Heck, that's not saying much. Obituaries can be less depressing than some of the posts on this forum.
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Post by hchoops on Mar 28, 2022 11:24:16 GMT -5
Jen Toland keeps HC sports history alive
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