UCONN DOMINANCE

[Gus Mahler]

Growing up in CT meant getting only the top games for UCLA, but Gail Goodrich was a big favorite early on, and you could always tell how well the Bruins were coached. And there were just so many name players like smooth Silk Wilkes and the deadly corner shooter Lynn Shackelford, but the most memorable events came during those rare times when things went askew, as when Alcindor got sick in the regular season showdown with Elvis Hayes' Houston team for a narrow defeat and the cover of SI trumpeted "Big EEEEEE over Big Lew," months before the semifinal tourney match in which UCLA would destroy Houston by more than 30.

As a young guy at the time when the Vietnam War was raging and much of what was going on in the USA seemed incomprehensible, it was nice to know that your Bruins would always come through for you in the safe world of the NCAA tourney. And as an old guy in a world that still often seems incomprehensible, it is nice to know that the Huskies will always come through for me in the safe world of the NCAA tourney.

Thanks for the post. Love your last sentence. I like to think of it as "Flight to Quality."

I think the parallels between UCLA then and UCONN now are remarkable.

 

[Kibitzer]

I think the parallels between UCLA then and UCONN now are remarkable.

Except for a couple little details - as I have posted about before.

One was the role of the notorious booster, Sam Gilbert. His role in recruiting and players' support has been heavily documented and perhaps summed up best by a comment by Bill Walton in his book to the effect that "Once I committed to UCLA, I never wanted for anything."

Also, back in the UCLA run, fewer teams (16?) comprised the NCAA tournament. A couple wins (some even at Pauley Pavilion) qualified UCLA for the Final Four.

Was UCLA great? Yes - but either the stars were perfectly aligned or the deck was stacked.

 

[Kibitzer]

a comment by Bill Walton in his book to the effect that "Once I committed to UCLA, I never wanted for anything.".

CORRECTION ON EDIT. A more precise quote by Bill Walton: "I never wanted for anything once I enrolled at UCLA."

Gilbert's nefarious activities are well documented and available online or in published articles and books. It is unimaginable to think that Wooden was unaware of the largesse that "Papa Sam" was bestowing on his UCLA student-athletes.

 

[DobbsRover2]

Hey, don't pop my early year's Bruin bubble. I'm sure Geno knows that the Dairy Bar has showered a few extra sprinkles for his players on those Husky Tracks and Strawberry Cheese Cakes and Banana Chocolate Chips and Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirls and Coffee Expresso Crunches and Chocolate Brownie Fudges and maybe given them a slightly larger cupcake, even bigger than those cushy RPI 300+ schedules the Huskies always get to play. And I heard a rumor from down TN way that Stef and Bria were seen there yesterday with some recruits giving them some free helpings of that new Blueberry Cheesecake selection. So none of us should feel too Church Lady righteous about our teams, and I feel the sudden need to get a scooper out and do some honest digging.

 

[Kibitzer]

DR, Touche!

You have rendered me speechless, a temporary condition that our fellow Boneyarders greet with gleeful approbation.