1942–43 Wyoming Cowboys basketball team
Encyclopedia
The 1942–43 Wyoming Cowboys basketball team represented the University of Wyoming
in NCAA
men's competition
in the 1942–43 season. The Cowboys won the Mountain States Conference championship and were the first basketball team from the Rocky Mountains to win an NCAA Basketball Championship. Kenny Sailors of Hillsdale, Wyoming
averaged 15.5 points per game and Milo Komenich
averaged 16.7 points per game in leading the team to the championship. Despite playing just nine home games during the year, the Cowboys won 32 games.
. It would be the last game the Cowboys lost to a college team during the season. Their only other loss was to the Denver Legion team. The Cowboys outscored their opponents by an average of over 20 points per game and that 1942–43 squad became the first Wyoming team to score over 100 points in a game, by beating Regis 101–45.
that same year and claimed it was better than Wyoming and that the NIT was a better tournament than the NCAA. Ev Shelton talked Ned Irish
, the promoter at Madison Square Garden
, into hosting a showdown game, with proceeds going to the Red Cross
. Two days after winning the NCAA Championship, Wyoming played NIT Champion St. John's in a Red Cross benefit game for the war effort. Wyoming beat St. John's in overtime by a score of 52–47, in Madison Square Garden. Wyoming won 52–47 in overtime.
. That same year, the Illinois Fighting Illini
finished the season with a record of 17 wins and 1 loss. The season was cut short as all five starters headed off to active duty in the armed forces. Illinois won the Big Ten Conference
Title and had finished the regular season as the nations' top ranked team. Due to military service, the club did not participate in either the NCAA or NIT tournament.
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
in NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
men's competition
College basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
in the 1942–43 season. The Cowboys won the Mountain States Conference championship and were the first basketball team from the Rocky Mountains to win an NCAA Basketball Championship. Kenny Sailors of Hillsdale, Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
averaged 15.5 points per game and Milo Komenich
Milo Komenich
Milo Komenich was an American collegiate and professional basketball player.-Collegiate career:Komenich, a 6'7 center, played collegiately at the University of Wyoming after a standout high school career at Lew Wallace High School in Gary, Indiana. He played for the Cowboys from 1941-1943 and for...
averaged 16.7 points per game in leading the team to the championship. Despite playing just nine home games during the year, the Cowboys won 32 games.
Regular season
In the fourth game of the season, the Cowboys lost to DuquesneDuquesne Dukes men's basketball
The Duquesne Dukes represent Duquesne University in college basketball. The team, which started in 1914, has only ever played in NCAA Division I and has had five appearances in the NCAA Tournament...
. It would be the last game the Cowboys lost to a college team during the season. Their only other loss was to the Denver Legion team. The Cowboys outscored their opponents by an average of over 20 points per game and that 1942–43 squad became the first Wyoming team to score over 100 points in a game, by beating Regis 101–45.
NCAA basketball tournament
- West
- Wyoming 53,Oklahoma 50
- Final Four
- Wyoming 58, Texas 54
- Wyoming 46, Georgetown 34
Red Cross game
St. John's won the National Invitation TournamentNational Invitation Tournament
The National Invitation Tournament is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. There are two NIT events each season. The first, played in November and known as the Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off , was founded in 1985...
that same year and claimed it was better than Wyoming and that the NIT was a better tournament than the NCAA. Ev Shelton talked Ned Irish
Ned Irish
Edward S. "Ned" Irish was a basketball promoter and one of the key figures in popularizing professional basketball. He was the president of the New York Knicks from 1946 to 1974...
, the promoter at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden (1925)
Madison Square Garden was an indoor arena in New York City, the third of that name. It was built in 1925 and closed in 1968, and was located on Eighth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets in Manhattan on the site of the city's trolley car barns. It was the first Garden that was not located near...
, into hosting a showdown game, with proceeds going to the Red Cross
American Red Cross
The American Red Cross , also known as the American National Red Cross, is a volunteer-led, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and education inside the United States. It is the designated U.S...
. Two days after winning the NCAA Championship, Wyoming played NIT Champion St. John's in a Red Cross benefit game for the war effort. Wyoming beat St. John's in overtime by a score of 52–47, in Madison Square Garden. Wyoming won 52–47 in overtime.
Illinois controversy
Wyoming's championship may not have happened had the season not coincided with World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. That same year, the Illinois Fighting Illini
1942-43 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team
The 1942–43 Illinois Fighting Illini men’s basketball team represented the University of Illiniois. The Illinois Fighting Illini finished the season with a record of 17 wins and 1 loss. The season was cut short as three of the five starters headed off to active duty in the armed forces...
finished the season with a record of 17 wins and 1 loss. The season was cut short as all five starters headed off to active duty in the armed forces. Illinois won the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
Title and had finished the regular season as the nations' top ranked team. Due to military service, the club did not participate in either the NCAA or NIT tournament.
Awards and honors
- First team in Rocky Mountains to win an NCAA Championship
- Only Wyoming basketball team to win an NCAA Championship
- Defeated NIT Champions St. John's in Red Cross Benefit Game
- Ken SailorsKen SailorsKenneth L. Sailors is an American former professional basketball player. A guard, he is notable for popularizing the jump shot as an alternative to the two-handed, flat-footed set shot....
, All-America selection - Ken SailorsKen SailorsKenneth L. Sailors is an American former professional basketball player. A guard, he is notable for popularizing the jump shot as an alternative to the two-handed, flat-footed set shot....
, College Basketball Player of the Year - Ken SailorsKen SailorsKenneth L. Sailors is an American former professional basketball player. A guard, he is notable for popularizing the jump shot as an alternative to the two-handed, flat-footed set shot....
, NCAA Men's MOP AwardNCAA Basketball Tournament Most Outstanding PlayerAt the conclusion of the NCAA men's and women's Division I basketball championships , the Associated Press selects a Most Outstanding Player. The MOP need not be, but almost always is a member of the Championship team, especially since the third place game was eliminated after 1981...