The San Francisco Dons men's basketball team represents the University of San Francisco in NCAA Division I men's college basketball.This article is about the men's basketball team only; women's teams and athletes at the University of San Francisco are known as "Lady Dons." The Dons compete in the West Coast Conference, where they have won fifteen regular season championships and one conference tournament championship. The current head coach is Chris Gerlufsen. They play home games at the War Memorial Gymnasium, which also serves as the venue for women's basketball, volleyball, athletic department offices, and athletic training rooms. Some games may be played at Chase Center.
The basketball team claims three national titles: the 1949 NIT under Pete Newell, and the 1955 and 1956 NCAA Division I championships. The latter two were under Phil Woolpert, and led by player and National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Famer Bill Russell.
USF retained its status as a basketball powerhouse into the 1970s and early 1980s, holding the distinction of being a "major" program in a "mid-major" conference (the WCC having declined somewhat in stature since the 1960s). It held the number one spot in the polls on numerous occasions. In 1977, led by All-American center Bill Cartwright, the Dons started 29–0 and were regarded as the #1 team in the nation in both major polls before dropping their last two games.
The San Francisco Dons men's basketball program has been rated the 29th "Greatest College Basketball Program of All-Time" by Street & Smith's magazine, 49th by NBC Sports "Greatest Programs of All-Time","The greatest programs of all-time" at NBC Sports, 10 Oct 2012 and 75th by the ESPN/Sagarin All-Time College Basketball Rankings,"The ESPN/Sagarin All-Time Rankings" higher in all three rankings than any other West Coast Conference school and many schools from BCS Conferences (Pac-12, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, Southeastern Conference).
History Basketball got its start at USF, then known as St. Ignatius College, in 1910. The original coach was Orno Taylor, whose subsequent achievements were lost to history. The College Annual reported that "the entire team did nobly in the season just finished and the student body as a unit thanks them for their loyalty and devotion." The St. Ignatius team won six of its seven games, losing only to Pacific (then located in San Jose) by three points. Included in the victories was a sweep of Santa Clara, still a major rival, by scores of 38–31 and 22–13.
Pete Newell era After serving in the United States Navy from 1942 to 1946, Pete Newell was appointed men's basketball head coach at the University of San Francisco in 1946. During his four-year tenure at USF, Newell compiled a 70–37 record and coached the Dons to the 1949 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championship, beating Loyola (Chicago) 48-47. (At the time, the NIT was more prestigious than the NCAA Tournament.) This was the team of All-American Don Lofgran, Joe McNamee, captain John Benington, Ross Giudice, Frank Kuzara and a baby-faced guard named Rene Herrerias. New York's Madison Square Garden crowds were notoriously tough to please. Lofgran, Herrerias and company had them cheering in the aisles. In 1950, he accepted an appointment as head coach at Michigan State University, where he stayed until 1954. He later led the University of California to the 1959 NCAA men's basketball championship, and a year later coached the gold medal-winning U.S. team at the 1960 Summer Olympics. After his coaching career ended he ran an instructional basketball camp and served as a consultant and scout for several National Basketball Association (NBA) teams.
Phil Woolpert and the Russell era Newell left for Michigan State in 1950, and USF hired Phil Woolpert as his successor. He assumed both the posts of men's basketball coach and athletic director.
During his tenure at USF, Woolpert posted a 153–78 record, including a 60-game win streak that at the time was the longest in college basketball (surpassed later by John Wooden's 88 straight wins at UCLA.). His teams, anchored by Bill Russell, K.C. Jones, Eugene Brown and Mike Farmer, were known for their defense and held opponents below 60 points on 47 different occasions. USF won the National Championship in 1955 and 1956, and finished third in 1957. Woolpert also won Coach of the Year honors in 1955 and 1956.
Bill Russell was ignored by major college scouts, largely because he didn't even start at McClymonds High School in Oakland. He did not receive a single letter of interest until Hal DeJulio from USF watched him in a high school game. DeJulio was not impressed by Russell's meager scoring and "atrocious fundamentals", but sensed that the young center had an extraordinary instinct for the game, especially in clutch situations. When DeJulio offered Russell a scholarship, the latter eagerly accepted. Sports journalist John Taylor described it as a watershed in Russell's life because Russell realized that basketball was his one chance to escape poverty and racism.
At USF, Russell became the new starting center. Woolpert emphasized defense and deliberate half-court play, concepts that favored defensive standout Russell. Woolpert was unaffected by issues of skin color. In 1954, he became the first coach of a major college basketball squad to start three African American players: Russell, K.C. Jones and Hal Perry. In his USF years, Russell used his relative lack of bulk to develop a unique style of defense: instead of purely guarding the opposing center, he used his quickness and speed to play help defense against opposing forwards and aggressively challenge their shots. Combining the stature and shot-blocking skills of a center with the foot speed of a guard, Russell became the centerpiece of a USF team that soon became a force in college basketball. After USF kept Holy Cross star Tom Heinsohn scoreless in an entire half, Sports Illustrated wrote, "If [Russell] ever learns to hit the basket, they're going to have to rewrite the rules."
Nonetheless, these games were often difficult for the USF squad. Russell and his African American teammates became targets of racist jeers, particularly on the road. In one notable incident, hotels in Oklahoma City refused to admit Russell and his black teammates while they were in town for the 1954 All-College Tournament. In protest, the whole team decided to camp out in a closed college dorm, which was later called an important bonding experience for the group. Decades later, Russell explained that his experiences hardened him against abuse of all kinds. "I never permitted myself to be a victim," he said. Note: This source appears to have a typo it was corrected in this article: It reads "I did now want..." in the source, it was changed to the obviously intended form, "I did not want..."
On the hardwood, his experiences were far more pleasant. Russell led USF to NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956, including a string of 55 consecutive victories. He became known for his strong defense and shot-blocking skills, once denying 13 shots in a game. UCLA coach John Wooden called Russell "the greatest defensive man I've ever seen". While at USF, together with K. C. Jones, he also helped pioneer a play that later became known as the alley-oop. During his college career, Russell averaged 20.7 points per game and 20.3 rebounds per game.
Besides basketball, Russell represented USF in track and field events. He competed in the race, which he could complete in 49.6 seconds. He also participated in the high jump; Track & Field News ranked him as the seventh-best high jumper in the world in 1956. That year, Russell won high jump titles at the Central California AAU meet, the Pacific AAU meet, and the West Coast Relays. One of his highest jumps occurred at the West Coast Relays, where he achieved a mark of .
After his years at USF, the Harlem Globetrotters invited Russell to join their exhibition basketball squad. Russell, who was sensitive to any racial prejudice, was enraged by the fact that owner Abe Saperstein would only discuss the matter with Woolpert. While Saperstein spoke to Woolpert in a meeting, Globetrotters assistant coach Harry Hanna tried to entertain Russell with jokes. The USF center was livid after this snub and declined the offer: he reasoned that if Saperstein was too smart to speak with him, then he was too smart to play for Saperstein. Instead, Russell made himself eligible for the 1956 NBA draft.
Woolpert stayed at USF for nine years. During his tenure, he was known for building national powers almost exclusively on Bay Area talent; the athletic department had virtually no recruiting budget and had little to offer out-of-state players.
1960s and 1970s dominance The Dons remained as a powerhouse for several years after their 1950s run. The team added four more Elite Eight appearances to its resume: 1964, 1965, 1973, and 1974.
USF retained its status as a basketball powerhouse into the 1970s and early 1980s under Bob Gaillard and Dan Belluomini, holding the distinction of being a "major" program in a "mid-major" conference (the WCC's stature declined somewhat in the 1960s). Although John Wooden and his UCLA Bruins had eclipsed San Francisco as the premier West Coast power, the Dons remained an elite program well into the early 1980s. It held the number one spot in the polls on numerous occasions and six consecutive conference titles from 1977 to 1982, and all but two WCC regular-season titles from 1972 to 1982. In 1977, led by All-American center Bill Cartwright, the Dons started the season 26–0 and were regarded as the #1 team in the nation in both major polls. Sports Illustrated highlighted the 1977 team with a cover story titled "The Dandy Dons." Until they lost to Notre Dame.
NCAA violations and self-imposed death penalty
The Dons remained an elite program well into the early 1980s, perennially ranked in the top 20, and captured six consecutive conference titles from 1977–82. San Francisco's success on the court came at a price, however. The NCAA placed the Dons on probation two times in the late 1970s for booster/alumni interference with the program and recruiting improprieties by coaches. Each NCAA investigation eventually led to the dismissal of a San Francisco head coach, leading San Francisco Chronicle sportswriter Glenn Dickey to call the program "totally out of control." As a response to these incidents, school president Rev. John Lo Schiavo, S.J. a lifelong basketball enthusiast and all-city power forward in his youth, gave an ultimatum after the second NCAA case was resolved in 1980: if there was any further incident, the program would be shut down.Boyle, Robert; and Roger Jackson.Bringing Down the Curtain. Sports Illustrated, 1982-08-09.