The history of Le Moyne Dolphins men's basketball from 1960 to 1963 includes the Dolphins' championship at the 1960 Middle Eastern College Athletic Association (MECAA) Invitational Tournament and the opening of their on-campus home venue, now known as the Le Moyne Events Center. The Dolphins won their third MECAA championship in 1962, when Bill Stanley became the first Le Moyne player to win a conference player of the year award.
MECAA tournament title (1960–1961) The 1960–61 Dolphins lost only one player from the previous season's starting lineup, but that player was captain Dick Lynch, among the best players in the program's history. Seniors Tommy Burns, Chuck Sammons, Frank Graziadei and Dave Rose and juniors John Caveny, Bill Stanley, Bill Ray and Joe Costello returned. Stars from the previous season's freshman team expected to contribute to the varsity squad included Mickey Flynn, Jim Downey, Chris Pitman, Bob Yahn and Mike Skinner. Practices opened on October 17, at Grant Junior High School and moved to the West Jefferson Street Armory in November. Burns and Sammons were elected co-captains.
After the Dolphins won their December 3 season opener, 77–63, at home over St. Lawrence, the Green and Gold hosted Cortland State on December 7. John Caveny had a double-double, scoring a game-high 23 points while collecting 11 rebounds, to lead Le Moyne to a 73–57 victory, the 22nd consecutive home triumph for the Dolphins. Caveny shot 8 for 14 from the field and compiled his numbers despite sitting out about 10 minutes of the second half in foul trouble. With the game tied at 18, Le Moyne went on a 7–0 run, getting points from Caveny, Tommy Burns and Chuck Sammons, who was playing through the effects of a virus, and controlled the game the rest of the way. Bill Stanley also had a double-double for the Dolphins with 11 points and 12 rebounds despite fouling out in the second half. Le Moyne shot 45% from the floor while holding the Red Dragons to a 33% success rate.
Le Moyne's archrival, Siena, reclassified to the College Division for the 1960–61 season, and the rivalry was renewed on December 10, in Loudonville in the Middle Eastern College Athletic Association (MECAA) season opener for both clubs. Bill Stanley's double-double, scoring a game-high 15 points on 4-for-7 shooting and grabbing a team-high 13 rebounds led the Dolphins to a 49–45 road victory. Le Moyne had an eight-point edge at halftime and never surrendered the lead in the second half. However, the Indians pulled within one point with 1:28 to play. Stanley responded with a basket on the Dolphins' next possession. After Le Moyne got a defensive stop, Chuck Sammons hit a pair of free throws to put the game away.
Bill Stanley set a new program record, when he snared 20 rebounds in the Dolphins' 82–68 win at King's on December 16. Stanley also had a game-high 32 points to complete a double-double.
Up until the 1959–60 season, some MECAA teams had not played full round-robin conference schedules, and others played each conference opponent with home-and-home series versus some but not all league members. The uneven scheduling created controversy about which team deserved the championship in cases where it had been decided in favor of a team that had scheduled one extra or one fewer game, since the conference title was awarded based on winning percentage against conference opponents. St. Francis (NY) had won the 1955–56 conference championship with a 4–1 record, while both Le Moyne and St. Bonaventure finished 4–2. In both 1959 and 1960, Saint Peter's had a conference record of 3–1, one-half game behind the MECAA champions each year. In part to address this perceived inequity, the MECAA staged an invitational tournament in December 1960, which was originally planned to be held annually to determine a champion with all conference teams on equal footing. The MECAA had six members at the time: Le Moyne, St. Francis (NY), Iona, King's, Saint Peter's and Siena. King's was not eligible for the 1960–61 regular-season MECAA championship, since the Monarchs joined the conference in June 1960, and were able to schedule only three games against MECAA members for their initial season in the league; King's did not participate in the 1960 MECAA tournament. In order to create an eight-team bracket and ensure the tournament champion would need to win three games, three other teams (Fairleigh Dickinson, Long Island and Wagner) were invited. Siena's reclassification to the College Division left the MECAA with two University Division teams (St. Francis (NY) and Iona) and four College Division teams (Le Moyne, Siena, Saint Peter's and King's).
The Dolphins drew host Saint Peter's in the MECAA tournament quarterfinal at the Jersey City Armory. Le Moyne entered the game 5–0 on the season, and the Peacocks were riding a six-game winning steak. In a game that was tight throughout, Saint Peter's took a 62–61 lead with 1:06 to play. A put-back of an offensive rebound by sophomore reserve Chris Pitman, who replaced Chuck Sammons after the latter fouled out early in the second half, with 20 seconds to go gave the Dolphins a 63–62 lead. After an empty possession for the Peacocks, Bill Stanley, who had a game-high 22 points and added 13 rebounds, stretched Le Moyne's lead to two points with a free throw with four seconds on the clock. Saint Peter's got off a long shot at the buzzer, but it missed, and Le Moyne held on for a 64–62 victory. The Peacocks' loss, which sent them to the consolation bracket in their on-campus gym, spoiled the chances for the MECAA tournament to be a financial success.
The second-half rebounding work of John Caveney and Chuck Sammons allowed Le Moyne to pull away from Iona, after leading by just four points at the break, and cruise to a 90–60 victory. Caveney led the Dolphins with 25 points on 10-for-22 shooting. Tom Burns had 15 points, and Bill Stanley added 14 for Le Moyne, who outscored the Gaels 54–28 in the second half. This was Le Moyne's fourth straight win in games against University Division opponents and their 33rd all-time victory over a University Division/major program.
Le Moyne earned a wire-to-wire 66–57 win over Long Island to claim the MECAA tournament title on December 29, 1960. After trailing by 13 points at intermission, the Blackbirds were unable to trim the deficit to any fewer than six points in the second half. John Caveny scored a game-high 20 points for the Dolphins. Bill Stanley had 18 points and 17 rebounds and was named the tournament most valuable player. Each player on Le Moyne's roster received a watch to commemorate the tournament triumph. Le Moyne fans greeted the victorious Dolphins when they arrived at the New York Central Railroad Passenger Station in Syracuse.
Despite the initial plans, the 1960 MECAA tournament was the only one the league ever held. The tournament was unique, since it could be differentiated from a conference tournament, because it was not held at the end of the season and included non-member teams. It also does not resemble an in-season multiple-team event, since five of the six MECAA teams participated rather than limiting tournament entries to one team per conference.
Off to an undefeated 8–0 start and riding a 22-game home winning streak, Le Moyne was stunned at home, 83–68, by Saint Anselm, the team that eliminated the Dolphins from the 1960 NCAA tournament, on January 6, 1961. The Dolphins' previous home loss had been a 65–50 drubbing at the hands of St. Bonaventure on February 5, 1958. After a spurt early in the second half gave Le Moyne a 37–35 lead, Saint Anselm broke the game open with red hot shooting. The Hawks hit 52% of their shots from the floor for the game, while Le Moyne shot 47%. Tom Burns scored 20 points, and Chuck Sammons had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Dolphins. Bill Stanley scored nine points and grabbed 12 rebounds for Le Moyne, but he fell hard to the floor, landing on the base of his spine, trying to block a shot and was unable to play the final four minutes.
In early January, Le Moyne was ranked no. 13 in the country among all Catholic schools. This ranking included both University Division and College Division institutions. However, the Dolphins fell out of the rankings after the loss to Saint Anselm. Bill Stanley was still suffering from a bad bruise on his lower back the day before the Dolphins' next game at Cortland State, and his status was uncertain. Mickey Flynn also suffered an injury against Saint Anselm, and his knee was too swollen to play against Cortland State. Stanley played most of the game against the Red Dragons on January 10, and put up a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds in a 67–55 Dolphins victory. John Caveny scored 23 points to lead the Dolphins. Bill Ray also had a double-double for Le Moyne, scoring 11 points and grabbing 11 boards.
Mickey Flynn, still nursing a knee injury, was the only one of the 13 players on Le Moyne's roster who did not make the trip for the Dolphins' January 14 game at Clarkson. All twelve players who travelled with the team scored in an 80–46 romp over the Golden Knights. The Dolphins broke open a game that was close midway through the first half and claimed a 43–21 lead at intermission. Tom Burns scored 16 points to lead Le Moyne. Bill Stanley, still bothered by a bruised lower back and blisters on his feet, played only 15 minutes and scored six points while collecting a team-high nine rebounds. John Caveny scored 10 points in the first half and did not re-enter the game after the break. The win improved the Dolphins' record to 10–1 on the season.
Bill Stanley grabbed 22 rebounds to break his own program record and scored a game-high 24 points, but it was not enough for the Dolphins as they fell, 73–69, at Buffalo State on February 2. The game was tight, until Le Moyne's offense sputtered after point guard Tom Burns fouled out with five minutes to play. Le Moyne's second straight loss dropped their record to 10–3 in collegiate contests.
Bill Stanley had a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Dolphins to an 86–65 win at Ithaca on February 8. Le Moyne used a zone press defense to frustrate the Bombers and build a 10-point halftime lead. Ithaca tried a press of their own in the second half, but it was broken repeatedly under the floor leadership of point guard Tom Burns, who scored 17 points to pace the Dolphins' balanced attack. Le Moyne capitalized on Ithaca's defensive gamble and converted fast-break opportunities into baskets that swelled their lead. Sophomore Bob Hunt made his varsity debut and scored four points. The Dolphins improved to 11–3 in collegiate contests.
John Caveny scored 16 points to lead the Dolphins to a 60–48 home victory over Hobart on February 18. Le Moyne had a 12–0 run early in the game to take a 15–3 lead before slowing down the tempo. It took Hobart's Jim Upper, who entered the game with a scoring average of over 25 points per game, 15 minutes to score his first basket, his only field goal of the first half. Upper finished with 14 points. Although the Dolphins shot only 32% from the floor, the Statesmen were unable to capitalize against Le Moyne's defense. The Dolphins' leading scorer, Bill Stanley was held without a field goal and finished with only five points. He was bothered by blisters on his feet and did not play the final 15 minutes of the game. None of Le Moyne's starters played during the final 10 minutes. Le Moyne's Chris Pitman was stricken with pleurisy and did not dress for the game. The win improved the Dolphins' record to 14–3 in collegiate contests, and they also had an exhibition victory over Stewart Air Force Base.