On February 22, 1957, the nation’s number 1 team welcomed the nation’s number 1 scorer...and the nation’s number 1 team said good-bye to its number 1 player. We begin a series looking back at the 1957 National Champions, 57 years ago.
South Carolina Invades Tar Heel Court Tonight
By The Associated Press
South Carolina, led by Grady Wallace, the nation's No. 1 scorer, invades North Carolina tonight eager to hand the nation's No. 1 basketball team its first defeat of the season.
Wallace, whose graceful hook shot has pushed him to the top of the nation's scorers with a 30.4 average, almost led his mates to victory when South Carolina played host to the Tar Heels in Columbia Dec. 15.
The ace forward bagged 35 points in the one to 18 for North Carolina's Lennie Rosenbluth. The game went to North Carolina 90-86 in overtime and Tar Heel Coach Frank McGuire said later he thought South Carolina should have won.
Rosenbluth No. 8 in the national scoring race at 26.5, and his teammates will be gunning for their 21st straight win of the season and their 12th straight in the Atlantic Coast Conference before a sellout crowd of the more than 5,500.
The Tar Heels already have clinched the top seeded place in the annual ACC tournament beginning March 7. The tournament decides the official conference champion.
The North Carolina-South Carolina affair is the only game involving ACC teams tonight. The Tar Heels still have a long row to hoe to finish the regular season undefeated with games against Wake Forest and Duke scheduled next week.
South Carolina, led by Grady Wallace, the nation's No. 1 scorer, invades North Carolina tonight eager to hand the nation's No. 1 basketball team its first defeat of the season.
Wallace, whose graceful hook shot has pushed him to the top of the nation's scorers with a 30.4 average, almost led his mates to victory when South Carolina played host to the Tar Heels in Columbia Dec. 15.
The ace forward bagged 35 points in the one to 18 for North Carolina's Lennie Rosenbluth. The game went to North Carolina 90-86 in overtime and Tar Heel Coach Frank McGuire said later he thought South Carolina should have won.
Rosenbluth No. 8 in the national scoring race at 26.5, and his teammates will be gunning for their 21st straight win of the season and their 12th straight in the Atlantic Coast Conference before a sellout crowd of the more than 5,500.
The Tar Heels already have clinched the top seeded place in the annual ACC tournament beginning March 7. The tournament decides the official conference champion.
The North Carolina-South Carolina affair is the only game involving ACC teams tonight. The Tar Heels still have a long row to hoe to finish the regular season undefeated with games against Wake Forest and Duke scheduled next week.
(from The Lexington Dispatch, February 22, 1957, page 8)
(from The Daily Tar Heel, February 22, 1957, page 1)
Nation’s Top Cage Scorer Facing UNC
By UNITED PRESS
It’s Grady Wallace, the nation’s No. 1 scorer, against North Carolina, the nation’s No. 1 team, tonight.
This dramatic basketball duel was set up Thursday night when Wilt (The Stilt) Chamberlain of Kansas failed to oust Wallace of South Carolina from the scoring lead--and also failed to keep Kansas from a 56-54 upset at the hands of the Oklahoma Aggies.
The seven-foot Chamberlain had racked up 32 points in the clash at Stillwater, Oklahoma, but the Aggies beat the nation’s No. 2 team of a 20-foot shot by Mel Wright with only two seconds remaining. It was only the second loss for Kansas in 18 games.
Chamberlain improved his scoring average slightly up to 29.16 points per game, moving from 5th place to fourth but falling far short of the 56 points he needed to overtake Wallace.
So Wallace goes into tonight’s fray with a 30.41 average, followed by Joe Gibbon of Mississippi at 29.38, Chet Forte of Columbia at 29.26, Chamberlain, and then Elgin Baylor of Seattle at 29.13. Gibbon is the only other contender playing tonight, going against Tulane.
(from The Hendersonville Times-News, February 22, 1957, page 8)
Wallace Held to 11 As UNC Bounces Gamecocks 75 to 62
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. Feb 22 (AP) -- First ranked North Carolina rang up its 22nd victory tonight by defeating South Carolina, 75-62, in an Atlantic Coast Conference basketball game.
Tar Heel forward Pete Brennan tossed in 26 points to take scoring honors away from aces Lennie Rosenbluth of North Carolina and Gamecock forward Grady Wallace, the nation’s top pointmaker. Rosenbluth collected 23 while Wallace was held to 11.
Guard Cookie Pericola headed a Gamecock offense late in the first half which put the visitors out in front at halftime, 37-35.
Rosenbluth, the nation’s eighth-ranked scorer, hit a torrid streak which pulled the Tar Heels away from a 47-47 tie early in the second half.
A crowd of 6,000, the season’s largest for Woolen Gym, watched Coach Frank McGuire’s unbeaten team in it’s last home game of the season.
Guard Bob Cunningham paced a tight North Carolina defense with a shadow job in Wallace, the Gamecocks big gun. Wallace failed to bucket a goal until 11:58 of the game had elapsed, and the Tar Heels were out in front 26-20.
The Tar Heels played the entire first half without the services of Joe Quigg, sidelined with a virus ailment. He did see action in the second half, replacing Cunningham who had collected his fourth foul.
BOX SCORE
SOUTH CAROLINA G F P T
Wallace, f 3 5-9 4 11
Hoffman, f 5 3-4 5 13
Anderson, f 1 0-0 0 2
Lentz, c 2 5-5 5 9
Pericola, g 8 3-4 1 19
McCoy, g 3 2-4 4 8
Totals 22 18-26 19 62
NORTH CAROLINA G F P T
Rosenbluth, f 7 9-12 0 23
Brennan, f 8 10-12 4 26
Lotz, f 0 0-0 3 0
Quigg, c 2 0-4 3 4
Young, c 0 1-2 1 1
Kearns, g 5 0-0 1 10
Cunningham, g 4 3-4 5 11
Rosenmond, g 0 0-0 0 0
Totals 26 23-34 17 75
South Carolina 37 23 -62
North Carolina 35 40 -75
(from Charleston News and Courier, February 23, 1957, page 2B)
Tar Heel Cagers Come From Behind In 2nd Half To Whip South Carolina, 75-62; Wallace Is Held To 11 Points
Brennan and Rosy Lead 2nd Half Surge
By LARRY CHEEK
South Carolina's battling Gamecocks stunned top ranked and unbeaten North Carolina with a blistering first half attack here last night, but slacked off in the second to allow the Tar Heels to pick up their 22nd win of the season, 75- 62.
The Gamecocks led at halftime, 37-35, and stretched this advantage to 41-35 moments after the second half started. Then the Tar Heels came off the ropes, and sparked by the shooting of Lennie Rosenbluth and Pete Brennan, went on to take a 13 point decision.
It was a bitter dogfight until Rosenbluth and Brennan iced the game halfway through the second period. Carolina held a 9 point lead at one time in the first half, but lost it with a little over 2 minutes to go. They regained the advantage in the second stanza, and safely salted away number 22.. An overflow crowd of 6,000 in Woollen Gym watched UNC guard Bab Cunningham put the clamps on Gamecock star Grady Wallace, the nation's number one scorer. Wallace, averaging 30.6 going into last night's game, could score but 11 points on 3 field goals and 5 free throws as he failed to shake loose from the bulldogging of Cunningham.
Lennie Rosenbluth. playing his last game before the home folks, turned in a tremendous performance, and decisively won his personal scoring duel with Wallace. Rosenbluth hit 23 points, but even more important, he cleared the board with 16 rebounds.
Pete Brennan hit 8 out of 12 shots from the floor and 10 of 12 from the foul line to take high scoring honors with 26. Cunningham had 11 and Tommy Kearns 12.
The fifth man in Carolina's flaming five, center Joe Quigg, sat out the entire first half because of a virus infection, but came off the bench with five minutes gone in the second period when the score was knotted at 43 all. While in the lineup he scored 4 points and picked off 6 rebounds.
South Carolina, sparked by the hot shooting of sophomore guard Cookie Pericola. canned 14 of 31 field goals in the first half for a 45.2 per centage. Carolina could do no better than 30 per cent.
The tall Tar Heels, even with Quigg out of the lineup for most of the game, completely dominated
the backboards. They got 54 while the scrappy Gamecocks could get but 37.
Carolina employed a zone defense with Cunningham playing Wallace man-for-man. The system worked
effectively in containing Wallace, who scored his first field goal with 8:02 remaining in the 1st half, but Pericola caused the Tar Heels no end of trouble. The classy sophomore hit 15 points in the first half, but luckily cooled off after intermission.
South Carolina had a percentage of 37.3 from the floor for the entire game while UNC hit 36.6, a considerable decrease from their 50 per cent mark against State Tuesday night.
The Tar Heels try their luck against Wake Forest at Winston-Salem Tuesday night, and visit Duke gym for their final game next Friday night.
USC G F P T
Wallace, f 3 5-9 4 11
Hoffman, f 5 3-4 5 13
Anderson, f 1 0-0 0 2
Lentz, c 2 5-5 5 9
Pericola, g 8 3-4 1 19
McCoy, g 3 2-4 4 8
Totals 22 18-26 19 62
UNC G F P T
Rosenbluth, f 7 9-12 0 23
Brennan, f 8 10-12 4 26
Lotz, f 0 0-0 3 0
Quigg, c 2 0-4 3 4
Young, c 0 1-2 1 1
Kearns, g 5 0-0 1 10
Cunningham, g 4 3-4 5 11
Rosenmond, g 0 0-0 0 0
Totals 26 23-34 17 75
South Carolina 37---23-----62
North Carolina 35---40-----75
(from The Daily Tar Heel, February 22, 1957, page 1)
GALA EVENT IN WOOLEN LAST NIGHT
by BILL KING
The nation's number one basketball team, a great big Cadillac, I and a fellow named Rosenbluth made Carolina students forget the books for a while last night as they completely overflowed Woollen Gym for a gala event that was comparable to the Mardi Gras I here last weekend, and everybody went away happy.
The tremendous throng, which started matriculating into Woollen as early as 5 o'clock, watched the powerful Tar Heels rack up their 22nd straight victory, but the win. believe it or not. was more or less a sidelight.
Lennie Rosenbluth, probably the greatest basketball player in Carolina history, was making his final appearance in Woollen Gym and the fans had come out to accord him the appreciation he so richly deserved. And that wasn't all; not by a long shot. The coach of the Tar Heels, Frank McGuire by
name, had not been forgotten for his great efforts with the Tar Heels, nor was his coaching staff.
Following the usual crowd-pleasing entrance of the Tar Heels to the tune of "Sweet Georgia Brown," and the pre-game warm-ups. Rosenbluth was introduced to the crowd—that stated a deaf000ening roar which lasted well over three minutes. Then, student body president Bob Young presented Rosy with an inscribed trophy, a token of appreciation for the great contribution that he had made to Carolina. Big Len, who would much rather play basketball than stand out in the middle of the court while thousands of fans cheer, nevertheless got through the ceremonies in good shape.
After a few anxious moments early in the second half, the fans were able to sit back and relax as the Tar Heels roared through the Gamecocks.
Then came the climax of what was probably the biggest athletic extravaganza at Carolina since the Choo Choo Justice era.
With associate justice of the supreme court Higgins acting as emcee, freshman coach Vince Grimaldi and Assistant coach Buck Freeman were awarded gifts for their work with the Tar Heels.
Then, Justice Higgins called McGuire to the front, and with his lovely wife and two daughters at his side, the popular Tar Heel mentor accepted the key to a blue and white Cadillac which was parked outside the gym.
Beaming from ear to ear, the smiling Irishman thanked everyone for the "tremendous honor." "I've always watched people receive those big prizes on television," he joked, "but I never figured it would happen to a basketball coach.”
(from The Daily Tar Heel, February 22, 1957, page 1, 3)
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