On This Date in Sports March 20, 1954: Exploring a NCAA Title
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
LaSalle becomes the first of Philadelphia’s Big 5 to win the NCAA Tournament. The Explorers, coached by Ken Loeffler, were making their first-ever tournament appearance. LaSalle defeated Bradley 92-76 in Kanas City in the championship game, as Tom Gola was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Gola was the chairman of the boards in college basketball, with a record 2,201 rebounds.
LaSalle, a private Catholic school in Philadelphia, had its finest season in 1954. Two years after taking the championship in National Invitational Tournament, they were selected to play in their first NCAA Tournament. Coached by Ken Loeffler, the Explorers posted a 21-4 record during the season. The NCAA Tournament field had just 24 teams, with two Eastern Regions and Two Western Regions.
LaSalle had one of the top players in the NCAA named Tom Gola. Gola was a native of Philadelphia, born on January 13, 1933. The son of Philadelphia police officer Tom Gola attended LaSalle College High School, leading his team to the Catholic League Championship in Philadelphia. It was high times for college hoops in the City of Brotherly Love. An intense rivalry developed among the top five programs, LaSalle, Villanova, Temple, St. Joseph’s, and Penn creating an unofficial conference called the Big 5. The Explorers had won the NIT in Tom Gola’s freshman season in 1952 and were even stronger two years later as he averaged 21.7 points and 23 rebounds per game.
The 1954 NCAA Tournament occurred with the sport of basketball emerging from a point-shaving scandal. Several players were ruled ineligible, having already graduated after not being able to play in 1953 due to a one-year suspension of the program. Kentucky, the top-ranked team in the Nation, was not a part of the tournament.
The Explorers' first-round game may have been their most challenging, as they needed overtime to beat Fordham 76-74 at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo. In the second round, the Explorers enjoying the home cooking at the Palestra in Philadelphia defeated NC State 88-81 to reach the Elite Eight, where they sunk the Navy 64-84.
LaSalle reached the Final Four in Kansas City, where they were joined by another school from the Keystone State in Penn State. The Nittany Lions reached the Final Four by beating Toledo, LSU, and Notre Dame. Representing the West 1 region who got to Kansas City by beating Oklahoma City, Colorado, and Oklahoma A&M. Rounding out the Final Four was USC, who, after a first-round bye, beat Idaho State and Santa Clara.
LaSalle had their way with Penn State in the semifinals, winning 69-54, while Bradley edged USC 74-72 to reach the Championship Game for the second time in school history. The Braves coached by Forddy Anderson had previously lost to CCNY in the 1950 NCAA Tournament Final. The first half was a thriller, as Bradley led at the break 43-42. However, Tom Gola began to take over, scoring 19 points with 19 rebounds, as the Explorers pulled away down the stretch to win the game 92-76. Gola would go on to win the Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player Award. Meanwhile, Frank Blatcher and Charles Singley scored a game-high 23 points for the Explorers, while Bradley was led by Bob Carney and Dick Estergard, who each scored 17 points. One LaSalle player of note who did not play in the championship game was Robert Ames, who later became a CIA operative and was among those killed in the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut.
Tom Gola would lead LaSalle back to the Championship Game in 1955, but a repeat was not in the cards, as they were beaten by San Francisco 77-63 led by Bill Russell. Gola, a territorial pick in the NBA Draft, would lead the Philadelphia Warriors to an NBA Championship in his rookie season and had an excellent Hall of Fame career with the Warriors and New York Knicks.