1973–74 NCAA Division I men's basketball season

The 1973–74 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began in November 1973, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1974 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Championship Game on March 25, 1974, at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. The North Carolina State Wolfpack won its first NCAA national championship with a 76–64 victory over the Marquette Warriors.

1973–74 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Preseason AP No. 1	UCLA
NCAA Tournament	1974
Tournament dates	March 9 – 25, 1974
National Championship	Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, North Carolina
NCAA Champions	NC State
Helms National Champions	NC State
Other champions	Purdue (NIT)
Player of the Year (Naismith, Wooden)	Bill Walton, UCLA (Naismith)
Player of the Year (Helms)	David Thompson, NC State & Bill Walton, UCLA

Rule changes

Holding or grabbing an opposing player away from the ball became fouls, as did illegal screens.

Season headlines

• Prior to the beginning of the season, NCAA Division I replaced the NCAA University Division as the subdivision of the NCAA made up of colleges and universities competing at the highest level of college sports. In addition, NCAA Division II and NCAA Division III replaced the NCAA College Division for colleges and universities competing at a lower level, with Division II consisting of schools awarding limited athletic scholarships and Division III consisting of schools offering no athletic scholarships.
• On August 5, 1973, the NCAA handed down a two-year "death penalty" (i.e., ban on competing) to the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette; athletically branded "Louisiana" since the 1999–2000 season) after discovering over 100 rules violations, the most egregious of which were payments to players and falsified high school transcripts. All other Ragin' Cajun teams were placed on four years' probation and banned from competing for national championships during that period. The NCAA also proposed expelling the university from the organization, but that penalty was reduced to forfeiture of voting rights at the annual convention for three years. Additionally, the Ragin' Cajuns' participation in the 1972 and 1973 University Division tournaments was scrubbed from the record books, and the university was required to return all tournament revenue. Southwestern Louisiana became the first university to have a season cancelled by the NCAA since Kentucky in the 1952–53 season.
• In 1973, the first public draw for tickets to the NCAA tournament's Final Four games took place. The tickets were for the 1974 Final Four.
• In the Pacific 8 Conference, UCLA won its eighth of what would ultimately be 13 consecutive conference titles.

Season outlook

Pre-season polls

Main article: 1973–74 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

The top 20 from the AP Poll and UPI Coaches Poll during the pre-season.

Associated Press Ranking Team 1 UCLA 2 NC State 3 Indiana 4 Maryland 5 North Carolina 6 Providence 7 Marquette 8 Notre Dame 9 Louisville 10 Kentucky 11 San Francisco 12 Long Beach State 13 Kansas 14 Houston 15 Arizona 16 Penn 17 Jacksonville 18 Alabama 19 UNLV 20 Memphis State

UPI Coaches Ranking Team 1 UCLA 2 NC State 3 Indiana 4 North Carolina 5 Maryland 6 Marquette 7 Notre Dame 8 Providence 9 Memphis State 10 Louisville 11 Alabama 12 Long Beach State 13 South Carolina 14 Kansas State 15 Cincinnati 16 New Mexico 17 (tie) Penn Arizona 19 USC 20 Vanderbilt

Conference membership changes

School	Former conference	New conference
Abilene Christian Wildcats	Southland Conference	Lone Star Conference (NAIA)
Trinity Tigers	University Division independent	non-Division I

Regular season

Conferences

Conference winners and tournaments

Conference	Regular season winner	Conference player of the year	Conference tournament	Tournament venue (City)	Tournament winner
Atlantic Coast Conference	NC State	David Thompson, NC State	1974 ACC men's basketball tournament	Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, North Carolina)	NC State
Big Eight Conference	Kansas	Lon Kruger, Kansas State	No Tournament
Big Sky Conference	Idaho State & Montana	None selected	No Tournament
Big Ten Conference	Indiana & Michigan	None selected	No Tournament
Ivy League	Penn	None selected	No Tournament
Mid-American Conference	Ohio	Walter Luckett, Ohio	No Tournament
Middle Atlantic Conference	La Salle & Saint Joseph's (East); Rider (West)	Bill Taylor, La Salle, & Earl Brown, Lafayette	No Tournament
Missouri Valley Conference	Louisville	Junior Bridgeman, Louisville	No Tournament
Ohio Valley Conference	Austin Peay & Morehead State	Fly Williams, Austin Peay	No Tournament
Pacific 8 Conference	UCLA	None selected	No Tournament
Pacific Coast Athletic Association	Long Beach State	Leonard Gray, Long Beach State	No Tournament
Southeastern Conference	Alabama & Vanderbilt	Jan van Breda Kolff, Vanderbilt	No Tournament
Southern Conference	Furman	Clyde Mayes, Furman	1974 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament	Richmond Coliseum (Richmond, Virginia) (Semifinals and Finals)	Furman
Southland Conference	Arkansas State	Steve Brooks, Arkansas State	No Tournament
Southwest Conference	Texas	Larry Robinson, Texas	No Tournament
West Coast Athletic Conference	San Francisco	Frank Oleynick, Seattle	No Tournament
Western Athletic Conference	New Mexico	None selected	No Tournament
Yankee Conference	Massachusetts	None selected	No Tournament

Conference standings

1973–74 ACC men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 1 NC State † 12 – 0   1.000 30 – 1   .968 No. 4 Maryland 9 – 3   .750 23 – 5   .821 No. 12 North Carolina 9 – 3   .750 22 – 6   .786 Virginia 4 – 8   .333 11 – 16   .407 Clemson 3 – 9   .250 14 – 12   .538 Wake Forest 3 – 9   .250 13 – 13   .500 Duke 2 – 10   .167 10 – 16   .385 † 1974 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Big Eight Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 7 Kansas 13 – 1   .929 23 – 7   .767 Kansas State 11 – 3   .786 19 – 8   .704 Oklahoma 9 – 5   .643 18 – 8   .692 Nebraska 7 – 7   .500 14 – 12   .538 Iowa State 6 – 8   .429 15 – 11   .577 Colorado 4 – 10   .286 9 – 17   .346 Missouri 3 – 11   .214 12 – 14   .462 Oklahoma State 3 – 11   .214 9 – 17   .346 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Big Sky men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Idaho State † 11 – 3   .786 20 – 8   .714 Montana 11 – 3   .786 19 – 8   .704 Weber State 8 – 6   .571 14 – 12   .538 Gonzaga 7 – 7   .500 13 – 13   .500 Boise State 6 – 8   .429 12 – 14   .462 Idaho 5 – 9   .357 12 – 14   .462 Montana State 5 – 9   .357 11 – 15   .423 Northern Arizona 3 – 11   .214 3 – 18   .143 † One-game playoff winner
1973–74 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 9 Indiana 12 – 2   .857 23 – 5   .821 No. 6 Michigan 12 – 2   .857 22 – 5   .815 No. 11 Purdue 10 – 4   .714 21 – 9   .700 Wisconsin 8 – 6   .571 16 – 8   .667 Michigan State 8 – 6   .571 13 – 11   .542 Minnesota 6 – 8   .429 12 – 12   .500 Iowa 5 – 9   .357 8 – 16   .333 Ohio State 4 – 10   .286 9 – 15   .375 Northwestern 3 – 11   .214 9 – 15   .375 Illinois 2 – 12   .143 5 – 18   .217 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Ivy League men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Pennsylvania 13 – 1   .929 21 – 6   .778 Brown 11 – 3   .786 17 – 9   .654 Princeton 11 – 3   .786 16 – 10   .615 Harvard 9 – 5   .643 11 – 13   .458 Yale 5 – 9   .357 8 – 16   .333 Columbia 4 – 10   .286 5 – 20   .200 Dartmouth 2 – 12   .143 4 – 22   .154 Cornell 1 – 13   .071 3 – 23   .115 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Ohio 9 – 3   .750 16 – 11   .593 Toledo 8 – 4   .667 19 – 9   .679 Bowling Green State 7 – 5   .583 15 – 11   .577 Central Michigan 6 – 6   .500 14 – 12   .538 Miami (Ohio) 6 – 6   .500 13 – 13   .500 Western Michigan 5 – 7   .417 13 – 13   .500 Kent State 1 – 11   .083 9 – 17   .346 Rankings from AP Poll
1973–74 MAC men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT University–Eastern Saint Joseph's † 5 – 1   .833 19 – 10   .655 La Salle 5 – 1   .833 18 – 10   .643 American 4 – 2   .667 16 – 10   .615 Temple 4 – 2   .667 16 – 9   .640 Drexel 2 – 4   .333 15 – 9   .625 Hofstra 1 – 5   .167 8 – 16   .333 West Chester 0 – 6   .000 11 – 15   .423 University–Western Rider 8 – 2   .800 13 – 13   .500 Lafayette 7 – 3   .700 17 – 9   .654 Delaware 7 – 3   .700 15 – 11   .577 Gettysburg 4 – 6   .400 15 – 10   .600 Bucknell 2 – 8   .200 8 – 16   .333 Lehigh 2 – 8   .200 3 – 21   .125 † 1974 MAC men's basketball tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Louisville 11 – 1   .917 21 – 7   .750 Bradley 9 – 3   .750 20 – 8   .714 Tulsa 7 – 6   .538 18 – 8   .692 New Mexico State 7 – 6   .538 14 – 11   .560 Wichita State 6 – 7   .462 11 – 15   .423 West Texas State 5 – 8   .385 11 – 15   .423 North Texas State 4 – 8   .333 13 – 13   .500 Saint Louis 4 – 8   .333 9 – 16   .360 Drake 3 – 9   .250 13 – 13   .500 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Morehead State 10 – 4   .714 17 – 9   .654 Austin Peay State 10 – 4   .714 17 – 10   .630 Middle Tennessee 9 – 5   .643 18 – 8   .692 Western Kentucky 8 – 6   .571 15 – 10   .600 Murray State 6 – 8   .429 12 – 13   .480 Eastern Kentucky 6 – 8   .429 8 – 15   .348 Tennessee Tech 4 – 10   .286 7 – 18   .280 East Tennessee State 3 – 11   .214 8 – 18   .308 Rankings from AP Poll
1973–74 Pacific-8 Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 2 UCLA 12 – 2   .857 26 – 4   .867 USC 11 – 3   .786 24 – 5   .828 Oregon 9 – 5   .643 15 – 11   .577 Washington 7 – 7   .500 16 – 10   .615 Oregon State 6 – 8   .429 13 – 13   .500 Stanford 5 – 9   .357 11 – 14   .440 California 3 – 11   .214 9 – 17   .346 Washington State 3 – 11   .214 8 – 21   .276 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Pacific Coast Athletic Association men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 10 Long Beach State 12 – 0   1.000 24 – 2   .923 Cal State Los Angeles 8 – 4   .667 17 – 10   .630 UC Santa Barbara 7 – 5   .583 16 – 10   .615 Fresno State 5 – 7   .417 16 – 9   .640 Pacific 4 – 8   .333 14 – 12   .538 San Diego State 4 – 8   .333 7 – 19   .269 San Jose State 2 – 10   .167 11 – 15   .423 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 14 Alabama 15 – 3   .833 22 – 4   .846 No. 13 Vanderbilt 15 – 3   .833 23 – 5   .821 Tennessee 12 – 6   .667 17 – 9   .654 Ole Miss 9 – 9   .500 15 – 10   .600 Florida 9 – 9   .500 15 – 11   .577 Kentucky 9 – 9   .500 13 – 13   .500 Mississippi State 8 – 10   .444 16 – 10   .615 LSU 6 – 12   .333 12 – 14   .462 Auburn 5 – 13   .278 10 – 16   .385 Georgia 2 – 16   .111 6 – 20   .231 Rankings from AP Poll
1973–74 Southern Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Furman † 11 – 1   .917 22 – 9   .710 Richmond 10 – 4   .714 16 – 12   .571 Davidson 7 – 3   .700 18 – 9   .667 East Carolina 8 – 6   .571 13 – 12   .520 William & Mary 5 – 6   .455 9 – 18   .333 The Citadel 4 – 9   .308 10 – 14   .417 VMI 3 – 9   .250 6 – 18   .250 Appalachian State 1 – 11   .083 5 – 20   .200 † Southern Conference Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Southland Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Arkansas State† 4 – 0   1.000 17 – 8   .680 Texas-Arlington 2 – 2   .500 7 – 18   .280 Lamar 0 – 4   .000 6 – 19   .240 McNeese State 0 – 0   – 20 – 5   .800 Louisiana Tech 0 – 0   – 8 – 13   .381 Southwestern Louisiana* –   – 0 – 0   – † Regular-season championship winner * – Served first season of NCAA two-season ban on competing. Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Texas 11 – 3   .786 12 – 15   .444 Texas Tech 10 – 4   .714 17 – 9   .654 SMU 10 – 4   .714 15 – 12   .556 Texas A&M 7 – 7   .500 15 – 11   .577 Arkansas 6 – 8   .429 10 – 16   .385 Baylor 5 – 9   .357 12 – 13   .480 Rice 5 – 9   .357 11 – 17   .393 TCU 2 – 12   .143 8 – 17   .320 Rankings from AP Poll
1973-74 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT San Francisco 12 – 2   .857 19 – 9   .679 Seattle 11 – 3   .786 15 – 11   .577 UNLV 10 – 4   .714 20 – 6   .769 Loyola Marymount 6 – 8   .429 13 – 14   .481 Saint Mary's 5 – 9   .357 15 – 13   .536 Nevada 4 – 10   .286 11 – 15   .423 Pepperdine 4 – 10   .286 8 – 18   .308 Santa Clara 4 – 10   .286 8 – 19   .296 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 WAC men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT New Mexico 10 – 4   .714 22 – 7   .759 No. 15 Utah 9 – 5   .643 22 – 8   .733 Arizona 9 – 5   .643 19 – 7   .731 Arizona State 9 – 5   .643 18 – 9   .667 UTEP 8 – 6   .571 18 – 7   .720 BYU 6 – 8   .429 11 – 15   .423 Colorado State 5 – 9   .357 12 – 14   .462 Wyoming 0 – 14   .000 4 – 22   .154 Rankings from AP Poll	1973–74 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Massachusetts 11 – 1   .917 21 – 5   .808 Connecticut 9 – 3   .750 19 – 8   .704 New Hampshire 8 – 4   .667 16 – 9   .640 Rhode Island 6 – 5   .545 11 – 14   .440 Vermont 3 – 9   .250 9 – 17   .346 Boston University 2 – 9   .182 9 – 16   .360 Maine 2 – 10   .167 14 – 10   .583

Division I independents

A total of 81 college teams played as Division I independents. Among them, Notre Dame (26–3) had the best winning percentage (.897) and Providence (28–4) finished with the most wins.

1973–74 NCAA Division I men's basketball independents standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 5 Notre Dame –   – 26 – 3   .897 No. 8 Providence –   – 28 – 4   .875 No. 16 Pittsburgh –   – 25 – 4   .862 UNC Charlotte –   – 22 – 4   .846 Centenary –   – 21 – 4   .840 Marquette –   – 26 – 5   .839 No. 19 South Carolina –   – 22 – 5   .815 No. 18 Oral Roberts –   – 23 – 6   .793 South Alabama –   – 22 – 6   .786 Creighton –   – 23 – 7   .767 St. John's –   – 20 – 7   .741 Georgia Southern –   – 19 – 7   .731 Southern Illinois –   – 19 – 7   .731 Syracuse –   – 19 – 7   .731 VCU –   – 17 – 7   .708 Cincinnati –   – 19 – 8   .704 Boston College –   – 21 – 9   .700 Florida State –   – 18 – 8   .692 Rutgers –   – 18 – 8   .692 No. 20 Dayton –   – 20 – 9   .690 Hawaii –   – 19 – 9   .679 Jacksonville –   – 20 – 10   .667 Manhattan –   – 18 – 9   .667 Mercer –   – 16 – 8   .667 Detroit –   – 17 – 9   .654 Fairfield –   – 17 – 9   .654 Houston –   – 17 – 9   .654 Illinois State –   – 17 – 9   .654 Marshall –   – 17 – 9   .654 St. Bonaventure –   – 17 – 9   .654 Stetson –   – 17 – 9   .654 DePaul –   – 16 – 9   .640 Memphis State –   – 19 – 11   .633 Northeast Louisiana –   – 16 – 10   .615 Utah State –   – 16 – 10   .615 Colgate –   – 15 – 10   .600 Portland State –   – 16 – 11   .593 Seton Hall –   – 16 – 11   .593 Pan American –   – 13 – 9   .591 George Washington –   – 15 – 11   .577 Portland –   – 15 – 11   .577 Saint Francis (PA) –   – 15 – 11   .577 Ball State –   – 14 – 12   .538 Butler –   – 14 – 12   .538 Canisius –   – 14 – 12   .538 Milwaukee –   – 14 – 12   .538 Penn State –   – 14 – 12   .538 Northeastern –   – 12 – 11   .522 Long Island –   – 13 – 12   .520 Duquesne –   – 12 – 12   .500 Georgetown –   – 13 – 13   .500 Oklahoma City –   – 13 – 13   .500 Virginia Tech –   – 13 – 13   .500 Indiana State –   – 12 – 14   .462 Loyola Chicago –   – 12 – 14   .462 Niagara –   – 12 – 14   .462 Tulane –   – 12 – 14   .462 Air Force –   – 11 – 13   .458 Iona –   – 11 – 13   .458 St. Francis (NY) –   – 11 – 13   .458 Fairleigh Dickinson –   – 11 – 14   .440 Hardin-Simmons –   – 11 – 14   .440 South Florida –   – 11 – 14   .440 Denver –   – 11 – 15   .423 Southern Mississippi –   – 11 – 15   .423 Navy –   – 9 – 13   .409 West Virginia –   – 10 – 15   .400 Fordham –   – 8 – 17   .320 Northern Illinois –   – 8 – 17   .320 Eastern Michigan –   – 8 – 18   .308 Holy Cross –   – 8 – 18   .308 Saint Peter's –   – 8 – 18   .308 Xavier –   – 8 – 18   .308 Villanova –   – 7 – 19   .269 Army –   – 6 – 18   .250 Houston Baptist –   – 6 – 19   .240 Cleveland State –   – 6 – 20   .231 Samford –   – 6 – 20   .231 Buffalo –   – 5 – 20   .200 Georgia Tech –   – 5 – 21   .192 Georgia State –   – 1 – 25   .038 Rankings from AP Poll

Informal championships

Conference	Regular season winner	Most Valuable Player
Philadelphia Big 5	Penn	Ron Haigler, Penn

Penn finished with a 4–0 record in head-to-head competition among the Philadelphia Big 5.

Post-season tournaments

NCAA tournament

Main articles: 1974 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament and 1974 NCAA Division I Basketball Championship Game

Final Four

	National semifinals					National finals
	E	NC State	80
	W	UCLA	77
						E	NC State	76
						ME	Marquette	64
	ME	Marquette	64
	MW	Kansas	51			Third place
						W	UCLA	78
						MW	Kansas	61

National Invitation tournament

Main article: 1974 National Invitation Tournament

Semifinals & finals

	Semifinals				Finals
	Jacksonville	64
	Purdue	78
					Purdue	87
					Utah	81
	Utah	117
	Boston College	93			Third place
					Jacksonville	77
					Boston College	87

Awards

Consensus All-American teams

Main article: 1974 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans

Consensus First Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Marvin Barnes	C	Senior	Providence
John Shumate	F	Junior	Notre Dame
David Thompson	G/F	Junior	North Carolina State
Bill Walton	C	Senior	UCLA
Keith Wilkes	G/F	Senior	UCLA

Consensus Second Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Len Elmore	C	Junior	Maryland
Larry Fogle	G	Sophomore	Canisius
Bobby Jones	F	Senior	North Carolina
Billy Knight	G/F	Senior	Pittsburgh
Campy Russell	F	Junior	Michigan

Major player of the year awards

• Naismith Award: Bill Walton, UCLA
• Helms Player of the Year: David Thompson, NC State & Bill Walton, UCLA
• Associated Press Player of the Year: David Thompson, NC State
• UPI Player of the Year: Bill Walton, UCLA
• Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA): Bill Walton, UCLA
• Adolph Rupp Trophy: Bill Walton, UCLA
• Sporting News Player of the Year: Bill Walton, UCLA

Major coach of the year awards

• Associated Press Coach of the Year: Norm Sloan, NC State
• Henry Iba Award (USBWA): Norm Sloan, NC State
• NABC Coach of the Year: Al McGuire, Marquette
• UPI Coach of the Year: Digger Phelps, Notre Dame
• Sporting News Coach of the Year: Digger Phelps, Notre Dame

Other major awards

• Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award (Best player under 6'0): Mike Robinson, Michigan State
• Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Ron Haigler, Penn
• NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Bill Campion, Manhattan

Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.

Team	Former Coach	Interim Coach	New Coach	Reason
Arkansas	Lanny Van Eman		Eddie Sutton
Creighton	Eddie Sutton		Tom Apke
Davidson	Terry Holland		Robert Brickels
Duke	Neill McGeachy		Bill Foster
Iowa	Dick Schultz		Lute Olson
Long Beach State	Lute Olson		Dwight Jones
Utah	Bill Foster		Jerry Pimm
Virginia	Bill Gibson		Terry Holland