CBSSN had a show this morning about Jacksonville U's rise from NAIA team in 1964 to the NCAA championship game against UCLA in 1970. They did it, in part, by becoming one of the first integrated teams in the south. The keystone of the '69-'70 team was a JUCO transfer named Artis Gilmore.

J'ville played its first NCAA tourney game in Dayton against WKU. CBSSN showed the tourney bracket for that year and at the top of the bracket was Notre Dame vs Ohio, which was also played in Dayton. Unfortunately, that was the game where Austin Carr dropped 61 on us, and this, of course, was before the 3-pt shot. His record still stands, as do his records from that game for most FG attempts (44) and most makes (25). He also had 11 FTs against us. He averaged 52.7 pts in three tournament games that year, also still a record.

I think the others were Rex Morgan, Vaughn Wedeking and Greg Nelson. The announcer for JU's broadcasts on WJXT radio was Mike Patrick.

Rex Morgan

I remember those games well....on TV. I think at least part of that Jax vs WKU game is still available on YouTube. I've watched that recently.

and Kenny Kowall, Greg McDivitt, Doug Parker, Dave Groff, and a guy named Larry Hunter. I was at UD for those games too. Big disappointment but that was a great team. That was my senior year. They started out 4-0 in the Big Ten by beating Northwestern, Purdue (with Rick Mount), Ohio State, and Indiana. Great season!

Anyone know when the games started to be broadcast in color (for those who had a color TV to watch them on, at least)?

Dayton was doing it well before the move was to mandatory 20K arenas, they were still #1 before the advent of the First Four. But you are dead on, they do it right and with great community support. OHSAA Basketball will be there in 2022, Mark my word on that one.

Agreed. It appears they have put most of their eggs in the basketball basket and have been rewarded accordingly. I have long been fascinated that while they are a smaller, private, Marianist/Catholic university, it seems like the region as a whole embraces them as their team.

I would agree on the sports side they are all in on basketball but several other activities keep Dayton a destination many folks come to year after year. Even with the Grand National Trapshoot gone, HAM radio guys make the trip every year from all over the globe. WGI with their performing arts groups/ World Championships and the Dayton Air Show attract people to the area every year without fail.

I think the 1969-70 season was when I first started noticing those schools, who would much later be called mid-majors, that had really good teams. And, as underdogs I found it easy to start pulling for them. That season, not only were the Jacksonville Dolphins good, but so was Western Kentucky (who Jacksonville did eliminate in the first round of the tourney) led by center Jim McDaniel, and St. Bonaventure, led by big Bob Lanier (Jacksonville ended up beating Bona in the semis).

Most of the usual premier major programs were good but UCLA was in the middle of their 10-year run when they were so dominate that most just wondered what their margins of victory would be. I did not want to again witness any time soon John Wooden, with rolled up program, showing the emotions of a walk down the street while winning another championship. I thought Jacksonville had a chance; especially since UCLA, I thought, could conceivably have a “crack in their armor” given this was just after Lew Alcindor (Jabbar) and, of course how it turned out, before Bill Walton. They didn’t have the dominate center which in those days was probably more important than now.

Consequently I highly anticipated the “little guy” taking on Goliath in the final. Alas, despite Jacksonville putting up a tussle, an upset was not to be.