1946–47 NCAA men's basketball season

1946–47 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
NCAA Tournament	1947
Tournament dates	March 19 – 25, 1947
National Championship	Madison Square Garden New York, New York
NCAA Champions	Holy Cross
Helms National Champions	Holy Cross
Other champions	Utah (NIT)
Player of the Year (Helms)	Gerald Tucker, Oklahoma

The 1946–47 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1946, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1947 NCAA basketball tournament championship game on March 25, 1947, at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. The Holy Cross Crusaders won their first NCAA national championship with a 58–47 victory over the Oklahoma Sooners.

Season headlines

• The Mid-American Conference began play, with five original members.
• The Western New York Little Three Conference began play.
• The Yankee Conference began play, with six original members.
• Ben Carnevale of Navy took the Midshipmen to the 1947 NCAA basketball tournament, becoming the first head coach to take two different teams to the NCAA tournament. He previously had taken North Carolina to the 1946 NCAA basketball tournament.
• George Kaftan of Holy Cross became the first player to score 30 points or more in a Final Four game of the NCAA basketball tournament, scoring 30 points against CCNY in a national semifinal game on March 22, 1947.
• Don Barksdale of UCLA was a 1947 consensus Second-Team All-American, becoming the first African-American to be named to the consensus all-America basketball team.
• In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively selected Kentucky as its national champion for the 1946–47 season.

Conference membership changes

School	Former conference	New conference
Butler Bulldogs	Independent	Mid-American Conference
Canisius Golden Griffins	Independent	Western New York Little Three Conference
Chicago Maroons	Big Ten Conference	No NCAA basketball program
Cincinnati Bearcats	Independent	Mid-American Conference
Connecticut Huskies	New England Conference	Yankee Conference
Dickinson College Red Devils	No NCAA basketball program	Middle Atlantic States Conference North
Harvard Crimson	Independent	Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League
Maine Black Bears	New England Conference	Yankee Conference
Massachusetts Minutemen	Independent	Yankee Conference
New Hampshire Wildcats	New England Conference	Yankee Conference
Niagara Purple Eagles	Independent	Western New York Little Three Conference
Ohio Bobcats	Independent	Mid-American Conference
Rhode Island State Rams	New England Conference	Yankee Conference
St. Bonaventure Brown Indians	Independent	Western New York Little Three Conference
Vermont Catamounts	Independent	Yankee Conference
Wayne State Warriors	No NCAA basketball program	Mid-American Conference
Western Reserve Red Cats	No NCAA basketball program	Mid-American Conference
Yale Bulldogs	Independent	Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League

Regular season

Conferences

Conference winners and tournaments

Conference	Regular season winner	Conference player of the year	Conference tournament	Tournament venue (City)	Tournament winner
Big Six Conference	Oklahoma	None selected	No Tournament
Big Nine Conference	Wisconsin	None selected	No Tournament
Border Conference	Arizona	None selected	No Tournament
Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League	Columbia	None selected	No Tournament
Metropolitan New York Conference	St. John's		No Tournament
Mid-American Conference	Butler & Cincinnati	None selected	No Tournament
Middle Atlantic States Conference North	Muhlenberg		No Tournament
Missouri Valley Conference	Saint Louis	None selected	No Tournament
Pacific Coast Conference	Oregon State (North); UCLA (South)		No Tournament; Oregon State defeated UCLA in best-of-three conference championship playoff series
Southeastern Conference	Kentucky	None selected	1947 SEC men's basketball tournament	Jefferson County Armory, (Louisville, Kentucky)	Kentucky
Southern Conference	NC State	None selected	1947 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament	Duke Indoor Stadium (Durham, North Carolina)	NC State
Southwest Conference	Texas	None selected	No Tournament
Western New York Little Three Conference	Canisius		No Tournament
Yankee Conference	Vermont	None selected	No Tournament

Conference standings

1946–47 Big Six Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Oklahoma 8 – 2   .800 24 – 7   .774 Missouri 6 – 4   .600 15 – 10   .600 Kansas 5 – 5   .500 16 – 11   .593 Iowa State 5 – 5   .500 7 – 14   .333 Kansas State 3 – 7   .300 14 – 10   .583 Nebraska 3 – 7   .300 10 – 14   .417	1946–47 Big Nine Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Wisconsin 9 – 3   .750 16 – 6   .727 Illinois 8 – 4   .667 14 – 6   .700 Indiana 8 – 4   .667 12 – 8   .600 Minnesota 7 – 5   .583 14 – 7   .667 Michigan 6 – 6   .500 12 – 8   .600 Iowa 5 – 7   .417 12 – 7   .632 Ohio State 5 – 7   .417 7 – 13   .350 Purdue 4 – 8   .333 9 – 11   .450 Northwestern 2 – 10   .167 7 – 13   .350	1946–47 Border Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Arizona 14 – 2   .875 21 – 3   .875 Arizona State–Flagstaff 11 – 5   .688 20 – 7   .741 New Mexico 10 – 6   .625 11 – 8   .579 Texas State M&M 9 – 7   .563 12 – 8   .600 West Texas State 8 – 8   .500 12 – 12   .500 Texas Tech 8 – 8   .500 10 – 12   .455 Arizona State–Tempe 5 – 11   .313 7 – 13   .350 Hardin–Simmons 5 – 11   .313 8 – 21   .276 New Mexico A&M 2 – 14   .125 8 – 17   .320
1946–47 Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Columbia 11 – 1   .917 15 – 5   .750 Cornell 8 – 4   .667 14 – 8   .636 Pennsylvania 7 – 5   .583 14 – 8   .636 Harvard 5 – 7   .417 16 – 9   .640 Dartmouth 5 – 7   .417 9 – 15   .375 Yale 4 – 8   .333 7 – 18   .280 Princeton 2 – 10   .167 7 – 16   .304	1946–47 Metropolitan New York Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT St. John's 6 – 0   1.000 16 – 7   .696 CCNY 4 – 1   .800 17 – 6   .739 Fordham 4 – 2   .667 19 – 5   .792 NYU 3 – 3   .500 12 – 9   .571 St. Francis (NY) 2 – 3   .400 14 – 7   .667 Manhattan 1 – 5   .167 13 – 13   .500 Brooklyn 0 – 6   .000 12 – 8   .600	1946–47 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Butler 6 – 2   .750 16 – 7   .696 Cincinnati 6 – 2   .750 17 – 9   .654 Ohio 5 – 3   .625 13 – 10   .565 Western Reserve 2 – 6   .250 7 – 11   .389 Wayne 1 – 7   .125 3 – 15   .167
1946–47 Middle Atlantic States Conference North men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Muhlenberg 7 – 1   .875 19 – 7   .731 Dickinson 4 – 1   .800 15 – 2   .882 Lafayette 6 – 2   .750 15 – 7   .682 Bucknell 6 – 3   .667 11 – 8   .579 Gettysburg 2 – 8   .200 7 – 14   .333 Lehigh 0 – 10   .000 5 – 13   .278	1946–47 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Saint Louis 11 – 1   .917 18 – 11   .621 Oklahoma A&M 8 – 4   .667 24 – 8   .750 Drake 8 – 4   .667 18 – 11   .621 Creighton 7 – 5   .583 17 – 8   .680 Washington University 3 – 9   .250 11 – 14   .440 Tulsa 3 – 9   .250 5 – 19   .208 Wichita Municipal 2 – 10   .167 8 – 17   .320	1946–47 Mountain States Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Wyoming 11 – 1   .917 22 – 6   .786 Utah 10 – 2   .833 19 – 5   .792 Denver 6 – 6   .500 16 – 10   .615 Utah State 6 – 6   .500 14 – 10   .583 Colorado 5 – 7   .417 7 – 11   .389 BYU 3 – 9   .250 9 – 16   .360 Colorado State 1 – 11   .083 3 – 18   .143
1946–47 Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT North Oregon State † 13 – 3   .813 28 – 5   .848 Washington State 11 – 5   .688 23 – 10   .697 Washington 8 – 8   .500 16 – 8   .667 Oregon 7 – 9   .438 18 – 9   .667 Idaho 1 – 15   .063 4 – 24   .143 South UCLA 9 – 3   .750 18 – 7   .720 California 8 – 4   .667 20 – 11   .645 Stanford 5 – 7   .417 15 – 16   .484 USC 2 – 10   .167 10 – 14   .417 † Conference playoff series winner	1946–47 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Kentucky † 11 – 0   1.000 34 – 3   .919 LSU 9 – 2   .818 17 – 4   .810 Tennessee 10 – 3   .769 16 – 5   .762 Alabama 13 – 5   .722 16 – 6   .727 Tulane 8 – 4   .667 22 – 9   .710 Georgia Tech 6 – 6   .500 12 – 11   .522 Florida 4 – 4   .500 17 – 9   .654 Vanderbilt 4 – 7   .364 7 – 8   .467 Mississippi State 4 – 9   .308 10 – 11   .476 Georgia 4 – 9   .308 5 – 14   .263 Ole Miss 2 – 11   .154 7 – 14   .333 Auburn 1 – 15   .063 3 – 18   .143 † Regular-season championship and SEC Tournament winner	1946–47 Southern Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT North Carolina State † 11 – 2   .846 26 – 5   .839 North Carolina 10 – 2   .833 19 – 8   .704 Duke 10 – 4   .714 19 – 8   .704 George Washington 9 – 4   .692 21 – 7   .750 Maryland 9 – 5   .643 14 – 10   .583 Richmond 8 – 5   .615 17 – 9   .654 South Carolina 7 – 5   .583 16 – 9   .640 Washington and Lee 7 – 6   .538 16 – 7   .696 Davidson 7 – 7   .500 17 – 8   .680 William & Mary 6 – 6   .500 14 – 12   .538 Wake Forest 8 – 9   .471 11 – 13   .458 Furman 5 – 7   .417 9 – 10   .474 Virginia Tech 4 – 9   .308 13 – 13   .500 Clemson 2 – 12   .143 7 – 13   .350 The Citadel 1 – 11   .083 5 – 11   .313 VMI 1 – 11   .083 2 – 14   .125 † Southern Conference Tournament winner
1946–47 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Texas 12 – 0   1.000 26 – 2   .929 SMU 8 – 4   .667 14 – 8   .636 Arkansas 8 – 4   .667 14 – 10   .583 Baylor 6 – 6   .500 11 – 11   .500 Texas A&M 4 – 8   .333 8 – 17   .320 Rice 3 – 9   .250 7 – 17   .292 TCU 1 – 11   .083 1 – 22   .043	1946–47 Western New York Little Three Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Canisius 3 – 0   1.000 18 – 13   .581 Niagara 2 – 2   .500 13 – 8   .619 St. Bonaventure 0 – 3   .000 10 – 11   .476	1946–47 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Vermont 1 – 0   1.000 19 – 3   .864 Connecticut 6 – 1   .857 16 – 2   .889 Rhode Island State 4 – 1   .800 17 – 3   .850 Maine 2 – 4   .333 9 – 8   .529 Massachusetts 0 – 2   .000 4 – 12   .250 New Hampshire 0 – 5   .000 6 – 11   .353

Major independents

A total of 50 college teams played as major independents. Duquesne (20–2) had the best winning percentage (.909) and Marshall (32–5) finished with the most wins.

1946–47 NCAA men's basketball independents standings Conf Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Duquesne –   – 20 – 2   .909 Holy Cross –   – 27 – 3   .900 Seton Hall –   – 24 – 3   .889 Marshall –   – 32 – 5   .865 West Virginia –   – 19 – 3   .864 Western Kentucky State –   – 25 – 4   .862 Navy –   – 16 – 3   .842 Santa Clara –   – 21 – 4   .840 Notre Dame –   – 20 – 4   .833 Hamline –   – 22 – 5   .815 Bowling Green State –   – 28 – 7   .800 Bradley –   – 25 – 7   .781 LIU –   – 17 – 5   .773 La Salle –   – 20 – 6   .769 Syracuse –   – 19 – 6   .760 Toledo –   – 18 – 6   .750 Louisville –   – 17 – 6   .739 Georgetown –   – 19 – 7   .731 St. Joseph's –   – 16 – 6   .727 Villanova –   – 17 – 7   .708 Western Michigan –   – 17 – 7   .708 Montana State –   – 25 – 11   .694 Loyola (Ill.) –   – 20 – 9   .690 Miami (Ohio) –   – 15 – 7   .682 Indiana State –   – 17 – 8   .680 Boston University –   – 14 – 7   .667 Colgate –   – 11 – 6   .647 DePaul –   – 16 – 9   .640 Loyola (Md.) –   – 20 – 12   .625 Nevada –   – 19 – 13   .594 Army –   – 9 – 7   .563 Penn State –   – 10 – 8   .556 Boston College –   – 12 – 10   .545 Kent State –   – 13 – 11   .542 Michigan State –   – 11 – 10   .524 Siena –   – 12 – 11   .522 San Francisco –   – 13 – 14   .481 Detroit –   – 12 – 13   .480 Virginia –   – 10 – 11   .476 Pittsburgh –   – 8 – 10   .444 Saint Mary's –   – 13 – 17   .433 Montana –   – 12 – 16   .429 Brown –   – 8 – 12   .400 Temple –   – 8 – 12   .400 Marquette –   – 9 – 14   .391 Rutgers –   – 7 – 12   .368 Valparaiso –   – 11 – 20   .355 Merchant Marine –   – 8 – 16   .333 Xavier –   – 8 – 17   .320 Dayton –   – 4 – 17   .190

Post-season tournaments

NCAA tournament

Main articles: 1947 NCAA basketball tournament and 1947 NCAA Basketball Championship Game

Semifinals and finals

	National Semifinals				National Finals
	Holy Cross	60
	CCNY	45
					Holy Cross	58
					Oklahoma	47
	Texas	54
	Oklahoma	55			Third place
					CCNY	50
					Texas	54

National Invitation tournament

Main article: 1947 National Invitation Tournament

Semifinals and finals

	Semifinals				Finals
	Utah	64
	West Virginia	62
					Utah	49
					Kentucky	45
	Kentucky	60
	NC State	42			Third place
					West Virginia	52
					NC State	64

Awards

Consensus All-American teams

Main article: 1947 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans

Consensus First Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Ralph Beard	G	Sophomore	Kentucky
Alex Groza	C	Sophomore	Kentucky
Ralph Hamilton	G	Senior	Indiana
Sid Tanenbaum	G	Senior	New York University
Gerry Tucker	C	Senior	Oklahoma

Consensus Second Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Don Barksdale	C	Senior	UCLA
Arnie Ferrin	F	Junior	Utah
Vern Gardner	C	Senior	Utah
John Hargis	G	Senior	Texas
George Kaftan	F	Junior	Holy Cross
Ed Koffenberger	C	Junior	Duke
Andy Phillip	G/F	Senior	Illinois

Major player of the year awards

• Helms Player of the Year: Gerald Tucker, Oklahoma

Other major awards

• NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Sid Tanenbaum, NYU

Coaching changes

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

Team	Former Coach	Interim Coach	New Coach	Reason
Oregon	Howard Hobson		John A. Warren
St. John's	Joe Lapchick		Frank McGuire
Yale	Ivy Williamson		Howard Hobson