# 1957–58 NCAA University Division men's basketball season

The 1957–58 NCAA University Division men's basketball season began in December 1957, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1958 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 22, 1958, at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. The Kentucky Wildcats won their fourth NCAA national championship with an 84–72 victory over the Seattle Chieftains.

## Season headlines

* The NCAA University Division grew to 179 teams, an increase from 156 the previous season.
* Adolph Rupp won his fourth championship as he led the Kentucky Wildcats to an 84–72 win over the Seattle Chieftains and their star, Elgin Baylor. The starting unit was nicknamed the "Fiddlin' Five," after a quip by Rupp that his team were fiddlers when he really needed violinists. The Wildcats fought back from two 11-point deficits to gain the victory.
* Cincinnati's Oscar Robertson became the first player to lead the nation is scoring in his first varsity season. The sophomore (freshmen were ineligible) averaged 35.1 points per game for the Bearcats. He also became the first player to score 50 or more points in an NCAA tournament game when he scored 56 against Arkansas in a regional third-place game on March 15, 1958.
* Dom Flora, a senior point guard at Washington and Lee University, finished his college career with 2,310 points and 696 free throws made, both of which were ranked fifth in their respective categories in college basketball history at the end of the 1957–58 season.
* Future Hall of Fame coach Howard Cann of NYU retired at the conclusion of the season, after 35 years at the helm.
* The NCAA championship game saw the first use of an orange basketball. Previously, the NCAA had used brown basketballs.
* The Western New York Little Three Conference disbanded at the end of the season.

## Major rule changes

Beginning in 1957–58, the following rules changes were implemented:
* Offensive goaltending was banned so that no player from either team could touch the ball or basket when the ball was on the basket's rim or above the cylinder. The only exception was the shooter in the original act of shooting.
* One free throw for each common foul was taken for the first six personal fouls by one team in each half, and the one-and-one was used thereafter.
* On uniforms, the single-digit numbers "1" and "2" and any digit greater than "5" in player numbers were prohibited as a means of simplifying referees' hand signals to the scorer's table when calling a foul. A failure to comply resulted in the assessment of a technical foul against the offending team. The single-digit numbers "1" and "2" were not permitted again until the 1999–2000 season and digits greater than 5 were not permitted again until the 2023–24 season.
* A ball that passes over the backboard – either front-to-back or back-to-front — was considered out of bounds.

## Conference membership changes

| School | Former conference | New conference |
| Cincinnati Bearcats | NCAA University Division independent | Missouri Valley Conference |
| Detroit Titans | Missouri Valley Conference | NCAA University Division independent |
| East Tennessee State Buccaneers | non-NCAA University Division | Ohio Valley Conference |
| Fresno State Bulldogs | West Coast Athletic Conference | NCAA University Division independent |
| North Texas State Mean Green | non-NCAA University Division | Missouri Valley Conference |
| Texas Tech Red Raiders | NCAA University Division independent | Southwest Conference |

## 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 | Duke | Pete Brennan, North Carolina | 1958 ACC men's basketball tournament | Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, North Carolina) | Maryland |
| Big Eight Conference | Kansas State | Bob Boozer, Kansas State | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Big Ten Conference | Indiana | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Border Conference | Arizona State | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ivy League | Dartmouth | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Metropolitan New York Conference | St. John's | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mid-American Conference | Toledo | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Missouri Valley Conference | Cincinnati | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mountain States (Skyline) Conference | Idaho State | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ohio Valley Conference | Tennessee Tech | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Pacific Coast Conference | California & Oregon State | None Selected | No Tournament California defeated Oregon State in a single-game conference playoff | No Tournament California defeated Oregon State in a single-game conference playoff | No Tournament California defeated Oregon State in a single-game conference playoff |
| Southeastern Conference | Kentucky | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Southern Conference | West Virginia | Dom Flora, Washington and Lee | 1958 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament | Richmond Arena (Richmond, Virginia) | West Virginia |
| Southwest Conference | Arkansas & SMU | Rick Herrscher, SMU (awarded by Coach magazine) | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| West Coast Athletic Conference | San Francisco | Mike Farmer, San Francisco, & Leroy Wright, Pacific | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Western New York Little Three Conference | St. Bonaventure | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Yankee Conference | Connecticut | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |

#### Conference standings

1957–58 ACC men's basketball standings :
| 1957–58 ACC men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 10 Duke11–3 .78618–7  .720 No. 20 NC State10–4 .71418–6  .750 No. 13 North Carolina10–4 .71419–7  .731 No. 6 Maryland †9–5 .64322–7  .759 Virginia6–8 .42910–13  .435 Clemson4–10 .2868–16  .333 South Carolina3–11 .2145–19  .208 Wake Forest3–11 .2146–17  .261 † 1958 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Big Eight Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 3 Kansas State10–2 .83322–5  .815 No. 7 Kansas8–4 .66718–5  .783 Iowa State8–4 .66715–8  .652 Oklahoma5–7 .41713–10  .565 Nebraska5–7 .41710–13  .435 Missouri3–9 .2509–13  .409 Colorado3–9 .2508–15  .348 No. 19 Oklahoma State0–0 –21–8  .724 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 12 Indiana10–4 .71413–11  .542 No. 17 Michigan State9–5 .64316–6  .727 Purdue9–5 .64314–8  .636 Northwestern8–6 .57113–9  .591 Ohio State8–6 .5719–13  .409 Iowa7–7 .50013–9  .591 Michigan6–8 .42911–11  .500 Illinois5–9 .35711–11  .500 Minnesota5–9 .3579–12  .429 Wisconsin3–11 .2148–14  .364 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1957–58 Border Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Arizona State–Tempe8–2 .80013–13  .500 New Mexico A&M7–3 .70014–9  .609 Texas Western5–5 .50014–9  .609 Hardin–Simmons4–6 .40011–14  .440 Arizona4–6 .40010–15  .400 West Texas State2–8 .2003–15  .167 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Ivy League men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Dartmouth11–3 .78622–5  .815 Princeton9–5 .64315–8  .652 Yale9–5 .64314–10  .583 Pennsylvania8–6 .57113–12  .520 Harvard7–7 .50016–9  .640 Cornell5–9 .35711–11  .500 Brown5–9 .35710–15  .400 Columbia2–12 .1436–18  .250 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Metropolitan New York Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT St. John's6–0 1.00018–8  .692 Manhattan3–1 .75016–10  .615 St. Francis (NY)2–1 .66714–9  .609 NYU2–2 .50010–11  .476 CCNY2–5 .2869–8  .529 Fordham1–3 .25015–9  .625 Brooklyn0–4 .00011–7  .611 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1957–58 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Miami12–0 1.00018–9  .667 Marshall9–3 .75017–7  .708 Ohio7–5 .58316–8  .667 Bowling Green6–6 .50015–8  .652 Toledo4–8 .3339–14  .391 Kent State3–9 .2509–14  .391 Western Michigan1–11 .0835–19  .208 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 2 Cincinnati13–1 .92925–3  .893 No. 14 Bradley12–2 .85720–7  .741 Saint Louis9–5 .64316–10  .615 Wichita Municipal7–7 .50014–12  .538 Houston6–8 .4299–16  .360 Drake4–10 .28613–12  .520 Tulsa4–10 .2867–19  .269 North Texas State1–13 .0713–18  .143 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Mountain States Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Wyoming10–4 .71413–14  .481 Utah9–5 .64320–7  .741 Colorado State9–5 .64314–11  .560 BYU9–5 .64313–13  .500 Montana8–6 .57112–10  .545 Denver8–6 .57113–12  .520 Utah State3–11 .2144–20  .167 New Mexico0–14 .0003–21  .125 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1957–58 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Tennessee Tech8–2 .80017–9  .654 Morehead State6–4 .60013–10  .565 Western Kentucky State5–5 .50014–11  .560 Murray State4–6 .4008–16  .333 Middle Tennessee– –11–10  .524 Eastern Kentucky State3–7 .3008–11  .421 East Tennessee State– –7–18  .280 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT California †12–4 .75019–9  .679 Oregon State12–4 .75020–6  .769 UCLA10–6 .62516–10  .615 Idaho9–7 .56317–9  .654 USC8–8 .50012–13  .480 Stanford7–9 .43812–13  .480 Oregon6–10 .37513–11  .542 Washington5–11 .3138–18  .308 Washington State3–13 .1887–19  .269 † Conference playoff game winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 9 Kentucky12–2 .85723–6  .793 No. 16 Auburn11–3 .78616–6  .727 No. 15 Mississippi State9–5 .64320–5  .800 Alabama9–5 .64317–9  .654 Tennessee8–6 .57116–7  .696 Georgia Tech8–6 .57115–11  .577 Vanderbilt7–7 .50014–11  .560 Ole Miss6–8 .42912–12  .500 Florida5–9 .35712–9  .571 Tulane3–11 .2148–15  .348 LSU3–11 .2147–18  .280 Georgia3–11 .2147–19  .269 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1957–58 Southern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 1 West Virginia †12–0 1.00026–2  .929 Virginia Tech10–5 .66711–8  .579 George Washington8–4 .66712–11  .522 The Citadel9–6 .60016–11  .593 Richmond8–8 .50014–12  .538 William & Mary9–9 .50015–14  .517 Furman4–8 .33310–16  .385 Davidson4–8 .3339–15  .375 Washington and Lee4–9 .3089–16  .360 VMI1–12 .0774–17  .190 † Southern Conference Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Arkansas9–5 .64317–10  .630 SMU9–5 .64315–10  .600 TCU8–6 .57117–7  .708 Texas Tech8–6 .57115–8  .652 Rice7–7 .50013–11  .542 Texas A&M7–7 .50011–13  .458 Texas5–9 .35710–13  .435 Baylor3–11 .2145–19  .208 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 4 San Francisco12–0 1.00025–2  .926 Saint Mary's8–4 .66711–15  .423 Santa Clara6–6 .50013–11  .542 Pepperdine5–7 .41715–11  .577 San Jose State5–7 .41713–13  .500 Pacific5–7 .4179–15  .375 Loyola (Calif.)1–11 .0836–18  .250 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1957–58 Western New York Little Three Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT St. Bonaventure4–0 1.00021–5  .808 Niagara0–2 .00018–7  .720 Canisius0–2 .0002–19  .095 Rankings from AP Poll | 1957–58 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Connecticut 9–1 .90017–10  .630 Vermont 5–5 .50015–10  .600 Massachusetts 5–5 .50013–12  .520 New Hampshire 4–6 .40010–12  .455 Maine 4–6 .4008–12  .400 Rhode Island 3–7 .3004–17  .190 |

### University Division independents

A total of 49 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, Temple (27–3) finished with both the best winning percentage (.900) and the most wins.
1957–58 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings :
* 1957–58 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings
* vteConfOverall
* TeamW L PCTW L PCT
* No. 5 Temple– –27–3
* .900
* No. 11 Dayton– –25–4
* .862
* No. 8 Notre Dame– –24–5
* .828
* Saint Francis (Pa.)– –20–5
* .800
* No. 18 Seattle– –23–6
* .793
* Boston University– –15–5
* .750
* Iona– –18–6
* .750
* Providence– –18–6
* .750
* Air Force– –17–6
* .739
* Pittsburgh– –18–7
* .720
* Boston College– –15–6
* .714
* Fresno State– –19–8
* .704
* Montana State– –18–8
* .692
* Memphis State– –15–7
* .682
* Bucknell– –16–8
* .667
* Loyola (Ill.)– –16–8
* .667
* Saint Joseph's– –18–9
* .667
* Holy Cross– –16–9
* .640
* La Salle– –16–9
* .640
* Loyola (La.)– –16–9
* .640
* Miami (Fla.)– –14–8
* .636
* Xavier– –19–11
* .633
* Portland– –18–11
* .621
* Gonzaga– –16–10
* .615
* Lafayette– –16–10
* .615
* Butler– –15–10
* .600
* Kentucky Wesleyan– –14–10
* .583
* Oklahoma City– –14–12
* .538
* Syracuse– –11–10
* .524
* Washington University– –11–10
* .524
* Villanova– –12–11
* .522
* Army– –13–12
* .520
* Detroit– –13–12
* .520
* Louisville– –13–12
* .520
* Marquette– –11–11
* .500
* Muhlenberg– –12–12
* .500
* Navy– –10–10
* .500
* Georgetown– –10–11
* .476
* Duquesne– –10–12
* .455
* Lehigh– –8–10
* .444
* Penn State– –8–11
* .421
* Delaware– –8–12
* .400
* DePaul– –8–12
* .400
* Florida State– –9–16
* .360
* Valparaiso– –7–14
* .333
* Rutgers– –7–15
* .318
* Colgate– –6–16
* .273
* Seton Hall– –7–19
* .269
* Siena– –5–15
* .250
* Rankings from AP Poll

### Informal championships

| Conference | Regular season winner | Most Valuable Player |
| Philadelphia Big 5 | Temple | Guy Rodgers, Temple |
Temple finished with a 4–0 record in head-to-head competition among the Philadelphia Big 5.

### Statistical leaders

| Points per game | Points per game | Points per game | Rebound Percentage | Rebound Percentage | Rebound Percentage | Field goal percentage | Field goal percentage | Field goal percentage | Free throw percentage | Free throw percentage | Free throw percentage |
| Player | School | PPG | Player | School | REB% | Player | School | FG% | Player | School | FT% |
| Oscar Robertson | Cincinnati | 35.1 | Boo Ellis | Niagara | .262 | Ralph Crosthwaite | W. Kentucky State | 61.0 | Semi Mintz | Davidson | 88.2 |
| Elgin Baylor | Seattle | 32.5 | Al Inniss | St. Francis (NY) | .248 | Oscar Robertson | Cincinnati | 57.1 | Gerald Myers | Texas Tech | 87.0 |
| Wilt Chamberlain | Kansas | 30.1 | Elgin Baylor | Seattle | .235 | Pete Brunone | Manhattan | 56.2 | Arlen Clark | Oklahoma State | 86.5 |
| Bailey Howell | Mississippi State | 27.8 | Wilt Chamberlain | Kansas | .216 | Bob Goodall | Tulsa | 55.7 | Joe Hobbs | Florida | 86.0 |
| Red Murrell | Drake | 26.7 | Joe Cincebox | Syracuse | .206 | Hal Greer | Marshall | 54.6 | Hub Reed | Oklahoma City | 85.1 |

## Polls

The final top 20 from the AP and Coaches Polls.
Associated Press :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | West Virginia |
| 2 | Cincinnati |
| 3 | Kansas State |
| 4 | San Francisco |
| 5 | Temple |
| 6 | Maryland |
| 7 | Kansas |
| 8 | Notre Dame |
| 9 | Kentucky |
| 10 | Duke |
| 11 | Dayton |
| 12 | Indiana |
| 13 | North Carolina |
| 14 | Bradley |
| 15 | Mississippi State |
| 16 | Auburn |
| 17 | Michigan State |
| 18 | Seattle |
| 19 | Oklahoma State |
| 20 | NC State |
Coaches :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | West Virginia |
| 2 | Cincinnati |
| 3 | San Francisco |
| 4 | Kansas State |
| 5 | Temple |
| 6 | Maryland |
| 7 | Notre Dame |
| 8 | Kansas |
| 9 | Dayton |
| 10 | Indiana |
| 11 | Bradley |
| 12 | North Carolina |
| 13 | Duke |
| 14 | Kentucky |
| 15 | Oklahoma State |
| 16 | Oregon State |
| 16 | NC State |
| 18 | St. Bonaventure |
| 19 | Seattle |
| 19 | Michigan State |
| 19 | Wyoming |

## Post-season tournaments
### NCAA tournament

Adolph Rupp's Kentucky Wildcats won their fourth National championship by defeating the Seattle Chieftains 84–72 on March 22 at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. Seattle's Elgin Baylor led all tournament scorers and was named the tournament Most Outstanding Player.

#### Final Four

| National semifinals | National semifinals | National semifinals | National championship game | National championship game | National championship game |
| M2 | Kentucky | 61 | | | |
| W1 | Temple | 60 | | | |
| W1 | Temple | 60 | 2 | Seattle | 72 |
| | | | 1 | Kentucky | 84 |
| S1 | Seattle | 73 | 1 | Kentucky | 84 |
| E3 | Kansas State | 51 | Third place | Third place | Third place |
| | | | 3 | Temple | 67 |
| | | | 4 | Kansas State | 57 |

### National Invitation tournament

The Xavier Musketeers entered the National Invitation Tournament with a 15–11 record, but surprised the field, defeating fellow Ohio school Dayton 78–74 to win the NIT. The Musketeers' Hank Stein was named tournament MVP.

#### NIT Semifinals and Final

Played at Madison Square Garden in New York City
| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| 1 | St. John’s | 56 | | | |
| 3 | Dayton | 80 | | | |
| 3 | Dayton | 80 | 3 | Dayton | 74 |
| | | | 2 | Xavier | 78 |
| 2 | St. Bonaventure | 53 | 2 | Xavier | 78 |
| 2 | Xavier | 72 | Third place | Third place | Third place |
| | | | 1 | St. John's | 69 |
| | | | 2 | St. Bonaventure | 84 |

## Award winners
### Consensus All-American teams

Consensus First Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Elgin Baylor | F | Junior | Seattle |
| Bob Boozer | F | Junior | Kansas State |
| Wilt Chamberlain | C | Junior | Kansas |
| Don Hennon | G | Junior | Pittsburgh |
| Oscar Robertson | G | Sophomore | Cincinnati |
| Guy Rodgers | G | Senior | Temple |
Consensus Second Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Pete Brennan | F | Senior | North Carolina |
| Archie Dees | F/C | Senior | Indiana |
| Mike Farmer | F | Senior | San Francisco |
| Dave Gambee | F | Senior | Oregon State |
| Bailey Howell | F | Junior | Mississippi State |

### Major player of the year awards

* Helms Foundation Player of the Year: Elgin Baylor, Seattle
* UPI Player of the Year: Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati
* Sporting News Player of the Year: Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati

### Major coach of the year awards

* UPI Coach of the Year: Tex Winter, Kansas State

### Other major awards

* Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Guy Rodgers, Temple
* NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in NYC): Jim Cunningham, Fordham

## Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches throughout the season and after the season ended.
| Team | Former Coach | New Coach | Reason |
| Columbia | Lou Rossini | Archie Oldham | |
| Drake | John E. Benington | Maury John | |
| Duquesne | Dudey Moore | Red Manning | |
| Iowa | Bucky O'Connor | Sharm Scheuerman | O'Connor died in an automobile accident on April 22, 1958. |
| La Salle | Jim Pollard | Dudey Moore | |
| Loyola (LA) | Jim Hading | Hank Kuzma | |
| Marquette | Jack Nagle | Eddie Hickey | |
| Memphis State | Eugene Lambert | Bob Vanatta | |
| New Mexico | Bill Stockton | Bob Sweeney | |
| NYU | Howard Cann | Lou Rossini | |
| Ohio State | Floyd Stahl | Fred Taylor | |
| Saint Louis | Eddie Hickey | John E. Benington | |
| Seattle | John Castellani | Vincent Cazzetta | After taking the Chieftains to the NCAA title game, Castellani resigned amid recruiting violations that resulted in a two-year post-season ban for the university. |
| South Carolina | Frank Johnson | Walt Hambrick | |
| Vanderbilt | Bob Polk | Roy Skinner (interim) | Assistant coach Skinner served as interim coach for the season after Polk suffered a heart attack in the fall of 1957. |
| Washington State | Jack Friel | Marv Harshman | |
| Western Michigan | Joe Hoy | Don Boven | |