# 1954–55 NCAA men's basketball season

The 1954–55 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1954, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1955 NCAA basketball tournament championship game on March 19, 1955, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The San Francisco Dons won their first NCAA national championship with a 77–63 victory over the La Salle Explorers.

## Rule changes

* The "one-and-one" free throw was introduced, allowing a player to attempt a second free throw after a foul if he made the first free throw. Previously, a player shot only one free throw after a foul.
* Games once again are divided into two 20-minute halves, as had been the practice through the 1950–51 season. From the 1951–52 season though the 1953–54 season, games had been divided into four 10-minute quarters.

## Season headlines

* Tom Gola of La Salle completed his collegiate career (1952–1955) with a total of 2,462 points and 2,201 rebounds, making him the first player to achieve 2,000 or more points and 2,000 or more rebounds in his career.
* Gola was named the 1955 player of the year by United Press (later United Press International), the first player to be recognized as the national player of the year.
* Head coach Phil Woolpert of San Francisco was named coach of the year by United Press (the future United Press International), becoming the first person to be recognized as national coach of the year.
* The Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League disbanded at the end of the season. Its teams, history, and heritage were absorbed into the Ivy League the following season.

## Season outlook
### Pre-season polls

The Top 20 from the AP Poll and the UP Coaches Poll during the pre-season.
Associated Press :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | La Salle |
| 2 | Kentucky |
| 3 | Duquesne |
| 4 | Iowa |
| 5 | Holy Cross |
| 6 | Indiana |
| 7 | Dayton |
| 8 | Niagara |
| 9 | Notre Dame |
| 10 | NC State |
| 11 | Oklahoma A&M |
| 12 | Saint Louis |
| 13 | UCLA |
| 14 | Illinois |
| 15 | Wichita |
| 16 | Utah |
| 17 (tie) | Duke |
| 17 (tie) | Wake Forest |
| 19 | Penn State |
| 20 | Western Kentucky State |
UP Coaches :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | La Salle |
| 2 | Iowa |
| 3 | Duquesne |
| 4 | Kentucky |
| 5 | Indiana |
| 6 | Illinois |
| 7 | NC State |
| 8 | Holy Cross |
| 9 | UCLA |
| 10 | Niagara |
| 11 | Notre Dame |
| 12 | Dayton |
| 13 (tie) | Saint Louis |
| 13 (tie) | Utah |
| 15 | USC |
| 16 | DePaul |
| 17 (tie) | Oklahoma A&M |
| 17 (tie) | Oregon State |
| 19 | Cincinnati |
| 20 | Wichita |

## Arenas

* Kansas began playing at Allen Fieldhouse late in the season, on March 1, 1955. The arena was named for Kansas's coach at the time, Phog Allen. Allen Fieldhouse would eventually give Kansas one of the top college basketball home-court advantages in the United States.

## Regular season
### Conference
#### 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 | Dickie Hemric, Wake Forest | 1955 ACC men's basketball tournament | Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, North Carolina) | NC State |
| Big Seven Conference | Colorado | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Big Ten Conference | Iowa | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Border Conference | Texas Tech & West Texas A&M | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| California Basketball Association | San Francisco | Ken Sears, Santa Clara | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League | Princeton | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Metropolitan New York Conference | Manhattan | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mid-American Conference | Miami (OH) | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Missouri Valley Conference | Saint Louis & Tulsa | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mountain States (Skyline) Conference | Utah | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ohio Valley Conference | Western Kentucky State | None selected | 1955 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament | Jefferson County Armory (Louisville, Kentucky) | Eastern Kentucky State |
| Pacific Coast Conference | Oregon State (North); UCLA (South) | | No Tournament; Oregon State defeated UCLA in best-of-three conference playoff series | No Tournament; Oregon State defeated UCLA in best-of-three conference playoff series | No Tournament; Oregon State defeated UCLA in best-of-three conference playoff series |
| Southeastern Conference | Kentucky | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Southern Conference | West Virginia | Darrell Floyd, Furman | 1955 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament | Richmond Arena (Richmond, Virginia) | West Virginia |
| Southwest Conference | SMU | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Western New York Little Three Conference | Niagara | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Yankee Conference | Connecticut | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |

#### Conference standings

1954–55 ACC men's basketball standings :
| 1954–55 ACC men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 4 NC State †12–2 .85728–4  .875 Duke11–3 .78620–8  .714 Maryland10–4 .71417–7  .708 Wake Forest8–6 .57117–10  .630 North Carolina8–6 .57110–11  .476 Virginia5–9 .35714–15  .483 South Carolina2–12 .14310–17  .370 Clemson0–14 .0002–21  .087 † 1955 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Big Seven Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 15 Colorado11–1 .91719–6  .760 Missouri9–3 .75016–5  .762 Kansas State6–6 .50011–10  .524 Nebraska6–6 .5009–12  .429 Kansas5–7 .41711–10  .524 Iowa State4–8 .33311–10  .524 Oklahoma1–11 .0833–18  .143 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 5 Iowa11–3 .78619–7  .731 No. 18 Illinois10–4 .71417–5  .773 No. 11 Minnesota10–4 .71415–7  .682 Michigan State8–6 .57113–9  .591 Northwestern7–7 .50012–10  .545 Purdue5–9 .35712–10  .545 Michigan5–9 .35711–11  .500 Wisconsin5–9 .35710–12  .455 Indiana5–9 .3578–14  .364 Ohio State4–10 .28610–12  .455 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1954–55 Border Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT West Texas State9–3 .75015–7  .682 Texas Tech9–3 .75018–7  .720 Texas Western8–4 .66713–8  .619 Arizona State–Tempe8–4 .66710–14  .417 Hardin–Simmons4–8 .3339–15  .375 Arizona3–9 .2508–17  .320 New Mexico A&M1–11 .0836–13  .316 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 California Basketball Association men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 1 San Francisco12–0 1.00028–1  .966 San Jose State7–5 .58316–9  .640 Santa Clara6–6 .50013–11  .542 Pacific4–8 .33311–15  .423 Saint Mary's1–11 .0836–19  .240 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Princeton†10–4 .71413–12  .520 Pennsylvania10–4 .71419–6  .760 Columbia12–5 .70617–8  .680 Dartmouth9–5 .64318–7  .720 Cornell8–6 .57110–13  .435 Brown3–11 .2147–18  .280 Harvard3–11 .2146–17  .261 Yale3–11 .2143–21  .125 † Regular-season championship winner Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1954–55 Metropolitan New York Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Manhattan6–0 1.00018–5  .783 St. John's5–11 .3139–0  1.000 Fordham3–2 .60018–9  .667 St. Francis (NY)3–3 .50018–8  .692 Brooklyn1–3 .2507–11  .389 NYU1–3 .2507–13  .350 CCNY0–6 .0008–10  .444 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Miami (Ohio)11–3 .78614–9  .609 Marshall10–4 .71417–4  .810 Ohio9–5 .64316–5  .762 Western Michigan9–5 .64312–10  .545 Kent State5–9 .3578–14  .364 Bowling Green5–9 .3576–16  .273 Toledo4–10 .2865–17  .227 Western Reserve3–11 .2148–14  .364 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 16 Tulsa8–2 .80021–7  .750 No. 20 Saint Louis8–2 .80020–8  .714 Oklahoma A&M5–5 .50012–13  .480 Wichita Municipal4–6 .40017–9  .654 Houston3–7 .30015–10  .600 Detroit2–8 .20015–11  .577 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1954–55 Mountain States Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 7 Utah13–1 .92924–4  .857 BYU10–4 .71413–13  .500 Utah State9–5 .64315–7  .682 Wyoming9–5 .64317–9  .654 Colorado A&M5–9 .35711–12  .478 Montana4–10 .28612–14  .462 Denver4–10 .2869–14  .391 New Mexico2–12 .1437–17  .292 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Western Kentucky State8–2 .80018–10  .643 Eastern Kentucky State†6–4 .60015–8  .652 Murray State6–4 .60011–15  .423 Morehead State– –14–10  .583 Tennessee Tech– –9–11  .450 Middle Tennessee– –11–16  .407 † Ohio Valley Conference Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT North No. 10 Oregon State †15–1 .93822–8  .733 Oregon8–8 .50013–13  .500 Washington7–9 .43813–12  .520 Washington State5–11 .31311–15  .423 Idaho5–11 .3138–18  .308 South No. 13 UCLA11–1 .91721–5  .808 Stanford7–5 .58317–8  .680 USC5–7 .41714–11  .560 California1–11 .0839–16  .360 † Conference playoff series winner Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1954–55 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 2 Kentucky12–2 .85723–3  .885 No. 12 Alabama11–3 .78619–5  .792 No. 17 Vanderbilt9–5 .64316–6  .727 Tulane9–5 .64314–6  .700 Tennessee8–6 .57115–7  .682 Georgia Tech7–7 .50012–13  .480 Georgia7–7 .5009–16  .360 Auburn6–8 .42911–9  .550 Florida5–9 .35712–10  .545 Ole Miss5–9 .3578–15  .348 LSU3–11 .2146–18  .250 Mississippi State2–12 .1436–17  .261 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Southern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 19 West Virginia †9–1 .90019–11  .633 No. 14 George Washington8–2 .80024–6  .800 Richmond10–4 .71419–9  .679 Washington and Lee8–5 .61516–13  .552 Furman6–4 .60017–10  .630 William & Mary7–5 .58311–14  .440 Davidson4–6 .4008–13  .381 VMI4–9 .3088–15  .348 Virginia Tech4–14 .2227–20  .259 The Citadel0–10 .0000–17  .000 † Southern Conference Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT SMU9–3 .75015–10  .600 TCU8–4 .66717–7  .708 Arkansas8–4 .66714–9  .609 Baylor7–5 .58313–11  .542 Rice6–6 .50010–12  .455 Texas3–9 .2504–20  .167 Texas A&M1–11 .0834–20  .167 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1954–55 Western New York Little Three Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Niagara3–1 .75020–6  .769 Canisius2–2 .50018–7  .720 St. Bonaventure1–3 .25013–10  .565 Rankings from AP Poll | 1954–55 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Connecticut 7–0 1.00020–5  .800 Vermont 4–1 .8006–15  .286 Massachusetts 4–2 .66710–14  .417 Rhode Island 5–3 .62517–10  .630 Maine 1–7 .1254–13  .235 New Hampshire 1–9 .1004–14  .222 |

### Major independents

A total of 44 college teams played as major independents. Among them, Holy Cross (24–3) had the best winning percentage (.889) and La Salle (26–5) finished with the most wins.
1954–55 NCAA men's basketball independents standings :
* 1954–55 NCAA men's basketball independents standings
* vteConfOverall
* TeamW L PCTW L PCT
* No. 8 Marquette– –24–3
* .889
* Lafayette– –23–3
* .885
* No. 9 Dayton– –25–4
* .862
* No. 6 Duquesne– –22–4
* .846
* No. 3 La Salle– –26–5
* .839
* Seattle– –22–7
* .759
* Holy Cross– –19–7
* .731
* DePaul– –16–6
* .727
* Cincinnati– –21–8
* .724
* Louisville– –19–8
* .704
* Seton Hall– –17–9
* .654
* Penn State– –18–10
* .643
* Villanova– –18–10
* .643
* Loyola (Calif.)– –16–9
* .640
* John Carroll– –14–9
* .609
* Loyola (La.)– –14–9
* .609
* Notre Dame– –14–10
* .583
* Gonzaga– –15–11
* .577
* Muhlenberg– –14–11
* .560
* Colgate– –11–9
* .550
* Navy– –11–9
* .550
* Loyola (Ill.)– –13–11
* .542
* Valparaiso– –13–11
* .542
* Temple– –11–10
* .524
* Army– –9–9
* .500
* Xavier– –13–13
* .500
* Georgetown– –12–13
* .480
* Iona– –10–11
* .476
* Lehigh– –10–11
* .476
* Syracuse– –10–11
* .476
* Saint Joseph's– –12–14
* .462
* Miami (Fla.)– –9–11
* .450
* Drake– –9–12
* .429
* Butler– –10–14
* .417
* Portland– –9–13
* .409
* Pittsburgh– –10–16
* .385
* Washington University– –8–14
* .364
* Oklahoma City– –9–18
* .333
* Bradley– –9–20
* .310
* Boston College– –8–18
* .308
* Creighton– –5–14
* .263
* Siena– –3–13
* .188
* Bucknell– –3–18
* .143
* Rutgers– –2–22
* .083
* Rankings from AP Poll

### Statistical leaders
## Post-season tournaments
### NCAA tournament
#### Final Four

| National semifinals | National semifinals | National finals | National finals |
| Iowa | 73 | | |
| La Salle | 76 | | |
| La Salle | 76 | La Salle | 63 |
| | | San Francisco | 77 |
| Colorado | 50 | San Francisco | 77 |
| San Francisco | 62 | Third place | Third place |
| | | Iowa | 54 |
| | | Colorado | 75 |

### National Invitation tournament
#### Semifinals & finals

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals |
| Duquesne | 65 | | |
| Cincinnati | 61 | | |
| Cincinnati | 61 | Duquesne | 70 |
| | | Dayton | 58 |
| St. Francis (Pa.) | 73 | Dayton | 58 |
| Dayton | 79 | Third place | Third place |
| | | Cincinnati | 96 |
| | | St. Francis (Pa.) | 91 |

## Awards
### Consensus All-American teams

Consensus First Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Dick Garmaker | G | Senior | Minnesota |
| Tom Gola | F | Senior | La Salle |
| Sihugo Green | G | Junior | Duquesne |
| Dick Ricketts | F/C | Senior | Duquesne |
| Bill Russell | C | Junior | San Francisco |
Consensus Second Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Darrell Floyd | G | Junior | Furman |
| Robin Freeman | G | Junior | Ohio State |
| Dickie Hemric | C | Senior | Wake Forest |
| Don Schlundt | C | Senior | Indiana |
| Ronnie Shavlik | F/C | Junior | North Carolina State |

### Major player of the year awards

* Helms Player of the Year: Bill Russell, San Francisco
* UP Player of the Year: Tom Gola, La Salle

### Major coach of the year awards

* UP Coach of the Year: Phil Woolpert, San Francisco

### Other major awards

* NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Ed Conlin, Fordham

## Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.
| Team | Former Coach | New Coach |
| La Salle | Ken Loeffler | Jim Pollard |
| Oklahoma | Bruce Drake | Doyle Parrack |
| Oklahoma City | Doyle Parrack | Abe Lemons |
| Texas A&M | John Floyd | Ken Loeffler |