# 1952–53 NCAA men's basketball season

The 1952–53 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1952, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1953 NCAA basketball tournament championship game on March 18, 1953, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The Indiana Hoosiers won their second NCAA national championship with a 69–68 victory over the Kansas Jayhawks.

## Rule changes

Teams must take a free throw after a foul, as had been the practice through the 1938–39 season. Previously, under a rule that had been in effect since the 1939–40 season, a team could waive its free throw and instead take the ball at mid-court after a foul.

## Season headlines

* Prior to the season, the NCAA ruled that colleges and universities could no longer count games played against non-collegiate opponents in their annual won-loss records. Previously, it had been a common practice for many years for colleges and universities to include non-collegiate opponents in their schedules, with the games recognized as part of their official record for the season.
* The California Basketball Association began play, with five original members. It would be renamed the West Coast Athletic Conference in 1956 and the West Coast Conference in 1989.
* The NCAA forced Kentucky to suspend its men's basketball program for the entire 1952–53 season as a result of the CCNY point-shaving scandal, which had been revealed in 1951.
* The NCAA tournament expanded from 16 to 22 teams.
* Bill Chambers of William and Mary grabbed 51 rebounds against Virginia on February 14, 1953, becoming the first player with more than 50 rebounds in one game.
* Bob Houbregs of Washington became the first player to score 40 or more points in an NCAA tournament Final Four game when he scored 42 against LSU in the national third-place game on March 18, 1953.
* Walter Dukes of Seton Hall finished the season with 734 rebounds for the year, the first player to grab 700 rebounds in a single 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 | Kansas State |
| 3 | Illinois |
| 4 | Seton Hall |
| 5 | Oklahoma A&M |
| 6 | NC State |
| 7 | Notre Dame |
| 8 | Holy Cross |
| 9 | Washington |
| 10 | LSU |
| 11 | Western Kentucky State |
| 12 | UCLA |
| 13 | Oklahoma City |
| 14 | St. Bonaventure |
| 15 | Tulsa |
| 16 | Minnesota |
| 17 | Saint Louis |
| 18 | California |
| 19 | Indiana |
| 20 (tie) | Navy |
| 20 (tie) | Kansas |
UP Coaches :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | Illinois |
| 2 | Kansas State |
| 3 | La Salle |
| 4 | Washington |
| 5 | NC State |
| 6 | Oklahoma A&M |
| 7 | UCLA |
| 8 | Indiana |
| 9 | Seton Hall |
| 10 | Saint Louis |
| 11 | Holy Cross |
| 12 | Santa Clara |
| 13 | Notre Dame |
| 14 | Duquesne |
| 15 | Wyoming |
| 16 | St. John's |
| 17 (tie) | BYU |
| 17 (tie) | Minnesota |
| 19 | Kansas |
| 20 | St. Bonaventure |

## Conference membership changes

| School | Former conference | New conference |
| Arizona State College-Flagstaff Lumberjacks | Border Conference | Non-major basketball program |
| Bowling Green State Falcons | Independent | Mid-American Conference |
| Evansville Purple Aces | Ohio Valley Conference | Non-major basketball program |
| Marshall Thundering Herd | Ohio Valley Conference | Independent |
| Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders | Non-major basketball program | Ohio Valley Conference |
| Pacific Tigers | Non-major basketball program | California Basketball Association |
| Saint Mary's (Calif.) Gaels | Independent | California Basketball Association |
| San Francisco Dons | Independent | California Basketball Association |
| San Jose State Spartans | Independent | California Basketball Association |
| Santa Clara Broncos | Independent | California Basketball Association |

## Regular season
### Conferences
#### Conference winners and tournaments

| Conference | Regular season winner | Conference player of the year | Conference tournament | Tournament venue (City) | Tournament winner |
| Big Seven Conference | Kansas | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Big Ten Conference | Indiana | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Border Conference | Arizona & Hardin-Simmons | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| California Basketball Association | Santa Clara | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League | Penn | 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 | Oklahoma A&M | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mountain States (Skyline) Conference | Wyoming | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ohio Valley Conference | Eastern Kentucky State | None selected | 1953 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament | Jefferson County Armory (Louisville, Kentucky) | Western Kentucky State |
| Pacific Coast Conference | Washington (North); California (South) | | No Tournament; Washington defeated California in best-of-three conference championship playoff series | No Tournament; Washington defeated California in best-of-three conference championship playoff series | No Tournament; Washington defeated California in best-of-three conference championship playoff series |
| Southeastern Conference | LSU | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Southern Conference | NC State | Frank Selvy, Furman | 1953 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament | Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, North Carolina) | Wake Forest |
| Southwest Conference | TCU | 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

1952–53 Big Seven Conference men's basketball standings :
| 1952–53 Big Seven Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 3 Kansas10–2 .83319–6  .760 No. 12 Kansas State9–3 .75017–4  .810 Missouri6–6 .50011–9  .550 Iowa State5–7 .41710–11  .476 Oklahoma5–7 .4178–13  .381 Nebraska4–8 .3339–11  .450 Colorado3–9 .25010–11  .476 Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 1 Indiana17–1 .94423–3  .885 No. 11 Illinois14–4 .77818–4  .818 Minnesota11–7 .61114–8  .636 Michigan State11–7 .61113–9  .591 Wisconsin10–8 .55613–9  .591 Iowa9–9 .50012–10  .545 Ohio State7–11 .38910–12  .455 Northwestern5–13 .2786–16  .273 Michigan3–15 .1676–16  .273 Purdue3–15 .1674–18  .182 Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Border Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Hardin–Simmons11–3 .78619–12  .613 Arizona11–3 .78613–11  .542 Arizona State–Tempe10–4 .71413–12  .520 Texas Tech9–5 .64312–10  .545 West Texas State5–9 .3578–13  .381 New Mexico A&M5–9 .3577–17  .292 Texas Western3–11 .2144–21  .160 Arizona State–Flagstaff2–12 .1434–19  .174 † Regular-season co-championship winner Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1952–53 California Basketball Association men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 16 Santa Clara†6–2 .75017–7  .708 San Francisco6–2 .75010–11  .476 San Jose State4–4 .50015–8  .652 Saint Mary's4–4 .5009–11  .450 Pacific– –2–18  .100 † Regular-season championship winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Pennsylvania10–2 .83322–5  .815 Columbia8–4 .66717–6  .739 Cornell6–6 .5009–12  .429 Yale6–6 .50010–15  .400 Dartmouth5–7 .41712–14  .462 Princeton5–7 .4179–14  .391 Harvard2–10 .1677–16  .304 Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Metropolitan New York Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Manhattan6–0 1.00020–6  .769 No. 7 St. John's5–1 .83317–6  .739 Fordham4–2 .66718–8  .692 St. Francis (NY)2–3 .40019–7  .731 NYU1–3 .2509–11  .450 CCNY1–5 .16710–6  .625 Brooklyn0–5 .0006–11  .353 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1952–53 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Miami (Ohio)10–2 .83317–6  .739 Toledo9–3 .75016–7  .696 Cincinnati9–3 .75011–13  .458 Western Michigan6–6 .50012–9  .571 Ohio4–8 .3339–13  .409 Kent State3–9 .2507–15  .318 Western Reserve1–11 .0835–17  .227 Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 8 Oklahoma A&M8–2 .80023–7  .767 Tulsa5–5 .50015–10  .600 Saint Louis5–5 .50016–11  .593 Houston5–5 .5009–13  .409 Detroit4–6 .40012–14  .462 Wichita Municipal3–7 .30016–11  .593 Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Mountain States Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Wyoming12–2 .85720–10  .667 BYU11–3 .78622–8  .733 Utah State7–7 .50017–13  .567 Montana6–8 .42914–11  .560 Colorado A&M5–9 .35712–14  .462 New Mexico5–9 .35710–14  .417 Utah5–9 .35710–14  .417 Denver5–9 .3579–16  .360 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1952–53 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Eastern Kentucky State9–1 .90016–9  .640 No. 17 Western Kentucky State†8–2 .80025–6  .806 Murray State– –18–9  .667 Tennessee Tech– –14–11  .560 Morehead State– –13–12  .520 Middle Tennessee– –7–16  .304 † Ohio Valley Conference Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT North No. 4 Washington †15–1 .93830–3  .909 Idaho8–8 .50015–12  .556 Oregon8–8 .50014–14  .500 Oregon State6–10 .37511–18  .379 Washington State3–13 .1887–27  .206 South California9–3 .75016–10  .615 USC7–5 .58317–5  .773 UCLA6–0 1.00016–8  .667 Stanford2–10 .1677–20  .259 † Conference playoff series winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 5 LSU13–0 1.00022–3  .880 Tulane9–4 .69212–6  .667 Florida8–5 .61513–6  .684 Tennessee7–6 .53813–8  .619 Auburn6–7 .46213–8  .619 Alabama6–7 .46212–9  .571 Ole Miss5–8 .38514–11  .560 Vanderbilt5–8 .38510–9  .526 Mississippi State5–8 .3859–10  .474 Georgia Tech4–9 .3085–17  .227 Georgia3–10 .2317–18  .280 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1952–53 Southern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 18 North Carolina State13–3 .81326–6  .813 No. 15 Wake Forest †12–3 .80019–6  .760 Maryland12–3 .80015–8  .652 West Virginia11–3 .78619–17  .528 Furman10–3 .76921–6  .778 Duke12–4 .75017–8  .680 Richmond13–5 .72221–7  .750 North Carolina15–6 .71417–10  .630 George Washington12–6 .66715–7  .682 Clemson6–8 .4298–10  .444 South Carolina7–12 .36811–13  .458 William & Mary6–13 .31610–13  .435 Virginia Tech4–13 .2354–19  .174 Davidson3–14 .1764–16  .200 VMI1–14 .0675–19  .208 Washington and Lee1–17 .0562–20  .091 The Citadel0–11 .0004–14  .222 † Southern Conference Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT TCU9–3 .75016–8  .667 Rice8–4 .66715–6  .714 Texas8–4 .66712–9  .571 Baylor6–6 .50010–11  .476 Arkansas4–8 .33310–11  .476 SMU4–8 .3338–12  .400 Texas A&M3–9 .2506–15  .286 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1952–53 Western New York Little Three Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Niagara4–0 1.00022–6  .786 St. Bonaventure1–3 .25010–11  .476 Canisius1–3 .2509–14  .391 Rankings from AP Poll | 1952–53 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Connecticut 5–1 .83317–4  .810 Rhode Island 6–2 .75013–10  .565 Maine 3–4 .4297–10  .412 Vermont 1–2 .33311–10  .524 New Hampshire 2–5 .2868–10  .444 Massachusetts 1–4 .2004–15  .211 |

### Major independents

A total of 44 college teams played as major independents. Among them, Seton Hall (31–2) finished with both the best winning percentage (.939) and the most wins.
Although not considered a major independent during the season, Southwest Missouri State (24–4) played as an independent and was ranked No. 20 in the season's final AP Poll.
1952–53 NCAA men's basketball independents standings :
* 1952–53 NCAA men's basketball independents standings
* vteConfOverall
* TeamW L PCTW L PCT
* No. 2 Seton Hall– –31–2
* .939
* No. 14 Seattle– –29–3
* .906
* No. 6 La Salle– –25–3
* .893
* No. 10 Notre Dame– –19–5
* .792
* Louisville– –22–6
* .786
* No. 13 Holy Cross– –20–6
* .769
* Navy– –16–5
* .762
* Oklahoma City– –18–6
* .750
* No. 9 Duquesne– –21–8
* .724
* Villanova– –19–8
* .704
* No. 19 DePaul– –19–9
* .679
* Georgetown– –13–7
* .650
* Penn State– –15–9
* .625
* Temple– –16–10
* .615
* Butler– –14–9
* .609
* Lehigh– –12–8
* .600
* Baldwin Wallace– –13–9
* .591
* Army– –11–8
* .579
* Colgate– –12–9
* .571
* Muhlenberg– –13–10
* .565
* St. Joseph's– –14–11
* .560
* Bradley– –15–12
* .556
* Dayton– –16–13
* .552
* Marquette– –13–11
* .542
* Pittsburgh– –12–11
* .522
* Drake– –13–12
* .520
* Lafayette– –13–12
* .520
* Loyola (La.)– –14–13
* .519
* Gonzaga– –15–14
* .517
* Loyola (Calif.)– –14–14
* .500
* John Carroll– –13–14
* .481
* Xavier– –11–12
* .478
* Siena– –10–11
* .476
* Bowling Green State– –12–15
* .444
* Creighton– –11–14
* .440
* Virginia– –10–13
* .435
* Miami (Fla.)– –9–12
* .429
* Syracuse– –7–11
* .389
* Rutgers– –8–13
* .381
* Valparaiso– –9–15
* .375
* Loyola (Ill.)– –8–15
* .348
* Boston College– –7–15
* .318
* Brown– –5–14
* .263
* Bucknell– –3–16
* .158
* Rankings from AP Poll

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

| National semifinals | National semifinals | National finals | National finals |
| LSU | 67 | | |
| Indiana | 80 | | |
| Indiana | 80 | Indiana | 69 |
| | | Kansas | 68 |
| Kansas | 79 | Kansas | 68 |
| Washington | 53 | Third place | Third place |
| | | LSU | 69 |
| | | Washington | 88 |

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

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals |
| St. John's | 64 | | |
| Duquesne | 55 | | |
| Duquesne | 55 | St. John's | 46 |
| | | Seton Hall | 58 |
| Manhattan | 56 | Seton Hall | 58 |
| Seton Hall | 74 | Third place | Third place |
| | | Duquesne | 81 |
| | | Manhattan | 67 |

## Awards
### Consensus All-American teams

Consensus First Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Ernie Beck | F | Senior | Pennsylvania |
| Walter Dukes | C | Senior | Seton Hall |
| Tom Gola | F | Sophomore | La Salle |
| Bob Houbregs | F | Senior | Washington |
| Johnny O'Brien | G | Senior | Seattle |
Consensus Second Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Dick Knostman | F | Senior | Kansas State |
| Bob Pettit | C | Junior | Louisiana State |
| Joe Richey | G | Senior | Brigham Young |
| Don Schlundt | C | Sophomore | Indiana |
| Frank Selvy | G | Junior | Furman |

### Major player of the year awards

* Helms Player of the Year: Bob Houbregs, Washington

### Other major awards

* NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Walter Dukes, Seton Hall

## Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.
| Team | Former Coach | New Coach |
| Kansas State | Jack Gardner | Tex Winter |
| Marquette | Tex Winter | Jack Nagle |
| Pittsburgh | Doc Carlson | Bob Timmons |
| Utah | Vadal Peterson | Jack Gardner |