# 1964–65 NCAA University Division men's basketball season

The 1964–65 NCAA University Division men's basketball season began in December 1964, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1965 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 20, 1965, at Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Oregon. The UCLA Bruins won their second NCAA national championship with a 91–80 victory over the Michigan Wolverines.

## Season headlines

* The Associated Press (AP) Poll introduced a preseason Top 20, but during the season continued to rank only the Top 10 teams, as it had done since the 1961–62 season.
* The NCAA tournament contracted from 25 to 23 teams.
* The National Invitation Tournament expanded from 12 to 14 teams.
* UCLA won its second consecutive national championship, as well as its second overall.
* Bill Bradley of Princeton became the first player to score 50 or more points in an NCAA tournament Final Four game, scoring 58 against Wichita State in the national third-place game on March 20, 1965.

## Season outlook
### Pre-season polls

The Top 20 from the AP Poll and the UPI Coaches Poll during the pre-season.
Associated Press :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | Michigan |
| 2 | UCLA |
| 3 | Wichita State |
| 4 | Davidson |
| 5 | Duke |
| 6 | Vanderbilt |
| 7 | Syracuse |
| 8 | Kansas State |
| 9 | San Francisco |
| 10 | St. John's |
| 11 (tie) | Kentucky |
| 11 (tie) | Minnesota |
| 13 | North Carolina |
| 14 | Bradley |
| 15 | Seattle |
| 16 | Villanova |
| 17 | Notre Dame |
| 18 | Kansas |
| 19 | BYU |
| 20 | DePaul |
UPI Coaches :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | Michigan |
| 2 | UCLA |
| 3 | Davidson |
| 4 | Wichita State |
| 5 | Duke |
| 6 | Vanderbilt |
| 7 | San Francisco |
| 8 | North Carolina |
| 9 | Seattle |
| 10 | Minnesota |
| 11 | Kansas |
| 12 | Syracuse |
| 13 | Villanova |
| 14 | Kansas State |
| 15 (tie) | Kentucky |
| 15 (tie) | St. John's |
| 17 | BYU |
| 18 | Saint Louis |
| 19 | Notre Dame |
| 20 | DePaul |

## Conference membership changes

| School | Former conference | New conference |
| Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets | Southeastern Conference | NCAA University Division independent |
| Louisville Cardinals | NCAA University Division independent | Missouri Valley Conference |
| Oregon Ducks | NCAA University Division independent | Athletic Association of Western Universities |
| Oregon State Beavers | NCAA University Division independent | Athletic Association of Western Universities |
| Saint Peter's Peacocks | NCAA College Division independent | NCAA University Division independent |

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

| Conference | Regular season winner | Conference player of the year | Conference tournament | Tournament venue (City) | Tournament winner |
| Athletic Association of Western Universities | UCLA | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Atlantic Coast Conference | Duke | Billy Cunningham, North Carolina | 1965 ACC men's basketball tournament | Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, North Carolina) | NC State |
| Big Eight Conference | Oklahoma State | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Big Sky Conference | Weber State | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Big Ten Conference | Michigan | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ivy League | Princeton | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mid-American Conference | Ohio | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Middle Atlantic Conference | Saint Joseph's | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Missouri Valley Conference | Wichita State | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ohio Valley Conference | Eastern Kentucky State | Clem Haskins, Western Kentucky State | 1965 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament | Jefferson County Armory (Louisville, Kentucky) | Western Kentucky State |
| Southeastern Conference | Vanderbilt | Clyde Lee, Vanderbilt | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Southern Conference | Davidson | Fred Hetzel, Davidson | 1965 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament | Charlotte Coliseum (Charlotte, North Carolina) | West Virginia |
| Southwest Conference | SMU & Texas | John Beasley, Texas A&M | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| West Coast Athletic Conference | San Francisco | Ollie Johnson, San Francisco | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Western Athletic Conference | BYU | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Yankee Conference | Connecticut | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |

#### Conference standings

1964–65 AAWU Conference men's basketball standings :
| 1964–65 AAWU Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 2 UCLA14–0 1.00028–2  .933 Stanford9–5 .64315–8  .652 USC8–6 .57114–12  .538 Oregon State7–7 .50016–10  .615 Washington State6–8 .4299–17  .346 Washington5–9 .3579–16  .360 California4–10 .2868–15  .348 Oregon3–11 .2149–17  .346 As of November 25, 2011 Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 ACC men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 10 Duke11–3 .78620–5  .800 NC State †10–4 .71421–5  .808 Maryland10–4 .71418–8  .692 North Carolina10–4 .71415–9  .625 Wake Forest6–8 .42912–15  .444 Clemson4–10 .2868–15  .348 Virginia3–11 .2147–18  .280 South Carolina2–12 .1436–17  .261 † 1965 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 Big Eight Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Oklahoma State12–2 .85720–7  .741 Kansas9–5 .64317–8  .680 Missouri8–6 .57113–11  .542 Colorado8–6 .57113–12  .520 Iowa State6–8 .4299–16  .360 Kansas State5–9 .35712–13  .480 Nebraska5–9 .35710–15  .400 Oklahoma3–11 .2148–17  .320 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1964–65 Big Sky men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Weber State8–2 .80022–3  .880 Gonzaga6–4 .60018–8  .692 Montana State6–4 .60015–10  .600 Idaho4–6 .4006–19  .240 Idaho State4–6 .4007–19  .269 Montana2–8 .20011–15  .423 | 1964–65 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 1 Michigan13–1 .92924–4  .857 No. 7 Minnesota11–3 .78619–5  .792 Illinois10–4 .71418–6  .750 Indiana9–5 .64319–5  .792 Iowa8–6 .57114–10  .583 Ohio State6–3 .66712–12  .500 Purdue5–9 .35712–12  .500 Wisconsin4–10 .2869–13  .409 Northwestern3–11 .2147–17  .292 Michigan State1–13 .0715–18  .217 Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 Ivy League men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Princeton13–1 .92923–6  .793 Cornell11–3 .78619–5  .792 Penn10–4 .71415–10  .600 Yale7–7 .50010–12  .455 Harvard6–8 .42911–12  .478 Columbia5–9 .3577–15  .318 Brown3–11 .2147–17  .292 Dartmouth1–13 .0714–21  .160 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1964–65 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Ohio11–1 .91719–7  .731 Miami (Ohio)11–1 .91720–5  .800 Toledo6–6 .50013–11  .542 Bowling Green State6–6 .5009–15  .375 Kent State4–8 .3339–11  .450 Western Michigan3–9 .2508–16  .333 Marshall1–11 .0834–20  .167 Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 MAC men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 3 Saint Joseph's†5–0 1.00026–3  .897 La Salle5–1 .83315–8  .652 Lafayette8–3 .72712–8  .600 Temple4–3 .57114–10  .583 Bucknell4–5 .44411–13  .458 Gettysburg4–6 .40012–11  .522 Lehigh4–6 .4007–13  .350 Delaware0–10 .0003–17  .150 † Regular-season championship winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Wichita State11–3 .78621–9  .700 Bradley9–5 .64318–9  .667 Saint Louis9–5 .64318–9  .667 Louisville8–6 .57115–10  .600 Tulsa7–7 .50014–11  .560 Drake6–8 .42915–10  .600 Cincinnati5–9 .35714–12  .538 North Texas State1–13 .0717–19  .269 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1964–65 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Eastern Kentucky State13–1 .92919–6  .760 Western Kentucky State10–4 .71418–9  .667 Murray State9–5 .64319–7  .731 Tennessee Tech8–6 .57114–11  .560 Morehead State6–8 .42913–10  .565 East Tennessee State4–10 .2866–17  .261 Middle Tennessee4–10 .2866–18  .250 Austin Peay State2–12 .1434–17  .190 Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 5 Vanderbilt15–1 .93824–4  .857 Tennessee12–4 .75020–5  .800 Florida11–5 .68818–7  .720 Auburn11–5 .68816–9  .640 Kentucky10–6 .62515–10  .600 Alabama9–7 .56317–9  .654 LSU7–9 .43812–14  .462 Mississippi State6–10 .37510–16  .385 Georgia4–12 .2508–18  .308 Tulane2–14 .1253–22  .120 Ole Miss1–15 .0634–21  .160 Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 Southern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 6 Davidson12–0 1.00024–2  .923 Virginia Tech9–5 .64313–10  .565 The Citadel8–4 .66713–11  .542 West Virginia †8–6 .57114–15  .483 George Washington6–7 .46210–13  .435 William & Mary6–8 .42912–13  .480 Richmond6–10 .37510–16  .385 VMI5–9 .3578–13  .381 Furman2–13 .1336–19  .240 † Tournament winner As of April 30, 1965 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1964–65 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Texas†10–4 .71416–9  .640 SMU†10–4 .71417–10  .630 Baylor8–6 .57115–9  .625 Texas A&M7–7 .50014–10  .583 Arkansas5–9 .3579–14  .391 TCU3–11 .2146–18  .250 Rice1–13 .0712–22  .083 Texas Tech12–2 .85717–6  .739 † Regular-season co-championship winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT San Francisco13–1 .92924–5  .828 Santa Clara9–5 .64314–12  .538 San Jose State– –14–10  .583 Pacific8–6 .57113–12  .520 UC Santa Barbara7–7 .50012–14  .462 Saint Mary's5–9 .3578–18  .308 Pepperdine3–11 .2146–19  .240 Loyola (Calif.)2–12 .1436–20  .231 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1964–65 WAC men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 9 BYU8–2 .80021–7  .750 New Mexico5–5 .50019–8  .704 Arizona5–5 .50017–9  .654 Wyoming5–5 .50016–10  .615 Arizona State4–6 .40013–14  .481 Utah3–7 .30017–9  .654 Rankings from AP Poll | 1964–65 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Connecticut 10–0 1.00023–3  .885 Massachusetts 8–2 .80013–11  .542 Rhode Island 6–4 .60015–11  .577 Maine 4–6 .40013–10  .565 Vermont 1–9 .1007–13  .350 New Hampshire 1–9 .1002–19  .095 |

### University Division independents

A total of 53 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, Providence (24–2) had both the best winning percentage (.923) and the most wins.
1964–65 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings :
* 1964–65 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings
* vteConfOverall
* TeamW L PCTW L PCT
* No. 4 Providence– –24–2
* .923
* Miami– –22–4
* .846
* Penn State– –20–4
* .833
* No. 8 Villanova– –23–5
* .821
* Dayton– –22–7
* .759
* Boston College– –21–7
* .750
* Seattle– –19–7
* .731
* Army– –21–8
* .724
* St. John's– –21–8
* .724
* Detroit– –20–8
* .714
* Hardin–Simmons– –17–8
* .680
* Oklahoma City– –21–10
* .677
* Colorado State– –16–8
* .667
* Fairfield– –14–7
* .667
* Houston– –19–10
* .655
* St. Bonaventure– –15–8
* .652
* Texas Western– –16–9
* .640
* West Texas State– –16–9
* .640
* DePaul– –17–10
* .630
* Florida State– –16–10
* .615
* NYU– –16–10
* .615
* Manhattan– –13–9
* .591
* Duquesne– –14–10
* .583
* Creighton– –13–10
* .565
* Georgetown– –13–10
* .565
* Holy Cross– –13–10
* .565
* Syracuse– –13–10
* .565
* Georgia Tech– –14–11
* .560
* Fordham– –15–12
* .556
* Notre Dame– –15–12
* .556
* St. Francis (NY)– –11–9
* .550
* Centenary– –13–11
* .542
* Iona– –12–11
* .522
* Utah State– –13–12
* .520
* Rutgers– –12–12
* .500
* Boston University– –10–10
* .500
* Navy– –10–10
* .500
* Portland– –12–13
* .480
* Seton Hall– –12–13
* .480
* Canisius– –10–12
* .455
* Denver– –11–14
* .440
* Loyola Chicago– –11–14
* .440
* Butler– –11–15
* .423
* Memphis State– –10–14
* .417
* Saint Francis (PA)– –10–15
* .400
* Xavier– –10–15
* .400
* Air Force– –9–14
* .391
* Loyola (LA)– –8–16
* .333
* Marquette– –8–18
* .308
* New Mexico State– –8–18
* .308
* Colgate– –7–16
* .304
* Pittsburgh– –7–16
* .304
* Niagara– –4–17
* .190
* Rankings from AP Poll

### Informal championships

| Conference | Regular season winner | Most Valuable Player |
| Philadelphia Big 5 | Saint Joseph's | Jim Washington, Villanova |
Saint Joseph's finished with a 4–0 record in head-to-head competition among the Philadelphia Big 5.

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

| National semifinals | National semifinals | National semifinals | National finals | National finals | National finals |
| E | Princeton | 76 | | | |
| ME | Michigan | 93 | | | |
| ME | Michigan | 93 | ME | Michigan | 80 |
| | | | W | UCLA | 91 |
| MW | Wichita State | 89 | W | UCLA | 91 |
| W | UCLA | 108 | Third place | Third place | Third place |
| | | | E | Princeton | 118 |
| | | | MW | Wichita State | 82 |

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

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals |
| Villanova | 91 | | |
| NYU | 69 | | |
| NYU | 69 | Villanova | 51 |
| | | St. John's | 55 |
| St. John's | 67 | St. John's | 55 |
| Army | 60 | Third place | Third place |
| | | NYU | 74 |
| | | Army | 75 |

## Awards
### Consensus All-American teams

Consensus First Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Rick Barry | F | Senior | Miami (FL) |
| Bill Bradley | F | Senior | Princeton |
| Gail Goodrich | G | Senior | UCLA |
| Fred Hetzel | F | Senior | Davidson |
| Cazzie Russell | F | Junior | Michigan |
Consensus Second Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Bill Buntin | F | Senior | Michigan |
| Wayne Estes | F | Senior | Utah State |
| Clyde Lee | F | Junior | Vanderbilt |
| Dave Schellhase | G/F | Junior | Purdue |
| Dave Stallworth | F | Senior | Wichita State |

### Major player of the year awards

* Helms Player of the Year: Bill Bradley, Princeton, & Gail Goodrich, UCLA
* Associated Press Player of the Year: Bill Bradley, Princeton
* UPI Player of the Year: Bill Bradley, Princeton
* Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA): Bill Bradley, Princeton
* Sporting News Player of the Year: Bill Bradley, Princeton

### Major coach of the year awards

* Henry Iba Award: Butch van Breda Kolff, Princeton
* NABC Coach of the Year: Butch van Breda Kolff, Princeton
* UPI Coach of the Year: Dave Strack, Michigan

### Other major awards

* Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Jim Washington, Villanova
* NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Warren Isaac, Iona

## Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.
| Team | Former Coach | New Coach | Reason |
| Army | Tates Locke | Bob Knight | Locke left to become freshman coach at Miami (Ohio) and was replaced by his 24-year-old assistant, future Hall of Fame coach Knight. |
| Bradley | Chuck Orsborn | Joe Stowell | Orsborn was promoted to Bradley Athletic Director and passed on head coaching duties to assistant Stowell. |
| Cincinnati | Ed Jucker | Tay Baker | |
| Georgia | Harbin Lawson | Ken Rosemond | |
| Holy Cross | Frank Oftring | Jack Donohue | Oftring retired from coaching and was replaced with Donohue, who had been prized recruit Lew Alcindor's coach at Power Memorial Academy. |
| Indiana | Branch McCracken | Lou Watson | |
| LSU | Jay McCreary | Frank Truitt | |
| Mississippi State | Babe McCarthy | Joe Dan Gold | |
| St. John's | Joe Lapchick | Lou Carnesecca | |
| Wake Forest | Bones McKinney | Jack Murdock | |