# 1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball season

The 1956–57 NCAA men's University Division basketball season began in December 1956. It progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1957 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 23, 1957, at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The North Carolina Tar Heels won their first NCAA national championship with a 54–53 triple-overtime victory over the Kansas Jayhawks.

## Rule changes

* The width of the free throw lane (also known as the "key"), increased from 6 to 12 feet (1.8 to 3.7 m).
* When teams lined up along the key for a free throw, it became mandatory that the two spaces adjacent to the end line be occupied by opponents of the player shooting the free throw. Previously, one player from each team occupied the spaces adjacent to the end line, with a player from the home team occupying a space marked "H" and a player from the visiting team occupying a space marked "V."
* Grasping the rim of the basket was deemed a form of unsportsmanlike conduct.

## Season headlines

* This was the first season in which NCAA basketball was split into two levels of play – the University Division for 156 schools competing at the highest level of play and the College Division for 285 teams playing at lower levels with limited or no scholarships. It also was the first season in which the NCAA held more than one championship tournament — a 24-team tournament for the University Division and a 32-team tournament for the College Division. In 1973, the University Division would be replaced by Division I and the College Division by Division II and Division III.
* The California Basketball Association was renamed the West Coast Athletic Conference. It would be renamed the West Coast Conference in 1989.
* In the 1957 NCAA University Division basketball tournament, Forddy Anderson of Michigan State and Frank McGuire of North Carolina became the first head coaches to take two different teams to the NCAA tournament Final Four. Anderson had done it previously with Bradley in 1950 and McGuire with St. John's in 1952. McGuire also became the first head coach to take two different teams to the national championship game, having also done that with St. John's in 1952.
* In 1957, the Helms Athletic Foundation retroactively selected its national champions for the seasons from 1900–01 through 1918–19.

## 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 | Kansas |
| 2 | Louisville |
| 3 | North Carolina |
| 4 | Illinois |
| 5 | SMU |
| 6 | Dayton |
| 7 | Temple |
| 8 | San Francisco |
| 9 | Saint Louis |
| 10 | Western Kentucky State |
| 11 | West Virginia |
| 12 | Oklahoma City |
| 13 | Oregon State |
| 14 | Kentucky |
| 15 | Washington |
| 16 (tie) | NC State |
| 16 (tie) | St. John's |
| 18 | Kansas State |
| 19 | Vanderbilt |
| 20 | Wyoming |
UP Coaches :
| Ranking | Team |
| 1 | Kansas |
| 2 | Louisville |
| 3 | North Carolina |
| 4 | Illinois |
| 5 | SMU |
| 6 | Dayton |
| 7 | Temple |
| 8 | San Francisco |
| 9 | Saint Louis |
| 10 | Western Kentucky State |
| 11 | West Virginia |
| 12 | Oklahoma City |
| 13 | Oregon State |
| 14 | Kentucky |
| 15 | Washington |
| 16 (tie) | NC State |
| 16 (tie) | St. John's |
| 18 | Kansas State |
| 19 | Vanderbilt |
| 20 | Wyoming |

## Conference membership changes

| School | Former conference | New conference |
| Drake Bulldogs | Independent | Missouri Valley Conference |
| Texas Tech Red Raiders | Border Conference | 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 |
| Atlantic Coast Conference | North Carolina | Lennie Rosenbluth, North Carolina | 1957 ACC men's basketball tournament | Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, North Carolina) | North Carolina |
| Big Seven Conference | Kansas | Gary Thompson, Iowa State | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Big Ten Conference | Indiana & Michigan State | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Border Conference | Texas Western | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ivy League | Yale | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Metropolitan New York Conference | NYU | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mid-American Conference | Miami (OH) | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Missouri Valley Conference | Saint Louis | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Mountain States (Skyline) Conference | BYU | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Ohio Valley Conference | Morehead State & Western Kentucky State | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Pacific Coast Conference | California | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Southeastern Conference | Kentucky | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Southern Conference | West Virginia | Rod Hundley, West Virginia | 1957 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament | Richmond Arena (Richmond, Virginia) | West Virginia |
| Southwest Conference | SMU | None Selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| West Coast Athletic Conference | San Francisco | Mike Farmer, San Francisco | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Western New York Little Three Conference | Canisius & St. Bonaventure | | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |
| Yankee Conference | Connecticut | None selected | No Tournament | No Tournament | No Tournament |

#### Conference standings

1956–57 ACC men's basketball standings :
| 1956–57 ACC men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 1 North Carolina†14–0 1.00032–0  1.000 Maryland9–5 .64316–10  .615 Duke8–6 .57113–11  .542 No. 18 Wake Forest7–7 .50019–9  .679 NC State7–7 .50015–11  .577 South Carolina5–9 .35717–12  .586 Virginia3–11 .2146–19  .240 Clemson3–11 .2147–17  .292 † 1957 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Big Seven Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 2 Kansas11–1 .91724–3  .889 Kansas State8–4 .66715–8  .652 Iowa State6–6 .50016–7  .696 Colorado5–7 .41714–9  .609 Nebraska5–7 .41711–12  .478 Missouri4–8 .33310–13  .435 Oklahoma3–9 .2508–15  .348 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Indiana10–4 .71414–8  .636 No. 11 Michigan State10–4 .71416–10  .615 Minnesota9–5 .64314–8  .636 Ohio State9–5 .64314–8  .636 Purdue8–6 .57115–7  .682 Michigan8–6 .57113–9  .591 Illinois7–7 .50014–8  .636 Iowa4–10 .2868–14  .364 Wisconsin3–11 .2145–17  .227 Northwestern2–12 .1436–16  .273 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1956–57 Border Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Texas Western8–2 .80014–8  .636 Hardin–Simmons7–3 .70017–9  .654 Arizona5–5 .50013–13  .500 Arizona State–Tempe4–6 .40010–15  .400 West Texas State3–7 .3006–14  .300 New Mexico A&M3–7 .3006–18  .250 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Ivy League men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Yale12–2 .85718–8  .692 Dartmouth10–4 .71418–7  .720 Columbia9–5 .64318–6  .750 Princeton9–5 .64314–9  .609 Harvard7–7 .50012–9  .571 Brown4–10 .2868–16  .333 Pennsylvania3–11 .2147–19  .269 Cornell2–12 .1434–19  .174 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Metropolitan New York Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT NYU3–1 .7508–13  .381 St. John's4–2 .66714–9  .609 Fordham2–2 .50016–10  .615 Manhattan2–2 .5005–9  .357 CCNY3–4 .42911–8  .579 St. Francis (NY)1–2 .33312–14  .462 Brooklyn1–3 .25011–7  .611 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1956–57 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Miami (Ohio)11–1 .91717–8  .680 Marshall8–4 .66715–9  .625 Ohio7–5 .58315–8  .652 Bowling Green7–5 .58314–9  .609 Western Michigan4–8 .3338–13  .381 Toledo3–9 .2505–19  .208 Kent State2–10 .1675–18  .217 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 10 Saint Louis12–2 .85719–9  .679 No. 19 Bradley9–5 .64322–7  .759 No. 20 Oklahoma A&M8–6 .57117–9  .654 Wichita Municipal8–6 .57115–11  .577 Detroit5–9 .35711–15  .423 Houston5–9 .35710–16  .385 Tulsa5–9 .3578–17  .320 Drake4–10 .2868–16  .333 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Mountain States Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT BYU11–3 .78619–9  .679 Utah10–4 .71419–8  .704 Montana9–5 .64313–9  .591 Denver8–6 .57111–12  .478 Utah State7–7 .50011–13  .458 Colorado A&M6–8 .4299–16  .360 Wyoming4–10 .2866–19  .240 New Mexico1–13 .0715–21  .192 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1956–57 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Morehead State9–1 .90019–8  .704 Western Kentucky State9–1 .90017–9  .654 Murray State5–5 .50011–13  .458 Eastern Kentucky State4–6 .4006–15  .286 Middle Tennessee– –12–13  .480 Tennessee Tech1–9 .1009–11  .450 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 13 California14–2 .87521–5  .808 No. 14 UCLA13–3 .81322–4  .846 Washington13–3 .81317–9  .654 USC9–7 .56316–12  .571 Stanford7–9 .43811–15  .423 Oregon State6–10 .37511–15  .423 Idaho4–12 .25010–16  .385 Washington State4–12 .2508–18  .308 Oregon2–14 .1254–21  .160 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 3 Kentucky12–2 .85723–5  .821 No. 8 Vanderbilt11–4 .73317–5  .773 Georgia Tech12–5 .70618–8  .692 No. 15 Mississippi State9–5 .64317–8  .680 Tulane9–5 .64315–9  .625 Auburn8–7 .53313–8  .619 Alabama7–7 .50015–11  .577 Florida6–8 .42914–10  .583 Tennessee5–9 .35713–9  .591 Ole Miss4–11 .2679–12  .429 Georgia4–12 .2508–16  .333 LSU1–13 .0716–19  .240 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1956–57 Southern Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 7 West Virginia †12–0 1.00025–5  .833 Washington and Lee10–3 .76920–7  .741 Virginia Tech12–5 .70614–8  .636 Furman7–5 .58310–17  .370 Richmond9–7 .56315–11  .577 William & Mary7–11 .3899–18  .333 The Citadel5–9 .35711–14  .440 Davidson4–8 .3337–20  .259 George Washington3–9 .2503–21  .125 VMI1–13 .0714–22  .154 † Southern Conference Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 4 SMU11–1 .91722–4  .846 Rice8–4 .66716–8  .667 TCU6–6 .50014–10  .583 Baylor6–6 .5009–15  .375 Arkansas5–7 .41711–12  .478 Texas3–9 .25011–13  .458 Texas A&M3–9 .2507–17  .292 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 West Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT San Francisco12–2 .85721–7  .750 Santa Clara10–4 .71415–7  .682 Saint Mary's10–4 .71417–9  .654 Fresno State7–7 .50016–10  .615 San Jose State7–7 .50013–12  .520 Loyola (Calif.)5–9 .35711–16  .407 Pacific3–11 .2149–17  .346 Pepperdine2–12 .1437–18  .280 Rankings from AP Poll |
| 1956–57 Western New York Little Three Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 20 Canisius3–1 .75022–6  .786 St. Bonaventure3–1 .75017–7  .708 Niagara0–4 .00012–13  .480 Rankings from AP Poll | 1956–57 Yankee Conference men's basketball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Connecticut 8–0 1.00017–8  .680 Rhode Island 6–3 .66711–11  .500 Vermont 3–2 .60015–5  .750 Massachusetts 4–4 .50013–11  .542 Maine 2–6 .2506–14  .300 New Hampshire 1–9 .1003–16  .158 |

### University Division independents

A total of 44 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, Seattle (22–3) had the best winning percentage (.880) and Memphis State (24–6) finished with the most wins.
Although it played in the NCAA College Division as a non-major team during the season, Idaho State (25–4) played as an independent and finished the season ranked No. 16 in the final AP Poll.
1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings :
* 1956–57 NCAA University Division men's basketball independents standings
* vteConfOverall
* TeamW L PCTW L PCT
* No. 5 Seattle– –22–3
* .880
* Lafayette– –22–5
* .815
* No. 6 Louisville– –21–5
* .808
* No. 12 Memphis State– –24–6
* .800
* Syracuse– –18–7
* .720
* No. 17 Notre Dame– –20–8
* .714
* Xavier– –20–8
* .714
* Saint Joseph's– –17–7
* .708
* Duquesne– –16–7
* .696
* Temple– –20–9
* .690
* Dayton– –19–9
* .679
* No. 9 Oklahoma City– –19–9
* .679
* Bucknell– –16–8
* .667
* La Salle– –17–9
* .654
* Muhlenberg– –17–9
* .654
* Navy– –15–8
* .652
* Iona– –12–7
* .632
* Seton Hall– –17–10
* .630
* Cincinnati– –15–9
* .625
* Penn State– –15–10
* .600
* Portland– –18–12
* .600
* Pittsburgh– –16–11
* .593
* Colgate– –14–10
* .583
* Loyola (Ill.)– –14–10
* .583
* Kentucky Wesleyan– –16–12
* .571
* Washington University– –12–9
* .571
* Loyola (La.)– –14–12
* .538
* Boston College– –12–11
* .522
* Texas Tech– –12–11
* .522
* Georgetown– –11–11
* .500
* Miami (Fla.)– –13–13
* .500
* Saint Francis (Pa.)– –12–12
* .500
* Holy Cross– –11–12
* .478
* Lehigh– –8–10
* .444
* Butler– –11–14
* .440
* Valparaiso– –11–14
* .440
* Gonzaga– –11–16
* .407
* Marquette– –10–15
* .400
* Villanova– –10–15
* .400
* DePaul– –8–14
* .364
* Army– –7–13
* .350
* Rutgers– –8–15
* .348
* Florida State– –9–17
* .346
* Siena– –5–15
* .250
* Rankings from AP Poll

### Informal championships

| Conference | Regular season winner | Most Valuable Player |
| Philadelphia Big 5 | La Salle, St. Joseph's, & Temple | Guy Rodgers, Temple |
La Salle, Saint Joseph's, and Temple all finished with 3–1 records 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% |
| Grady Wallace | South Carolina | 31.2 | Elgin Baylor | Seattle | .235 | Bailey Howell | Mississippi St. | 56.8 | Ernie Wiggins | Wake Forest | 87.7 |
| Joe Gibbon | Mississippi | 30.0 | Boo Ellis | Niagara | .234 | Alvin Innis | St. Francis (NY) | 56.1 | Jackie Murdock | Wake Forest | 87.5 |
| Elgin Baylor | Seattle | 29.7 | Charlie Tyra | Louisville | .229 | Dennis Roth | Muhlenberg | 54.4 | Bob Seitz | NC State | 87.2 |
| Wilt Chamberlain | Kansas | 29.6 | Wilt Chamberlain | Kansas | .227 | Bob Holtsma | William & Mary | 54.2 | Dave Ricketts | Duquesne | 86.2 |
| Chet Forte | Columbia | 28.9 | Gene Guarilia | George Washington | .218 | Boo Ellis | Niagara | 53.7 | Bobby Plump | Butler | 86.0 |

## Post-season tournaments
### NCAA tournament

Frank McGuire brought the ACC its first national championship as his undefeated North Carolina Tar Heels defeated Wilt Chamberlain and the Kansas Jayhawks in what is considered one of the best games in NCAA history – a 54–53 triple–overtime thriller. Chamberlain was named tournament Most Outstanding Player.

#### Final Four

Played at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri
| National semifinals | National semifinals | National semifinals | National championship game | National championship game | National championship game |
| E | North Carolina | 74$^{(3OT)}$ | | | |
| ME | Michigan St. | 70 | | | |
| ME | Michigan St. | 70 | E | North Carolina | 54$^{(3OT)}$ |
| | | | MW | Kansas | 53 |
| MW | Kansas | 80 | MW | Kansas | 53 |
| W | San Francisco | 56 | National third-place game | National third-place game | National third-place game |
| | | | ME | Michigan State | 60 |
| | | | W | San Francisco | 67 |

### National Invitation tournament

Bradley won its first NIT title, defeating Memphis State in a one-point contest. Memphis State's Win Wilfong won the MVP in a losing cause as he poured in 89 points in the Tigers' four games, including 31 in the final.

#### NIT Semifinals and Final

Played at Madison Square Garden in New York City
| Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final |
| St. Bonaventure | 78 | | |
| Memphis State | 80 | | |
| Memphis State | 80 | Memphis State | 83 |
| | | Bradley | 84 |
| Bradley | 94 | Bradley | 84 |
| Temple | 66 | Third place | Third place |
| | | St. Bonaventure | 50 |
| | | Temple | 67 |

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

Consensus First Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Wilt Chamberlain | C | Sophomore | Kansas |
| Chet Forte | G | Senior | Columbia |
| Rod Hundley | G/F | Senior | West Virginia |
| Jim Krebs | F/C | Senior | SMU |
| Lennie Rosenbluth | F | Senior | North Carolina |
| Charlie Tyra | C | Senior | Louisville |
Consensus Second Team :
| Player | Position | Class | Team |
| Elgin Baylor | F | Sophomore | Seattle |
| Frank Howard | F | Junior | Ohio State |
| Guy Rodgers | G | Junior | Temple |
| Gary Thompson | G | Senior | Iowa State |
| Grady Wallace | F | Senior | South Carolina |

### Major player of the year awards

* Helms Foundation Player of the Year: Lennie Rosenbluth, North Carolina
* UPI Player of the Year: Chet Forte, Columbia

### Major coach of the year awards

* UPI Coach of the Year: Frank McGuire, North Carolina

### Other major awards

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

## Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.
| Team | Former Coach | New Coach |
| Arizona State | Bill Kajikawa | Ned Wulk |
| Loyola (LA) | Jim McCafferty | Jim Harding |
| Texas A&M | Ken Loeffler | Bob Rogers |
| Virginia | Evan Male | Billy McCann |
| Washington & Lee | Billy McCann | Weenie Miller |
| West Texas A&M | Gus Miller | Borden Price |
| Xavier | Ned Wulk | Jim McCafferty |