# 1965–66 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team

The 1965–66 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers men's basketball team represented Western Kentucky University during the 1965-66 NCAA University Division Basketball season. The Hilltoppers were led by Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year John Oldham and OVC Player of the Year Clem Haskins. WKU won the OVC tournament and season championship, as well as the conference's automatic bid to the 1966 NCAA University Division basketball tournament, where they advanced to the Sweet Sixteen and finished 3rd in the Mideast Region. The conference tournament was held in December and had no impact on the conference standing; the conference NCAA tournament bid was awarded to the season champion.
This team was the recipient of what many Hilltopper fans referred to as “the worst call in NCAA tournament history.” In the second-round game against Michigan, Western Kentucky forced a jump ball with seconds left, while leading by 1 point. Western Kentucky's Greg Smith was called for a foul during the jump and Michigan's Cazzie Russell made two free throws to win the game. Still pictures show Russell not jumping on the play and then leaning in to make contact with Smith.
Haskins was joined on the All-Conference and OVC Tournament teams by Steve Cunningham, Dwight Smith, and Greg Smith

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular Season ||||||
| 12/2/1965* | | Parsons (IA) | W 98–77 | 1–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/4/1965* | | La Salle | W 93–67 | 2–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/6/1965* | | Campbellsville | W 101–59 | 3–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/11/1965* | | Memphis State | W 100–61 | 4–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/14/1965* | | Abilene Christian | W 84–59 | 5–0 | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 12/17/1965* | | vs. SMU Vanderbilt Invitational | W 82–68 | 6–0 | Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, TN |
| 12/18/1965* | | at Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Invitational | L 69–72 | 6–1 | Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, TN |
| 12/20/1965 | | vs. Morehead State OVC Tournament | W 80–55 | 7–1 | Convention Center Louisville, KY |
| 12/21/1965 | | vs. Tennessee Tech OVC Tournament Semifinal | W 78–63 | 8–1 | Convention Center Louisville, KY |
| 12/22/1965 | | vs. Eastern Kentucky OVC Tournament Final | W 83–67 | 9–1 | Convention Center Louisville, KY |
| 1/8/1966 | | at Tennessee Tech | W 120–92 | 10–1 (1-0) | Memorial Gymnasium Cookeville, TN |
| 1/10/1966 | | East Tennessee | W 85–69 | 11–1 (2-0) | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 1/15/1966 | | at Eastern Kentucky | W 107–88 | 12–1 (3-0) | Alumni Coliseum Richmond, KY |
| 1/17/1966 | | at Morehead State | W 45–35 | 13–1 (4-0) | Wetherby Gymnasium Morehead, KY |
| 1/22/1966* | | at Dayton | L 57–77 | 13–2 | UD Arena Dayton, OH |
| 1/31/1966 | | at Middle Tennessee | W 93–56 | 14–2 (5-0) | Alumni Memorial Gym Murfreesboro, TN |
| 2/5/1966 | | at Murray State | W 101–84 | 15–2 (6-0) | Racer Arena Murray, KY |
| 2/7/1966 | | at Austin Peay | W 94–67 | 16–2 (7-0) | Memorial Health Gymnasium Clarksville, TN |
| 2/12/1966 | | at East Tennessee | W 96–79 | 17–2 (8-0) | Brooks Gymnasium Johnson City, TN |
| 2/14/1966 | | Tennessee Tech | W 85–72 | 18–2 (9-0) | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 2/19/1966 | | Morehead State | W 73–58 | 19–2 (10-0) | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 2/21/1966 | | Eastern Kentucky | W 72–67 | 20–2 (11-0) | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 2/26/1966 | | Murray State | W 71–59 | 21–2 (12-0) | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 2/28/1966 | | Middle Tennessee | W 81–47 | 22–2 (13-0) | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 3/3/1966 | | Austin Peay | W 76–63 | 23–2 (14-0) | E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY |
| 1966 NCAA University Division basketball tournament ||||||
| 3/7/1966* | | vs. No. 4 Loyola (IL) Mideast Region First Round | W 105–86 | 24–2 | Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center Kent, OH |
| 3/11/1966* | No. 10 | vs. No. 9 Michigan Sweet Sixteen | L 79–80 | 24–3 | Iowa Field House Iowa City, IA |
| 3/12/1966* | No. 10 | vs. No. 20 UPI Dayton Mideast Region Consolation | W 82–68 | 25–3 | Iowa Field House Iowa City, IA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. ||||||