# 1956–57 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team

The 1956–57 Illinois Fighting Illini men’s basketball team represented the University of Illiniois.

## Regular season

Harry Combes celebrated 10 years as the head coach of the University of Illinois' Fighting Illini basketball team. During his ten years as coach, Combes had established the Illini as a national powerhouse with sportswriters taking note. For example, the Associated Press began its basketball poll in 1949 with United Press International adding its poll in 1951 and from 1951-56 the Illini finished the season ranked in the Top 20 nationally every year. Illinois’ highest final ranking in the 1950s was second in both polls in 1952.
The 1956-57 team, unfortunately, would begin a downward spiral for Combes' tenure, sending the program into a timespan where his teams would finish in the lower half of the Big Ten for four of six years. A highlight of the 1957 season would take place on December 17, 1956, when Illinois defeated San Francisco, 62-33, snapping the Dons’ 51-game regular-season win streak. This season also marked the first time that a Fighting Illini team entered a holiday tournament. The Kentucky Invitational brought Southern Methodist, Dayton and Illinois to Lexington for a two-day tournament, once again matching Adolph Rupp with Combes. Combes had talented lettermen return including the leading scorers George Bon Salle, Don Ohl and team "captain" Harv Schmidt. It also saw the return of Bill Altenberger, Hiles Stout, John Paul and Ted Caiazza. The team also added sophomore Roger Taylor. The Illini finished the season with a conference record of 7 wins and 7 losses, finishing in 7th place in the Big Ten. They would finish with an overall record of 14 wins and 8 losses. The starting lineup included George Bon Salle at the center position, Roger Taylor and Don Ohl at guard and Harv Schmidt and Hiles Stout at the forward slots.

### Roster
## Schedule

Source
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-Conference regular season ||||||
| 12/5/1956* no, no | | Butler | W 98–81 | 1-0 | Huff Hall (6,240) Champaign, IL |
| 12/8/1956* no, no | | at Oklahoma | W 69–58 | 2-0 | McCasland Field House (3,000) Norman, OK |
| 12/15/1956* no, no | No. 7 | Loyola (New Orleans) | W 83–72 | 3-0 | Huff Hall (6,128) Champaign, IL |
| 12/17/1956* no, no | No. 7 | No. 2 San Francisco | W 62–33 | 4–0 | Huff Hall (6,912) Champaign, IL |
| 12/21/1956* no, no | No. 5 | vs. Dayton Kentucky Invitational Tournament | W 82–65 | 5-0 | Memorial Coliseum (7,000) Lexington, KY |
| 12/22/1956* no, no | No. 5 | at No. 7 Kentucky Kentucky Invitational Tournament | L 70–91 | 5-1 | Memorial Coliseum (9,500) Lexington, KY |
| 12/28/1956* no, no | No. 6 | Princeton | W 108–87 | 6-1 | Huff Hall (2,559) Champaign, IL |
| Big Ten regular season ||||||
| 1/5/1957 no, no | No. 5 | at No. 19 Minnesota | L 88–91 | 6-2 (0-1) | Williams Arena (14,062) Minneapolis, MN |
| 1/7/1957 no, no | No. 5 | Iowa Rivalry | W 81–70 | 7-2 (1-1) | Huff Hall (3,390) Champaign, IL |
| 1/12/1957 no, no | No. 10 | at Wisconsin | W 79–63 | 8-2 (2-1) | Wisconsin Field House (4,000) Madison, WI |
| 1/14/1957 no, no | No. 10 | Indiana Rivalry | W 112–91 | 9-2 (3-1) | Huff Hall (6,899) Champaign, IL |
| 1/26/1957* no, no | No. 9 | vs. Notre Dame | W 99–81 | 10-2 | Chicago Stadium (15,678) Chicago, IL |
| 2/2/1957 no, no | No. 7 | at Purdue | L 74–85 | 10-3 (3-2) | Lambert Fieldhouse (10,000) West Lafayette, IN |
| 2/4/1957 no, no | No. 7 | No. 11 Ohio State | W 96–89 | 11-3 (4-2) | Huff Hall (6,189) Champaign, IL |
| 2/9/1957 no, no | No. 15 | at Michigan State | L 64–70 | 11-4 (4-3) | Jenison Fieldhouse (7,394) East Lansing, MI |
| 2/11/1957 no, no | No. 15 | Northwestern Rivalry | W 104–97 | 12-4 (5-3) | Huff Hall (6,899) Champaign, IL |
| 2/16/1957 no, no | No. 16 | at Michigan | L 89–102 | 12-5 (5-4) | Yost Field House (6,800) Ann Arbor, MI |
| 2/18/1957 no, no | No. 16 | Michigan State | L 83–89 | 12-6 (5-5) | Huff Hall (6,800) Champaign, IL |
| 2/23/1957 no, no | | Purdue | W 80–78 | 13-6 (6-5) | Huff Hall (6,850) Champaign, IL |
| 2/25/1957 no, no | | at Ohio State | W 79–72 | 14-6 (7-5) | St. John Arena (13,380) Columbus, OH |
| 3/2/1957 no, no | | Minnesota | L 75–86 | 14-7 (7-6) | Huff Hall (6,251) Champaign, IL |
| 3/4/1957 no, no | No. 6 | at No. 10 Indiana Rivalry | L 76–84 | 14-8 (7-7) | The Fieldhouse (10,000) Bloomington, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. ||||||

## Player stats

| Player | Games Played | Field Goals | Free Throws | Points |
| Harv Schmidt | 22 | 156 | 102 | 414 |
| Don Ohl | 22 | 145 | 53 | 343 |
| George BonSalle | 14 | 104 | 69 | 277 |
| Hiles Stout | 21 | 77 | 88 | 242 |
| Roger Taylor | 22 | 88 | 52 | 228 |
| Bill Altenberger | 18 | 72 | 26 | 170 |
| John Paul | 21 | 49 | 18 | 116 |
| Ted Caiazza | 18 | 8 | 14 | 30 |
| Tom Haller | 16 | 3 | 10 | 16 |
| Larry Breyfogle | 15 | 6 | 1 | 13 |
| Jim Chengary | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Bob Brown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lloyd Eggers | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Awards and honors

* George Bon Salle
** National Association of Basketball Coaches 2nd Team All-American
** Converse Honorable Mention All-American
* Don Ohl
** Converse Honorable Mention All-American
** Associated Press Mention All-American
* Harv Schmidt
** Converse 2nd Team All-American
** Team Most Valuable Player

## Team players drafted into the NBA

| Player | NBA Club | Round | Pick |
| George Bon Salle | Syracuse Nationals | 1 | 7 |
| Harv Schmidt | Minneapolis Lakers | 2 | 3 |