During the 1950s, Loyola sent three basketball teams to the NCAA National Tournament. A more remarkable feat in those days considering that at the time only 24 teams received invitations versus today’s 65 teams. The three teams were those of 1953-54, 1956-57 and the 1957-58 men’s basketball team, the group of men to be inducted tomorrow into Loyola’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
According to Chester Doll, the team’s second top rebounder, the team brought intensity to each game and believed it could take on anyone.
“We thought we were good,” Doll said. “Thing was we played major college ball against major college teams.”
The 1957-58 team had a season record of 16-9, and for the second year in a row was invited to the tournament as an independent from the Deep South. Victories during the year included wins over Florida State, LSU (twice), Vanderbilt, Southern Mississippi, Oklahoma City and Houston.
According to Doll, one of the most memorable wins that season was against Memphis, a team the ‘Pack had lost to a year before in overtime in the basketball Sugar Bowl. Loyola avenged its loss with a 68-55 decision.
“Memphis was huge at the time,” Doll said. “A year earlier they won the NIT [National Invitational Tournament], which at that time was bigger than the NCAA tournament.”
The Wolfpack lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament that year to Oklahoma State. Doll attributes the loss to the opponent’s home court advantage in Stillwater, Okla. The game site was determined by a coin flip, which Loyola lost.
“Their gym was notorious for opponents not winning,” Doll said. “If we were home, we would have won.”
Loyola had to do without two of its big men. Six-foot-eight Art Radvillas had sustained an injury against Houston and 6-foot-11 Bill Schweiberger, a transfer student from Florida, had to sit out because of NCAA transfer rules.
The team was coached by Jim Harding, his only year at Loyola. The young coach was a graduate of Iowa University class of ’49. He played at the pro level with the Wilkes Barre, Pa., Cagers.
“Harding was a strict fundamentalist and that helped us,” Doll said.
Captain Pete Gaudin averaged 18.6 points per game. Gaudin and Bob McLaughlin, who averaged 17 points per game, were the top scorers for the Wolfpack.
Other team members include George Flynn, Henry Exterstein, Jim Hall, Larry Henneberger, Jack Morris, B.J. Pecoraro, Karl Vogt and team manager Bob Almas.
All of the athletes are expected to be at the ceremony and the relatives of the deceased Radvillas, Schweiberger, Hall and Harding have said that they will accept the honors.
Michael Nissman can be reached [email protected].
