This would have been the perfect summer for the Cincinnati Bearcats basketball program to celebrate the 60th anniversary of one of the most interesting and important mini-dynasties in the history of college basketball.
The centerpiece, of course, would have been the 1960-’61 team that was defending NCAA champion. But all the surviving players from 1957 through ’63 should also have been invited. All contributed to a historic run that followed the Kentucky dynasty of the late 1940s and early ’50, and preceded the untouchable UCLA dynasty from 1964 through ’75.
It all began with Oscar “The Big O” Robertson, a 6-foot-5 guard out of Crispus Attacks High in Indianapolis. Along with Jerry West and Jerry Lucas, he was considered one of the top prospects in the nation and certainly the top African-American recruit.
Billy Reed is a member of the U.S. Basketball Writers Hall of Fame, the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame, the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame and the Transylvania University Hall of Fame. He has been named Kentucky Sports Writer of the Year eight times and has won the Eclipse Award three times. Reed has written about a multitude of sports events for over four decades and is perhaps one of the most knowledgeable writers on the Kentucky Derby. His book “Last of a BReed” is available on Amazon. Robertson has never really said why he picked Cincinnati. But he has implied it had something to do with race. Cincinnati is located on the Mason-Dixon Line. The southern universities below the line were not allowed to recruit blacks. But they would not be able to ignore Robertson’s exploits at UC.
Exploits?
He led the nation in scoring three consecutive years. One season, he averaged a triple-double (double digits in points, rebounds, and assists. He led the Bearcats to the Final Four in 1959 and ’60, but a title eluded him.
Naturally, a lot of top high school players were drawn to Cincinnati to play with Robertson or, at least, for his team.
In an amazing twist of fate, the Bearcats won the title the year after Robertson graduated. They didn’t have a player with his singular talent, but they became the epitome of team play.
The starters for the 1960-’61 Bearcats were Tony Yates, Paul Hogue, Carl Bouldin, Bob Wiesenhan, and Tom Thacker (of Covington.)
The team, in a first for the Final Four, upset Ohio State, an in-state rival and defending national champ, 70-65, for the title.
The very next season, doggone if the same two teams didn’t meet in a championship game rematch in Louisville’s Freedom Hall. The Bearcats won again, 71-59. They had two new starters in the lineup, Ron Bonham and George Wilson, replacing Bouldin and Wisenhahn.
That earned them bragging rights for all-time in Ohio.
The last year of the mini-dynasty was the 1962-’63 season. It was Cincinnati’s fifth consecutive trip to the Final Four, and this time they were favored over Loyola of Chicago, the surprise of the tournament.
Playing once again in Freedom Hall, the Ramblers upset the Bearcats in overtime. Their starters included Jerry Harkness, Les “Big Game” Hunter, and Vic Rouse.
That was it for Cincinnati. And everybody else, for that matter. It was time to clear the stage and let the spotlight shine on UCLA.
If a Bearcats reunion has been scheduled for this summer, I apologize for missing the news. But I searched the internet and couldn’t find anything.
So as of the moment, it’s an opportunity missed. Too bad. The stories and memories would have been fascinating to hear.