50 years ago : Alabama at Auburn regular season finale March 8, 1975

 Alabama and Auburn meet in Auburn in both teams' regular season basketball finale on Saturday, March 8. A lot will be on the line Saturday including of course, "bragging rights" but also seeding which will be announced Sunday, the 16th. An Auburn win will all but cement a number one seed if not 'overall' number one seed. An Alabama win and a few wins in the SEC Tournament could put them as a two seed. But barring a colossal collapse they will be a three seed at worst. These two also met 50 years ago in Auburn to end the regular season with a whole lot more on the line in a different era of college basketball.

C.M. Newton and All-America Leon Douglas came to Auburn with a share of the SEC Title looking for the outright title and a home NCAA Tournament game 

Following the 1973-1974 season the NCAA expanded the post season tournament from 25 to 32 teams. The biggest component of this was for the first time conferences being able to send an additional team to the tournament in addition to  the conference champion or conference representative. Lazily, pundits referred to this as the "Maryland Rule." Indeed the 1973-74 Maryland Terrapins finished the season 23-5 ranked 5th in the nation. However, three of the losses were to eventual national champion NC State,with the final one, a 103-100 overtime loss in Greensboro,NC awarding the Wolfpack the tournament title and ACC berth. Still smarting after the game, the Terrapins turned down an NIT bid. But while Maryland was certainly 'tournament worthy' other teams had as valid if not more legitimate tournament claims.

While recoginzed by most as the "Greatest Game Ever" until the 1992 Kentucky-Duke game, Alabama and Indiana were as if not more deserving of a 1974 NCAA bid than Maryland

Indiana and Michigan tied for the 1974 Big Ten title splitting both regular season game. In a playoff game for the right to represent the Big 10, the Wolverines downed the Hoosiers, 75-67 at the University of Illinois. Alabama did tie Vanderbilt for the SEC Title. But the Commodores swept the regular season series with two narrow wins, 73-72 and 67-65 for the SEC's berth. Unfortunately for the Tide, with Alabama hosting the 1974 Mideast Regional they were ineligible for the NIT as well as the inaugral and short-lived Commissioner's Conference Association tournament, an ill-conceived venture by the NCAA to compete with the NIT, Alabama had to stay home. And, while Maryland and NC State were playing for the ACC Title, cross country UCLA and Southern Cal met at the Los Angeles Sports Arena for in effect the Pacific 8 title. Already with two conference losses the Bruins met the Trojans also 11-2. With the Pac 8 "most recent participation" rules a Trojan win would award the Pac 8 berth to them while the Bruins would stay home. But UCLA roared out to a 47-13 halftime lead and cruised to an 82-52 win and eventual epic showdown with NC State in Greensboro in the Final Four.

UCLA's regular season game down to a winner take all with Southern Cal for a trip to the NCAA tournament. A Southern Cal win would have "ended the era" two weeks sooner

The good news for Alabama is win or lose vs Auburn they were going to the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history. And, with Alabama's then Memorial Coliseum hosting one of the NCAA's first round brackets, a win over Auburn would have the Tide playing at home in the first round. (Kentucky, who was chasing Alabama's own Memorial Coliseum was hosting the MidEast Regional's other first round bracket but the NCAA determined the Big 10's conference champion. Teams could host and play in regionals on their home courts through the 1984 season. In fact, defending national champion NC State won the 1974 East Regional on its home court.)

The 1974-75 Tide rolled through the regular season. The only non-conference loss was to top 10 LaSalle coached by Paul Westhead and led by future NBA star Joe Bryant in the Sugar Bowl Class in New Orleans. The Tide clinched a share of the 1975 SEC Title a week earlier vs Florida. In somewhat of a 'deja vu' while Alabama was 15-2 in SEC play,both losses were to Kentucky, the team chasing Alabama for a share of the title. One year earlier Alabama's 15-3 was good enough for a share of the title with Vandy but a sweep by Vandy gave the Commodores the NCAA bid.

Alabama's Leon Douglas goes up over Kentucky's Kevin Grevey, the 1975 SEC Player of the Year and Rick Robey in Lexington. Kentucky won, 74-69

The SEC schedule from 1967 to 1991 was a nice, compact 18 game robin with a team playing the other nine members home and home. In the "Tuscaloosa" game a month earlier resurgent Auburn came to town ranked #14, the Tigers' highest ranking since 1963 which had been their last appearance in a season. Ninth ranked Alabama met them making this only the second time the two had faced one another as ranked teams in the AP poll. Unfortunately for second year Auburn head coach Bob Davis and his charges, they were not ready for primetime. Alabama roared out to a 12-1 lead and took a 38-20 halftime lead. Auburn never could make even a 'modest' run Alabama coasted to a 77-53 win. To Davis credit, he didn't sugarcoat his team's performance, "the kids were scared to death. You could have played the Star-Spangled Banner with a mallet on their backbones they were so tight." Ouch.

The February meeting 'twix the two in Tuscaloosa was only the second time Auburn and Alabama had met as ranked teams, with the first coming in 1955 in Montgomery

Davis came to Auburn after the Tigers' disastrous 1972-73 season. While not a traditional SEC power at the time by any stretch of the imagination, Auburn had had its moments. From 1957 through 1963 under coach Joel Eaves, Auburn was as good as anyone in the SEC not named the Kentucky Wildcats. After Eaves stepped down Bill Lynn, an Auburn graduate took over and the Tigers drifted into mediocrity at best and left after the 6-20 1972-1973 season. Davis' prior coaching job was at his alma mater, Georgetown (not the Hoyas,but the one right outside of Lexington.) Oddly enough his chief rival, C.M. Newton came to Tuscaloosa after being Transylvania's (acutally in Lexington) head coach.

Davis' first team struggled to a 10-16 team but some excellent recruiting for the 1974-1975 season gave Auburn optimism. Led by freshmen Mike Mitchell and Myles Patrick, Auburn was a "team to watch" in the SEC after Alabama,Kentucky and Tennessee. The Tigers entered SEC play 4-2 but lost in Knoxville to Tennessee, 96-81. Undeterred, Auburn would go on to win 7 straight SEC games including a 90-85 win over then #7 Kentucky. Auburn came to Tuscaloosa for their ill-fated first meeting with the Tide tied for first with Alabama and Kentucky.

Jimmy Dan Connor (20) drives past Auburn's Gary Redding during Auburn's 90-85 win. Connor was one of four seniors on the team who had played on Kentucky's last true "freshman team" in 1971-1972 . The unbeaten "Super Kittens" were Basketball News' 1972 National 'Freshman' Champion over USC, Maryland and NC State with a fellow named David Thompson

After the Alabama debacle Auburn would have a quick turnaround and face Tennessee in Auburn. In previous years the way the Alabama game unfolded it could have turned into three or four losses. But this team was different. Aided somewhat by Tennessee holding eventual freshman All-American Bernard King out of the game to review alleged transcript concerns from eighth grade (which were found to be unsubstansiated). Auburn rallied from six down in the last five minutes to eke out a 62-59 win. Without King, UT coach Ray Mears was forced to use a more customary deliberate style unlike the newfound fast break style with King and fellow New York superstar, Ernie Grunfeld.

Auburn seemed to hit a wall after the win over the Big Orange. After the win over Tennessee, Auburn would go 4-4 heading into the finale vs Alabama. While three of the losses were close the return trip to Lexington was a disaster. Similar to the Alabama game in Tuscaloosa, Auburn fell behind 12-0 and trailed by 19 at halftime. Kentucky kept up its hot shooting and Auburn would have an unbelievable 33 turnovers. Kentucky now 4th, would win 119-76 virtually ending Auburn's remote SEC title hopes or NCAA "at large bid."

The SEC Champion/representative Alabama with a win or Kentucky would face Marquette in the NCAA first round in Tuscaloosa. Marquette was "Oregon" in terms of uniforms 30 years before the Ducks' football team became fashionistas. In fact coach Al McGuire (left) let Bo Ellis (right) a fashion design enthusiast design the then Warriors' uniforms for 1975,1976 and 1977.

So the stage was set in the season finale. The renewal of the SEC Tournament was still four seasons away so the SEC bids and upcoming opponents would be settled this weekend. With a win, seven point favorite Alabama 22-3 and 15-2 in the SEC would win the SEC outright for the first time since 1956 and play round one of the newly expanded NCAA Tournament at home in the friendly confines of Memorial Coliseum in Tuscaloosa. With a loss the Tide would need some help, a lot of help. Kentucky would have to lose to Mississippi State, who was 8-16 overall. Unlike the prior year, Alabama was officially in the NCAA regardless for the first time. On the Thursday before the game, the NCAA announced the 32 team field which included seven conferences to allow a second team to go to the tourney. Without a conference tournament like the ACC had, and with Alabama and Kentucky having distanced themselves from Auburn and Tennessee, the Tide and Wildcats were specifically invited. In an era with still true "regionals" and a plethora of 'independents' the SEC rep was already paired with top five independent Marquette in the MidEast Regional first round in Tuscaloosa. The then Warriors won the Mideast Regional in Tuscaloosa the prior year and advanced to the Final Four.

Should Auburn gain an invite to the 1975 NIT, which would be the Tigers' first post season tournament it is highly unlikely Auburn would ever take the banner down as the Tar Heels were compelled to do many years later. Ironically they finished third with a win over Alabama in the consolation game, Alabama's first tournament trip

Meanwhile Auburn 17-9 overall and 11-6 in the SEC with a win was looking for their most wins since 1963 and highest SEC final standing since 1970. In winning, they would also beat arch-rival Alabama and realistically send Alabama to Tempe,Arizona to face Arizona State in the NCAA tournament instead of facing Marquette in Tuscaloosa. Also, with the NCAA having expanded and the NIT subsequentally NOT contracting, Auburn's hopes for an NIT bid were very good as well as the CCA which would move from St Louis to Louisville. Regardless with a win it would be hard to believe Auburn wasn't one of the top 54 teams in America.

Joe Dean,shown with Kentucky coach Joe B Hall, did color commentary with play by play announcer John Ferguson on the TVS SEC Game of the Week from 1967 to 1981. There would indeed be some "string music....from Auburn,Alabama" that day

Years before ESPN the SEC would have typically just one game a week. There weren't any mid-week games televised and maybe an every blue moon 'wildcard' where there would be a doubleheader and on the rare occasion a nationally televised game,but that was really rare. It just so happened that in the fall of 1974 the SEC and regional sports television provider TVS selected the Alabama-Auburn game in Auburn to close out their season. As for "television" the good news for Alabama was win or lose NBC, who would have the NCAA contract for another six seasons had announced their 'triple header' the following week. Marquette would face either Kentucky or Alabama in Tuscaloosa in Game two and Arizona State would host the SEC 'runner up' in Tempe in Game three.

Fiery, no holds barred, Bob Davis was just what the doctor ordered for Auburn in 1973. Davis, indeed was a 'Doctor' having earned his PhD at Peabody College (now part of Vanderbilt) in 1963

The game did not disappoint. Unlike round one when Alabama roared out to a 12-1 lead. The Tide did lead most of the first half and led by seven on three occassions the last time at 27-20 with over six minutes left in the first half. Then sophomore point guard Eddie Johnson, who made the SEC Coaches First Team All-SEC as a freshman, got hot and over the next five minutes Auburn took its first lead at 38-37.The two went back and forth and Auburn took a 41-39 lead into the clubhouse at halftime.

None of the 12,700 in attendance at Auburn's own Memorial Coliseum nor the regionally televised audience should have been surprised. Going into this game Auburn was the only team besides Kentucky that was unbeaten at home. As for Alabama, the Tide had been making a habit out of winning tough road games over the last three seasons. Among other wins on the road, Alabama had beaten Tennessee and Vanderbilt on the road, two places where the Tide's wins were few and far between, and Florida where the Gators had been a thorn in Alabama's side in Gainesville for years. (Kentucky, waiting on this game lost on the road, in addition to Auburn, Tennessee and Florida and eked out a 91-90 win at Vandy).

Big road wins for Alabama had become routine in the last three seasons. This 83-77 win over Vanderbilt in 1973 was the Tide's first win in Nashville in twenty years. Newton called this game a turning point in proving Alabama could win big in the SEC

The second half was even more dramatic than the first half. After two free throws in the opening minute of the second half, Birmingham's Wayne Bracy made two free throws to give Auburn a four point lead. But then Alabama broke Auburn's zone and Douglas and "Boonie Russell" made several buckets on a 13-2 run to give Alabama a 52-45 lead. After cutting the lead to three Auburn's hopes appeared to vanish when freshman superstar Mitchell fouled out with 8:00 left after scoring 18 points and grabbing 11 rebounds The two then basically traded baskets until Alabama's Charles Cleveland made one of two free throws to take a 69-63 lead with 3:59 left.

Alabama's Charles Cleveland (10) shown here in the Auburn game was according to none other than Paul "Bear" Bryant to be the finest athlete at the Capstone

After forcing a quick miss by Auburn, with foul problems of themselves C.M Newton elected to slow the game down with a variation of a stall. Later that same evening North Carolina freshman Phil Ford would run the four corners to perfection leading the Tar Heels to the ACC Tournament Title and NCAA bid eliminating defending champ NC State, 70-66.

Later that evening of this Alabama-Auburn game, North Carolina's four corner offense worked like a charm . Alabama's version of spread offense did not work.

Alabama's version of the four corners did not work ,to say the least. Auburn's aggressive press caused multiple steals and suddenly Auburn cut the lead to 69-68. Russell made one of two free throws to push the lead to two. But "Pepto" Bolden tied it back up at 70 on two Auburn free throws. Curiously Alabama stayed in a delay and threw the ball away with under two minutes. Bracy made two free throws and Auburn led for the first time since early in the second. Cleveland missed a jumper and in a scramble for the rebound Auburn was awarded possession with :40 left. Two more trips to the foul line with two free throws made each time and two more missed Alabama shots and it was over. Auburn had snuck out with a rousing 76-70 win. In the last 3:59 Auburn would outscore Alabama 13-1.

   Auburn's Bob Davis joined the crowd on the court in celebration after the win

(Shortly thereafter, all of the laughter would turn to sorrow. For Alabama, Kentucky destroyed Miss State 118-80 in Starkville that evening to win the SEC's automatic bid and would play Marquette in Tuscaloosa. Tuscaloosa's Tide would now go to Tempe where they would trail the host Sun Devils by 19 at haftime before a valiant run made Arizona State's 97-94 win a little more reasonable.

Unfortunately for Auburn after the Alabama game Tennessee defeated Georgia to tie Auburn for third. The Vols were awarded the SEC's bid to the supposed revamped National Commissioner's Invitational Tournament. Tennessee had gone the prior year and were somewhat of a curious choice. For the 1974 tournament the Vols were allocated 750 tickets. Supposedly one was sold through the UT ticket office. Of course area alums and other local fans as well as the UT basketball pep band did decide to meet them in St Louis. But the 'revamped' 1975 NCIT was in Louisville and the committee felt the Big Orange might me more inclined to drive to Louisville.

That left the NIT, the oldest post season basketball tournament in college basketball, for Auburn's prospects. With the addition of seven teams to the NCAA tournament and NC State declining an NIT bid, the Tigers' hopes of being part of it in New York,New York seemed good. Unfortunately the committee went for the  "local flavor" in the end. Now, of the sixteen some were from all over, Oregon, Southern Illinois, Memphis State, Clemson and South Carolina. And, the selection of hometown St John's at 18-9 was legitimate. But the fact that the NIT chose Manhattan at 13-11, St Peters at 15-11 and even Lafayette at 22-4 (an hour from NYC) were curious at best choices over 18-8 Auburn team with wins over tournament teams Alabama,Kentucky and Tennessee.)