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March Madness: 10 shining moments in Final Four history

By Mike Phillips

Michigan State guard Earvin Johnson and Indiana State forward Larry Bird answer questions for reporters during a press conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. Tomorrow, the two players will face off when their teams meet in the NCAA Final Four Championship, a game many feel will be a classic matchup of two collegiate superstars.
Michigan State guard Earvin Johnson and Indiana State forward Larry Bird answer questions for reporters during a press conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. Tomorrow, the two players will face off when their teams meet in the NCAA Final Four Championship, a game many feel will be a classic matchup of two collegiate superstars. /
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COLLEGE PARK, MD – MARCH 19: Texas Western College (UTEP) celebrates after defeating Kentucky 72-65 in the National Championship game in the 1966 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championships held in Cole Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Maryland, College Park, MD. Texas Western defeated the University of Kentucky 7265 to win the national title. (Photo by Rich Clarkson/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
COLLEGE PARK, MD – MARCH 19: Texas Western College (UTEP) celebrates after defeating Kentucky 72-65 in the National Championship game in the 1966 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championships held in Cole Fieldhouse on the campus of the University of Maryland, College Park, MD. Texas Western defeated the University of Kentucky 7265 to win the national title. (Photo by Rich Clarkson/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) /

5. Texas Western makes history with an all-black starting lineup

America was a very divided country in the mid-1960s and race was a huge social issue at the time. Even though baseball had integrated nearly two decades earlier with Jackie Robinson, other sports lagged far behind, including college basketball.

One notable exception was found deep in the heart of Texas when small school Texas Western fielded a starting lineup featuring five black players. The Miners, led by fifth-year coach Don Haskins, overcame plenty of racism from opposing players, fans, and officials to have an excellent season.

Texas Western went 23-1 during the regular season and advanced all the way to the Final Four, where they topped Utah to earn a date with Kentucky for the national title. The Wildcats, coached by the legendary Adolph Rupp, featured an all-white lineup.

Haskins was able to motivate his team after hearing that Rupp promised his Wildcats would never lose to an all-black team, and the Miners topped Kentucky 72-65 to win the championship. Texas Western’s excellent team play shattered stereotypes about black basketball players, quickly leading to the desegregation of college athletics.

The entire Miners’ team was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007, and the team’s season was documented in the book Glory Road, which eventually was adapted into a movie. Of all the moments on this list, none had a bigger impact on the country than the Miners’ triumph over both Kentucky and racism.