1969–70 Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball team

The 1969–70 Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball team represented Jacksonville University during the 1969–70 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by sixth-year head coach Joe Williams and played their home games at the Jacksonville Coliseum. The Dolphins were independent and not a member of a conference. They finished the season 27–2 and received an invitation to the NCAA Tournament. There they defeated Western Kentucky, Iowa, and Kentucky to advance to the Final Four, the school's first and only trip to the Final Four. They defeated St. Bonaventure to advance to the National Championship game against UCLA. They lost the championship to UCLA, marking the Bruins' fourth straight NCAA championship.

1969–70 Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball
Mideast Regional Champions
NCAA Tournament, Runner-Up
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 5
AP	No. 4
1969–70 record	27–2
Head coach	Joe Williams (6th season)
Home arena	Jacksonville Coliseum

Previous season

The Dolphins finished the 1968–69 season 17–7.[1]

Season summary

The Dolphins were led by 7′ 2″ center Artis Gilmore. A two-time All-America honoree (in 1969–70 and 1970–71), Gilmore led the nation in rebounding both seasons. He finished his career with 1,312 points (24.3 average) and 1,224 rebounds (22.7).[2][3][4]

On December 18, 1969, the game against Georgetown was stopped with 1:23 remaining in the first half following successive brawls between players from both teams and fans.[5][6] Georgetown head coach, Jack Magee, pulled his team from the court and Jacksonville was awarded the win.[5]

The Dolphins lost the National Championship game to UCLA despite taking an early lead in the game.[7][8] UCLA narrowed the lead and took over with 1:20 left in the first half. The Bruins would never trail again as they pulled away for the 80–69 win.[7]

Roster

1969–70 Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown G Rusty Baldwin 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) — So F Mike Blevins 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) — PF 42 Pembrook Burrows 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) — Jr Chip Dublin — — Jr C 53 Artis Gilmore 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Jr G Dan Hawkins 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) — Sr F Curtis Kruer 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) — So G Rod McIntyre 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) — Sr G 24 Rex Morgan 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Charleston, Illinois F Gregg Nelson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) — Jr Ken Selke — — Sr G Vaughn wedeking 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) — Jr	Head coach Joe Williams Assistant coach(es) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt

Source[9]

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
December 1, 2969*		East Tennessee State Sunshine Classic semifinal	W 92–74	1–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
December 2, 1969*		Morehead State Sunshine Classic championship	W 117–63	2–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
December 9, 1969*		Mercer	W 102–62	3–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
December 13, 1969*		St. Thomas (FL) Sunshine Classic championship	W 130–65	4–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
December 18, 1969*	No. 18	Georgetown	W 41–26	5–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
December 22, 1969*	No. 18	Harvard	W 103–64	6–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
December 26, 1969*	No. 13	vs. Arizona Evansville Invite semifinal	W 104–72	7–0	–	–	–	Roberts Municipal Stadium  Evansville, IN
December 27, 1969*	No. 13	vs. Evansville Evansville Invite championship	W 100–70	8–0	–	–	–	Roberts Municipal Stadium  Evansville, IN
January 2, 1970*	No. 10	at Hawaii	W 100–78	9–0	–	–	–	Neal S. Blaisdell Center  Honolulu, HI
January 5, 1970*	No. 10	at Hawaii	W 63–58	10–0	–	–	–	Neal S. Blaisdell Center  Honolulu, HI
January 9, 1970*	No. 7	Richmond	W 113–77	11–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
January 10, 1970*	No. 7	Miami	W 121–87	12–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
January 16, 1970*	No. 6	Virgin Islands	W 114–66	13–0	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
January 27, 1970*	No. 6	at No. 18 Florida State	L 83–89	13–1	–	–	–	Tully Gymnasium  Tallahassee, FL
January 30, 1970*	No. 6	Saint Peter's	W 121–101	14–1	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
February 2, 1970*	No. 8	Iona	W 110–75	15–1	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
February 5, 1970*	No. 8	at East Carolina	W 111–94	16–1	–	–	–	Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum  Greenville, NC
February 6, 1970*	No. 8	at Richmond	W 88–49	17–1	–	–	–	Richmond Arena  Richmond, VA
February 13, 1970*	No. 7	at Oklahoma City	W 103–83	18–1	–	–	–	Frederickson Fieldhouse  Oklahoma City, OK
February 14, 1970*	No. 7	at Loyola (LA)	W 96–75	19–1	–	–	–	The Field House  New Orleans, LA
February 18, 1970*	No. 6	No. 18 Florida State	W 85–81	20–1	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
February 24, 1970*	No. 6	Oklahoma City	W 77–75	21–1	–	–	–	Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum  Jacksonville, FL
February 26, 1970*	No. 6	at Georgia Tech	W 86–81	22–1	–	–	–	Alexander Memorial Coliseum  Atlanta, GA
March 2, 1970*	No. 6	at Miami	W 108–97	23–1	–	–	–	Miami Beach Convention Center  Miami, FL
NCAA Tournament
March 7, 1970*	No. 6	vs. No. 12 Western Kentucky Regional Quarterfinal	W 109–96	24–1	30 – Gilmore	19 – Gilmore	–	University of Dayton Arena  Dayton, OH
March 12, 1970*	No. 4	vs. No. 7 Iowa Regional Semifinal	W 104–103	25–1	30 – Gilmore	17 – Gilmore	–	St. John Arena  Columbus, OH
March 14, 1970*	No. 4	vs. No. 1 Kentucky Regional Final	W 106–100	26–1	28 – Morgan	20 – Gilmore	–	St. John Arena  Columbus, OH
March 19, 1970*	No. 4	vs. No. 3 St. Bonaventure National Semifinal	W 91–83	27–1	29 – Gilmore	21 – Gilmore	–	Cole Fieldhouse  College Park, MD
March 21, 1970*	No. 4	vs. No. 2 UCLA National Championship Game	L 69–80	27–2	19 – Gilmore	16 – Gilmore	–	Cole Fieldhouse  College Park, MD
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. ME=Mideast. All times are in Eastern Time.

Source[10][11]

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	Final
AP	NR	18	18	13	10	7	6	6	6	8	7	6	6	6	4
Coaches	NR	20-T	19	19	10	7	7	6	6	8	7	6	6	6	5

Awards and honors

• Artis Gilmore – Second-Team All-American, AP, NABC and UPI

Team players in the 1970 NBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	NBA Club
2	21	Rex Morgan	Boston Celtics

[12]

References

1. "1968-69 Jacksonville Dolphins Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
2. http://judolphins.com/information/hall_of_fame/gilmore_artis?view=bio
3. "1969-70 Jacksonville Dolphins Roster and Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-12-28.
4. "Jacksonville Dolphins Men's Basketball Stat Sheet" (PDF). Jacksonville University. 1970. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
5. "Desert Sun 19 December 1969 — California Digital Newspaper Collection". cdnc.ucr.edu. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
6. "Georgetown Five Forfeits Game as Fight Halts Play (Published 1969)". The New York Times. 1969-12-19. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
7. "4TH CROWN IN ROW". The New York Times. March 22, 1970. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
8. Jares, Joe (March 30, 1970). "VICTORY BY MYSTIQUE". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
9. "1969-70 Jacksonville Dolphins Roster and Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
10. "1969-70 Jacksonville Dolphins Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
11. "1969-70 Men's Basketball Schedule". Jacksonville University. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
12. "1970 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved December 8, 2019.