The 1938–39 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1938, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1939 NCAA basketball tournament championship game on March 27, 1939, at Patten Gymnasium in Evanston, Illinois. The Oregon Webfoots won the first NCAA national championship with a 46–33 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Rule changes After a team makes a free throw as a result of a technical foul, it retains possession and throws the ball in from out of bounds. Previously, a jump ball at center court had taken place after a team shot a free throw as a result of a technical foul.orangehoops.org History of NCAA Basketball Rule Changes
Season headlines
The Mountain States Athletic Conference, popularly known as the Mountain States Conference and the Skyline Conference, began play, with seven original members. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference became a non-major conference after the departure of seven of its larger members for the Skyline Conference. The practice of naming a Consensus All-American Second Team began. The NCAA tournament was held for the first time, operated by the National Association of Basketball Coaches rather than the National Collegiate Athletic Association itself. Eight teams competed.Anonymous, "How the NCAA Overtook Its Rival, the NIT," Sport History Weekly, March 24, 2019 Accessed May 4, 2021 In the first game, Villanova defeated Brown 42–30 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on March 17, and Oregon defeated Ohio State 46–33 in Evanston, Illinois, in the first championship game on March 27. Jimmy Hull of Ohio State was named the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player. The tournament lost $2,500; although 5,000 fans attended the championship game, many of the tickets were given away. The NCAA viewed its champion as the official national champion, the National Invitation Tournament, which had debuted the previous year, widely was considered the more prestigious of the two tournaments and the "true" national championship tournament through at least the mid-1950s, with better teams often choosing the NIT over the NCAA or playing in both tournaments in the same year. Howard Hobson of Oregon became the first head coach to win the NCAA tournament at his alma mater. Bruce Drake of Oklahoma became the first head coach to lead his team to a finish among the final four teams in the NCAA tournament in his first season as a head coach. The Eastern Intercollegiate Conference and the Northern California Conference both disbanded at the end of the season. In February 1943, the Helms Athletic Foundation retroactively selected Long Island, the 1938 National Invitation Tournament winner, as its national champion for the 1938–39 season. In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively selected Long Island as its top-ranked team for the 1938–39 season.
Conference membership changes SchoolFormer conferenceNew conference Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Mountain States (Skyline) Conference Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Mountain States (Skyline) Conference Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Mountain States (Skyline) Conference Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Mountain States (Skyline) Conference Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Mountain States (Skyline) Conference Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Mountain States (Skyline) Conference Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Mountain States (Skyline) Conference
Regular season Conferences Conference winners and tournaments
ConferenceRegular season winnerConference player of the yearConference tournamentTournament venue (City)Tournament winnerBig Six Conference Missouri & Oklahoma None selected No TournamentBig Ten Conference Ohio State None selected No TournamentBorder Conference New Mexico State None selected No TournamentEastern Intercollegiate Basketball League Dartmouth None selected No TournamentEastern Intercollegiate Conference & Georgetown None selected No TournamentMetropolitan New York Conference Long Island None selected No TournamentMissouri Valley Conference Drake & None selected No TournamentMountain States (Skyline) Conference Colorado No TournamentNew England Conference Rhode Island State No TournamentNorthern California Conference Santa Clara No TournamentPacific Coast Conference ; No Tournament;Oregon defeated in best-of-three conference championship playoff seriesSoutheastern Conference Kentucky None selected 1939 SEC men's basketball tournament Alumni Memorial Gym (Knoxville, Tennessee) KentuckySouthern Conference Wake Forest None selected 1939 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament Thompson Gym(Raleigh, Clemson2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section , Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09Southwest Conference Texas None selected No Tournament
Conference standings
Major independents A total of 48 college teams played as major independents. (21–1) had the best winning percentage (.955). | (22–3) and (22–5) finished with the most wins.
Post-Season Tournaments
NCAA Tournament
Semifinals & final
National Invitation Tournament
Semifinals & finals
Awards
Consensus All-American teams
+ Consensus First Team Player Class Team Ernie Andres Senior Indiana Jimmy Hull Senior Ohio State Chet Jaworski Senior Rhode Island State Irving Torgoff Senior Long Island Slim Wintermute Senior Oregon
+ Consensus Second Team Player Class Team Bobby Anet Senior Oregon Bob Calihan Junior Detroit Bob Hassmiller Senior Fordham Mike Novak Senior Loyola-Chicago Bernard Opper Senior Kentucky
Major player of the year awards
Helms Player of the Year: Chet Jaworski, Rhode Island State (retroactive selection in 1944)
Other major awards
NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Irv Torgoff, Long Island
Coaching changes A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended. TeamFormerCoachInterimCoachNewCoachReasonArizona State—TempeEarl PomeroyRudy Lavik ArmyLeo NovakValentine Lentz CincinnatiRip Van WinkleClark BallardVan Winkle left to coach Miami (OH).ColgateJohn GallowayPaul Bixler DaytonJoe HolsingerJames Carter Kansas StateFrank RootJack Gardner Miami (OH)Weeb EwbankRip Van Winkle New HampshireGeorge SauerHenry Swasey New Mexico A&MJerry HinesJulius H. Johnston North CarolinaWalter SkidemoreBill Lange Ole MissFrank JohnsonFrank Jaskwhich Saint Mary's (CA)Jack OttenLouis Conlan Siena SaintsJack CarrollHenry Bunoski TempleJames UsiltonErnest MessikomerUsilton died during the offseasonTulsaChet BenefielH. B. "Tex" Ryon UCLACaddy WorksWilbur Johns WyomingWillard WitteEverett Shelton
References