The history of Le Moyne Dolphins men's basketball from 1969 to 1973 includes the final four years of the coaching reign of Tommy Niland, Le Moyne's head coach since the inception of the program in 1948, and the career of Phil Harlow, one of the Dolphins' all-time greatest players. Le Moyne did not earn a postseason berth but did win the Middle Eastern College Athletic Association (MECAA) championship in 1972–73, Niland's final season, with an undefeated league record. In 1969–70, the Dolphins failed to earn a win against a University Division opponent, the first time since the 1956 split of the NCAA into divisions they were unable to do so. In 1970–71, Le Moyne suffered their first losing season in 19 years. Harlow finished his collegiate career as Le Moyne's all-time scoring leader. , Niland remains the program's all-time leader in wins as a head coach.
A late-season surge for a winning record (1969–1970) The Dolphins lost tri-captains Chuck Brady, Matt Fallis and Mike Kawa to graduation in 1969. Backcourt stars Tom Downey, 5'8", and John Zych, 6'2", both key players on the 1968 and 1969 tournament teams, returned for their senior season, and Downey, the starting point guard, was elected team captain for the 1969–70 season. Downey and Zych had been teammates since they starred together at St. John the Evangelist High School. Also returning were seniors Bob Bradley and Dick Hojnacki, junior John Kutzuba and sophomore John Zagata, who played on the varsity team as a freshman. Zych and Kutzuba were returning from academic ineligibility. The team added five sophomores: Dan Brandt, Charlie Hale, Brian Legg, Dick Seymour and Henry Nirsberger. Three freshmen, Phil Harlow, Mike Dennis and Dick Canty, made the team. Harlow was tabbed as a starter prior to the beginning of the season.
In pre-season polling conducted by the Upstate Sports Information Directors Council, the Dolphins were ranked no. 1 among Upstate New York small college teams.
Trailing, 66–53, in their December 3, 1969 season opener with five minutes to play, the Dolphins closed the game on a 16–4 run, but their frantic comeback attempt came up short, and they fell to Rochester, 70–69. After a pair of Dick Seymour free throws cut the Yellowjackets' lead to a single point with 15 seconds to play, the Dolphins forced a turnover and regained possession with 11 seconds left. However, the ball was knocked out of bounds with one second on the clock, before Le Moyne could get a shot off. Tom Downey's inbounds pass was stolen by Rochester, ending the Dolphins' threat. The Yellowjackets used their height advantage to outrebound the Dolphins, 46–27. Bob Bradley led Le Moyne with a game-high 21 points. Freshman Phil Harlow scored 15 points and drew rave reviews for his ball handling display in his much anticipated Dolphins debut. The Dolphins played without Dan Brandt, who contracted bronchitis just before the start of the season and was expected to be unavailable until after Christmas.
After 14 consecutive victories for the Dolphins, St. Lawrence earned their first ever victory over Le Moyne, 73–62, on December 17, in Canton, New York. The Dolphins shot only 33% from the floor and were plagued by fouls with Bob Bradley, Tom Downey and Phil Harlow all disqualified in the final six minutes. Harlow had 17 points to lead Le Moyne. Head coach Tommy Niland was suffering from the flu and unable to make the road trip. Assistant coach Tom Cooney took the reins on the sidelines.
The Dolphins faced Albany State (GA) in a semifinal of their sixth annual Christmas invitational tournament on December 29, in front of a sellout crowd. The game featured a matchup of Phil Harlow and his brother Howie, who played for Albany State. The Grand Street Boys, a Syracuse-based organization of civic-minded former black athletes, raised money to help defray Albany State's travel costs. After a close first half, which ended with the Golden Rams leading 41–37, Albany State used their significant height advantage and the slick guard play of Joe Reddick, who finished with a game-high 26 points, and Howie Harlow, who were former teammates at Corcoran High School, to break the game open in the second half, building a lead that swelled to as many as 17 points. Adding to the local flavor were three former Central Tech players, Gene Bynum, Ken Lewis and Alex Bullock, in the Albany State lineup. At 6'11", Caldwell Jones was, by far, the tallest player on the floor. While he scored only seven points, Jones was a force under the basket on the defensive end, prompting Le Moyne head coach Tommy Niland to say, "That big guy really hurt us. He took away our offense by batting back plenty of shots." Dan Brandt, the tallest player on Le Moyne's roster at 6'6", got significant minutes for the first time this season, after being slowed by bronchitis since the pre-season, missing the first four games and seeing only limited action in the fifth game against Boston College. Brandt finished with seven points. Phil Harlow scored a team-high 19 points for Le Moyne, besting his brother Howie, who had 17, but the Golden Rams won the game, 82–69.
The following evening, the Dolphins used hot shooting to take control of their consolation game against Hartwick in the later stages of the first half, building a 49–34 lead at the break. Le Moyne shot 52% from the floor, led by senior John Zych, who finished with 32 points. Dick Hojnacki scored nine points and grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds for the Dolphins, who took a 103–79 victory. Freshman Phil Harlow had 25 points and was named to the tournament All-Star team. Le Moyne improved to 3–4 on the season with the win.
The Dolphins traveled to Siena on January 21, 1970, for a game with the Indians and Mike Seymour, brother of Le Moyne's Dick Seymour. The Dolphins used hot outside shooting to gain an early advantage and remained in control of the game all night. John Zych had 20 points to pace the Dolphins and set a new program record with 23 rebounds. Freshman sensation Phil Harlow scored 16 points but did not play in the second half after drawing four first-half fouls. With Le Moyne comfortably in the lead, head coach Tommy Niland elected to give his reserves some playing time and leave Harlow on the bench. Mike Seymour had 17 points for Siena, and Dick Seymour scored two points in limited action for Le Moyne. The Dolphins improved to 4–6 with the win.
Phil Harlow scored a career-high 32 points on 11-for-24 shooting in an 87–83 Dolphins road win at Central Connecticut on February 6. Harlow scored 18 of his points in the second half to help Le Moyne overcome a five-point deficit at the break. Bob Bradley scored 11 of his 17 points in the closing stanza. The Dolphins improved to 6–7 on the season.
After a 68–62 loss at Buffalo on February 21, dropped the Dolphins to 7–10 on the season, the team was determined to win the final four games on its schedule and finish with a winning record. Victories over Ithaca, Saint Michael's, Cortland State, and Siena gave the Dolphins a four-game winning streak to close the season at 11–10. The Dolphins needed a comeback to earn an overtime victory over Saint Michael's. Senior Dick Hojnacki led the Dolphins with 26 points on Senior Night against Siena in an 84–77 victory on March 7. Captain Tom Downey had 20 points in his final collegiate game. In a halftime ceremony, Phil Harlow was presented the Cy Reynolds Memorial Trophy as the team's most valuable player. He was the first freshman to win the award. It was the 12th consecutive winning season and 18th straight non-losing season for the Dolphins. However, this was the first season since the NCAA split into the University Division and the College Division in 1956, in which the Dolphins failed to earn a victory over a University Division opponent. Le Moyne was 11–6 against College Division teams and 0–4 versus University Division foes.
First losing season in 19 years (1970–1971) Practices for the 1970–71 season opened on October 15, 1970. A week into the workouts, junior John Zagata, who had been projected as a starter, suffered torn cartilage in one of his knees. The injury required surgery, and Zagata was expected to miss at least 10 weeks, which would mean a return to action no earlier than January. However, there was a chance Zagata could miss the entire season. The Dolphins lost four starters, Tom Downey, John Zych, Bob Bradley and Dick Hojnacki, to graduation in 1970. Sophomore Phil Harlow, a 5'10" guard who averaged 20.1 points per game as a freshman, was the only returning starter. Juniors Dan Brandt and Charlie Hale and sophomores Mike Dennis and Dick Canty also returned to the team. Juniors Ed Papworth, a transfer student, and Joe Mulherin, sophomores Bob Kawa, leading scorer on the previous season's freshman team, and Brian Gaetano and freshmen Rick May and Paul Donohue were all added to the team. Aside from Zagata's injury, Brandt, Papworth and Mulherin all suffered minor injuries, and Hale and Dennis contracted the flu during preseason, requiring head coach Tommy Niland and assistant Tom Cooney to participate in scrimmages at times in order to have 10 players on the floor. Harlow was named team captain.
The Dolphins opened their season on December 5, with a 68–62 home victory over St. Francis (NY). Phil Harlow scored 19 points to lead Le Moyne, which built a 38–23 halftime lead and fought off the Terriers second-half comeback attempt. Dan Brandt, starting at center at 6'6", scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds. The Dolphins showed depth on their bench, getting four points and nine rebounds from Dick Canty and 10 points from Charlie Hale. Canty and Hale received unexpected playing time with starters Rick May and Ed Papworth both in foul trouble. Despite fouling out, May finished with seven points and seven rebounds. The win was Le Moyne's 50th all-time over a University Division/major program.
After three straight losses dropped the Dolphins to 1–3, Le Moyne anticipated the early return of John Zagata, who was pronounced fit to play for the Christmas invitational tournament. Also back in the lineup was Ed Papworth, who had been injured in early-season action. Freshman Rick May had a double-double with 21 points on 8-for-15 shooting and 13 rebounds to lead the Dolphins to a 78–71 victory over Hobart in the December 29 tournament opener. Le Moyne led by as many as 19 points in the second half but were plagued by turnovers and foul trouble, allowing the Statesmen to get back into the game. Zagata made his season debut and scored only two points, but they came on a key basket late in the game as Hobart was attempting a comeback. The following evening, Tracy Tripucka set a new individual scoring record for the Le Moyne Athletic Center with 40 points to lead Lafayette to an 89–75 win over the Dolphins in the tournament final. Tripucka was named the tournament's most outstanding player. Phil Harlow scored 23 points to lead the Dolphins. Dan Brandt had 21 points and nine rebounds. Harlow and Brandt were named to the all-tournament team.
Phil Harlow matched the Dolphins program record, scoring 41 points on February 18, 1971, in a 97–75 victory at Clarkson. Harlow's total equalled the mark set by Dick Kenyon on January 7, 1955. Rick May had a double-double for the Dolphins with 17 points and 21 rebounds. Le Moyne improved to 7–10 on the season.