1927–28 NCAA men's basketball season

1927–28 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
1927–28 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Helms National Champions	Pittsburgh (retroactive selection in 1943)
Player of the Year; (Helms)	Victor Holt, Oklahoma (retroactive selection in 1944)
	← 1926–27 1928–29 →

The 1927–28 NCAA men's basketball season began in December 1927, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded in March 1928.

Season headlines

On April 9, 1927, the Joint Basketball Rules Committee announced a sudden change in dribbling rules, eliminating the continuous dribble that had become legal in the 1909–10 season and replacing it with the rule in use from the 1901–02 through 1908–09 seasons, which restricted each dribble to a single bounce.^[1]^[2] The committee made the change in the belief that elimination of the continuous dribble would make the game less rough and reward greater team play by encouraging more passing.^[2] In response, Kansas head coach Phog Allen founded the National Association of Basketball Coaches, which under his leadership sponsored a nationwide protest against the change.^[3] By May 1927, the committee had reversed its decision, and the continuous dribble remained legal.^[1]^[4]
After the end of the 1927–28 season, the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MVIAA) split into the Big Six Conference and the Missouri Valley Conference in May 1928. Both claimed to be a continuation of the MVIAA.
In February 1943, the Helms Athletic Foundation retroactively selected Pittsburgh as its national champion for the 1927–28 season.^[5]
In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively selected Pittsburgh as its national champion for the 1927–28 season.^[6]

Conference membership changes

School	Former conference	New conference
UCLA Bruins	Independent	Pacific Coast Conference

Regular season

Conferences

Conference winners and tournaments

Conference	Regular season winner^[7]	Conference player of the year	Conference tournament	Tournament venue (City)	Tournament winner
Big Ten Conference	Indiana & Purdue	None selected	No Tournament
Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League	Penn	None selected	No Tournament
Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association	Oklahoma	None selected	No Tournament
Pacific Coast Conference	Washington (North); USC (South)		No Tournament; USC defeated Washington in best-of-three conference championship playoff series
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference	Wyoming (Eastern); Montana State (Western)		No Tournament
Southern Conference	Auburn	None selected	1928 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament	Municipal Auditorium (Atlanta, Georgia)	Mississippi^[8]
Southwest Conference	Arkansas	None selected	No Tournament

Conference standings

1927–28 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Indiana	10	–	2	.833	15	–	2	.882
Purdue	10	–	2	.833	15	–	2	.882
Wisconsin	9	–	3	.750	13	–	4	.765
Northwestern	9	–	3	.750	12	–	5	.706
Michigan	7	–	5	.583	10	–	7	.588
Chicago	5	–	7	.417	8	–	9	.471
Iowa	3	–	9	.250	6	–	11	.353
Ohio State	3	–	9	.250	5	–	12	.294
Illinois	2	–	10	.167	5	–	12	.294
Minnesota	2	–	10	.167	4	–	12	.250

1927–28 Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Penn†	7	–	3	.700	22	–	5	.815
Princeton	7	–	3	.700	14	–	10	.583
Dartmouth	6	–	4	.600	19	–	8	.704
Cornell	5	–	5	.500	7	–	11	.389
Yale	3	–	7	.300	12	–	9	.571
Columbia	2	–	8	.200	4	–	13	.235


† Conference championship winner

1927–28 Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Oklahoma	18	–	0	1.000	18	–	0	1.000
Missouri	13	–	5	.722	13	–	5	.722
Oklahoma A&M	11	–	7	.611	11	–	8	.579
Kansas	9	–	9	.500	9	–	9	.500
Kansas State	8	–	10	.444	10	–	10	.500
Washington University	8	–	10	.444	10	–	12	.455
Drake	7	–	11	.389	7	–	13	.350
Nebraska	7	–	11	.389	7	–	11	.389
Grinnell	6	–	12	.333	6	–	13	.316
Iowa State	3	–	15	.167	3	–	15	.167

1927–28 Pacific Coast Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
North
Washington	9	–	1	.900	22	–	6	.786
Oregon	8	–	2	.800	18	–	3	.857
Idaho	4	–	6	.400	7	–	7	.500
Oregon State	4	–	6	.400	15	–	16	.484
Montana	4	–	6	.400	6	–	8	.429
Washington State	1	–	9	.100	7	–	17	.292
South
USC †	6	–	3	.667	22	–	4	.846
California	6	–	3	.667	9	–	6	.600
UCLA	5	–	4	.556	10	–	5	.667
Stanford	1	–	8	.111	8	–	13	.381

† Conference playoff series winner

1927–28 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference standings
	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Eastern
Wyoming	9	–	3	.750	13	–	8	.619
Colorado College	9	–	5	.643	10	–	7	.588
Denver	8	–	6	.571	10	–	6	.625
Northern Colorado	8	–	6	.571	8	–	6	.571
Colorado	5	–	7	.417	5	–	7	.417
Colorado Agricultural	5	–	7	.417	5	–	7	.417
Colorado Mines	5	–	7	.417	5	–	7	.417
Western State	1	–	9	.100	10	–	12	.455
Western
Montana State	11	–	1	.917	36	–	2	.947
Utah Agricultural	5	–	7	.417	7	–	7	.500
Utah	5	–	7	.417	7	–	10	.412
BYU	3	–	9	.250	13	–	10	.565

1927–28 Southern Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Auburn	12	–	1	.923	20	–	2	.909
Mississippi A&M	10	–	1	.909	13	–	7	.650
North Carolina	8	–	1	.889	17	–	2	.895
Maryland	8	–	1	.889	14	–	4	.778
Kentucky	8	–	1	.889	12	–	6	.667
LSU	7	–	3	.700	14	–	4	.778
Virginia	10	–	5	.667	20	–	6	.769
Georgia	8	–	5	.615	13	–	10	.565
VMI	5	–	5	.500	7	–	6	.538
Alabama	5	–	5	.500	10	–	10	.500
Clemson	5	–	7	.417	9	–	14	.391
South Carolina	4	–	7	.364	8	–	12	.400
Mississippi†	5	–	9	.357	10	–	9	.526
NC State	3	–	6	.333	10	–	8	.556
Vanderbilt	2	–	5	.286	5	–	7	.417
Virginia Tech	3	–	7	.300	5	–	11	.313
Washington and Lee	3	–	7	.300	5	–	12	.294
Florida	2	–	10	.167	5	–	16	.238
Sewanee	1	–	5	.167	2	–	7	.222
Tulane	3	–	15	.167	3	–	15	.167
Tennessee	0	–	8	.000	0	–	12	.000

† Southern Conference Tournament winner

1927–28 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Arkansas	12	–	0	1.000	19	–	1	.950
SMU	10	–	2	.833	14	–	3	.824
Texas	7	–	5	.583	12	–	5	.706
TCU	5	–	7	.417	9	–	8	.529
Rice	3	–	9	.250	3	–	9	.250
Baylor	2	–	8	.200	8	–	10	.444
Texas A&M	1	–	9	.100	4	–	12	.250

Independents

A total of 90 college teams played as major independents. Pittsburgh (21–0) finished both undefeated and with the most wins.^[10]

1927–28 NCAA men's basketball independents standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Pittsburgh		–		–	21	–	0	1.000
Detroit City College		–		–	18	–	1	.947
Carleton		–		–	13	–	1	.929
Illinois Wesleyan		–		–	13	–	1	.929
Georgetown		–		–	12	–	1	.923
Springfield (Mass.)		–		–	18	–	2	.900
Xavier		–		–	9	–	1	.900
Butler		–		–	19	–	3	.864
Santa Clara		–		–	12	–	2	.857
Westminster (Pa.)		–		–	17	–	3	.850
Furman		–		–	15	–	3	.833
West Texas State		–		–	19	–	4	.826
Evansville		–		–	14	–	3	.824
Notre Dame		–		–	18	–	4	.818
St. John's (N.Y.)		–		–	18	–	4	.818
Arizona		–		–	13	–	3	.813
Miami (Ohio)		–		–	13	–	3	.813
Fordham		–		–	16	–	4	.800
Loyola (Ill.)		–		–	16	–	4	.800
Northern Arizona State		–		–	12	–	3	.800
Connecticut		–		–	11	–	3	.786
Cincinnati		–		–	14	–	4	.778
Temple		–		–	17	–	5	.773
Manhattan		–		–	13	–	4	.765
Wooster		–		–	13	–	4	.765
Bucknell		–		–	16	–	5	.762
Pittsburg State		–		–	16	–	5	.762
St. Ignatius		–		–	16	–	5	.762
Louisville		–		–	12	–	4	.750
Rhode Island State		–		–	15	–	5	.750
William & Mary		–		–	15	–	5	.750
Bradley		–		–	14	–	5	.737
CCNY		–		–	11	–	4	.733
Detroit		–		–	11	–	4	.733
Michigan State		–		–	11	–	4	.733
Valparaiso		–		–	11	–	4	.733
Navy		–		–	13	–	5	.722
The Citadel		–		–	13	–	5	.722
Indiana State		–		–	12	–	5	.706
Wichita Municipal		–		–	14	–	6	.700
Seton Hall		–		–	9	–	4	.692
Washburn		–		–	9	–	4	.692
Dayton		–		–	11	–	5	.688
Niagara		–		–	11	–	5	.688
Richmond		–		–	11	–	5	.688
Holy Cross		–		–	13	–	6	.684
Duquesne		–		–	15	–	7	.682
Tempe State		–		–	10	–	5	.667
Army		–		–	10	–	5	.667
Lehigh		–		–	10	–	5	.667
Mount Union		–		–	12	–	6	.667
Penn State		–		–	10	–	5	.667
St. Bonaventure		–		–	14	–	7	.667
West Virginia		–		–	13	–	7	.650
George Washington		–		–	11	–	6	.647
Duke		–		–	9	–	5	.643
Rutgers		–		–	9	–	5	.643
New Mexico		–		–	12	–	7	.632
Syracuse		–		–	10	–	6	.625
Canisius		–		–	8	–	5	.615
Colgate		–		–	12	–	8	.600
Lafayette		–		–	10	–	7	.588
Western Kentucky State		–		–	10	–	7	.588
New York University		–		–	8	–	6	.571
Bowling Green State		–		–	9	–	7	.563
Davidson		–		–	9	–	7	.563
Texas Tech		–		–	9	–	7	.563
Toledo		–		–	9	–	7	.563
Harvard		–		–	8	–	7	.533
Saint Francis (N.Y.)		–		–	9	–	8	.529
Western State Teachers		–		–	9	–	8	.529
Boston University		–		–	8	–	8	.500
Buffalo		–		–	8	–	8	.500
Marshall		–		–	10	–	10	.500
Ohio		–		–	10	–	10	.500
Saint Louis		–		–	11	–	11	.500
DePauw		–		–	8	–	9	.471
Saint Mary's (Calif.)		–		–	7	–	8	.467
Texas State M&M		–		–	6	–	8	.429
Brown		–		–	7	–	10	.412
Marquette		–		–	7	–	11	.389
Muhlenberg		–		–	6	–	11	.353
St. Joseph's		–		–	6	–	11	.353
Wake Forest		–		–	6	–	14	.300
DePaul		–		–	2	–	5	.286
Villanova		–		–	4	–	11	.267
Loyola (Md.)		–		–	4	–	12	.250
New Mexico A&M		–		–	3	–	11	.214
Kent State Normal		–		–	3	–	13	.188
Tulsa		–		–	2	–	12	.143

Statistical leaders

Awards

Helms College Basketball All-Americans

The practice of selecting a Consensus All-American Team did not begin until the 1928–29 season. The Helms Athletic Foundation later retroactively selected a list of All-Americans for the 1927–28 season.^[11]

**Helms NCAA All-Americans**
Player	Team
Victor Holt	Oklahoma
Charley Hyatt	Pittsburgh
Alfred James	Washington
Stretch Murphy	Purdue
Bennie Oosterbaan	Michigan
Sykes Reed	Pittsburgh
Glen Rose	Arkansas
Joe Schaaf	Penn
Ernest Simpson	Colorado College
Cat Thompson	Montana State

Major player of the year awards

Helms Player of the Year: Victor Holt, Oklahoma (retroactive selection in 1944)

Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.

Team	Former Coach	Interim Coach	New Coach	Reason
Oregon State	Robert Hager		Slats Gill
Washington State	Karl Schlademan		Jack Friel

References

^ ^a ^b Hoop Tactics "The Evolution of Basketball: A Chronological Look At The Major Refinements" Accessed 15 May 2021
^ ^a ^b Anonymous, "BASKETBALL RULE REDUCES DRIBBLE; Joint Committee Restricts It to One Bound in All Amateur Contests. TO ENCOURAGE TEAM PLAY' Officials Say Change Also Will Eliminate Roughness -- Time Out on All Fouls," New York Times, April 10, 1927 Accessed 22 May 2021
^ "What is the NABC and what does it do?". National Association of Basketball Coaches. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
^ Anonymous, "Basketball Rules Committee Rescinds Change Regarding One-Bound Dribble," New York Times, May 19, 1927 Accessed 22 May 2021
^ Scott, Jon (November 9, 2010). "The truth behind the Helms Committee". Retrieved December 14, 2015.
^ ESPN, ed. (2009). ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. New York, NY: ESPN Books. pp. 526, 529–587. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
^ "2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
^ 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09
^ "2017-18 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. p. 72. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
^ "1927-28 Men's Independent Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved July 30, 2024.
^ The Association for Professional Basketball Research "NCAA All-American Teams, 1919–20 to 1998–99"

[hooptactics-1] Hoop Tactics "The Evolution of Basketball: A Chronological Look At The Major Refinements" Accessed 15 May 2021

[nytimes19270410-2] Anonymous, "BASKETBALL RULE REDUCES DRIBBLE; Joint Committee Restricts It to One Bound in All Amateur Contests. TO ENCOURAGE TEAM PLAY' Officials Say Change Also Will Eliminate Roughness -- Time Out on All Fouls," New York Times, April 10, 1927 Accessed 22 May 2021

[3] "What is the NABC and what does it do?". National Association of Basketball Coaches. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2012.

[4] Anonymous, "Basketball Rules Committee Rescinds Change Regarding One-Bound Dribble," New York Times, May 19, 1927 Accessed 22 May 2021

[5] Scott, Jon (November 9, 2010). "The truth behind the Helms Committee". Retrieved December 14, 2015.

[ESPN_526-6] ESPN, ed. (2009). ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. New York, NY: ESPN Books. pp. 526, 529–587. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.

[7] "2009 NCAA Men's Basketball Record Book – Conferences Section" (PDF). NCAA. 2009. Retrieved February 14, 2009.

[8] 2008–09 SoCon Men's Basketball Media Guide – Postseason Section, Southern Conference, retrieved 2009-02-09

[9] "2017-18 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. p. 72. Retrieved February 16, 2018.

[10] "1927-28 Men's Independent Season Summary". Sports Reference. Retrieved July 30, 2024.

[11] The Association for Professional Basketball Research "NCAA All-American Teams, 1919–20 to 1998–99"

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