HOUSTON — We now know it as March Madness. But in this particular tournament in 1971, the real ‘madness’ came after March.
It was March 24, 1971. KHOU 11 was at the Astrodome, where it was practice time for four schools playing for a national title.
The matchups?
Perennial power UCLA, coached by the legend John Wooden, met 27-1 Kansas, while underdog Villanova faced Western Kentucky.
“I’m not trying to be overly modest, but we’re lucky to be here,” said WKU coach John Oldham.
The Hilltoppers were led by skilled big man Jim McDaniels.
“Not only an inside man, but who can go outside to shoot,” said Villanova coach Jack Kraft. “Of course, he stands seven feet. If he was only six feet, it would be a lot different.”
Let’s cut to the chase: UCLA won it all beating ‘Nova in the championship game for its fifth title in a row.
And now, here’s where things get strange.
There were allegations before the tournament began that both McDaniels and Villanova star Howard Porter, the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, had signed pro contracts with the ABA, though both denied it at the time.
But it was true.
The NCAA had been investigating.
Villanova and Western Kentucky later returned their second- and third-place trophies, as well as all the money each received - Villanova got roughly $72,000, while WKU earned $66,000 - from being in the tournament.
“Vacated” is the word the NCAA used.
Two forfeits within one Final Four. The first – and only time – it’s ever happened.
Decades later, McDaniels, who died in 2017, admitted he made a mistake.
“But I was a 20-year-old kid” he told a Kentucky newspaper in 1995.
Porter, who was murdered in 2007 in Minneapolis, professed when he signed, he never thought his Wildcats could make the Final Four. He never received his Most Outstanding Player trophy, either.
"There was no presentation after the game,” he told Sports Illustrated in 1996.
“That tells me the NCAA knew exactly what it was going to do next. They knew before the tournament began, but they wanted to put those 35,000 [fans] or whatever into the Astrodome first."
Two Final Four forfeits. A Strange But True Houston sports story.