ECAC Hall of Fame Spotlight: Holy Cross 1947 Men's Basketball Team
The 1947 Holy Cross Crusaders became the first team from New England to ever win the NCAA Tournament championship. Without a court on campus, Holy Cross played all of its games on the road, with “home” games taking place some 40 miles away at the Boston Garden. After winning four of their first seven games, the Crusaders went on to win the next 20 contests to earn their first-ever NCAA Tournament bid.
The 1947 NCAA Tournament took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Crusaders opened the tournament by facing Navy in the quarterfinals on March 20. Holy Cross fought off an eight-point Navy lead in the second quarter, edging ahead in the next stanza for good. Coach Alvin “Doggie” Julian kept the Crusader quintet fresh by frequently substituting. Joe Mullaney led Holy Cross with 18 points, while George Kaftan added 15 points in a 55-47 victory.
Next in the semifinals, Holy Cross took on the City College of New York on March 22. CCNY raced to a 23-14 lead, but Kaftan led a 13-2 Crusader barrage for a 27-25 Holy Cross advantage at halftime. Kaftan had scored 19 points by half, en route to a game total of 30, second best in NCAA Tournament history at the time. Holy Cross scored eight points in the final minute to widen the margin of what was a tight game, eventually winning 60-45.
The championship game would take place on March 25, with the Crusaders taking on Oklahoma. The Sooners held a 31-28 halftime lead, but a 9-2 run to begin the second half launched Holy Cross to the national championship. Frank Oftring and Bob McMullan triggered the second half run and Dermott O’Connell had his best effort with 16 points. Kaftan tallied 18 and Oftring added 14 as the Crusaders captured the NCAA crown by a final score of 58-47 in front of a sellout crowd of 18,445.
An All-Tournament Team was not selected, but George Kaftan was named the Tournament’s Outstanding Player, leading all scorers with 63 points in the three games for a 21.0 points per game average.
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