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TCU Men's Basketball - A Look Back at the 1967-68 Season (Part I)
March 3, 2008
The TCU Athletics Department will honor the 1967-68 Southwest Championship Team that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday (Mar. 8) at the Daniel-Meyer Coliseum. Prior to the beginning of their contest against BYU, the Horned Frogs will honor their four seniors in Brent Hackett, Neiman Owens, Ryan Wall and Alvardo Parker. In addition - the Frogs will also recognize and salute some of the pioneers of TCU men's basketball in the 1967-68 squad. In Part I of TCU Men's Basketball - A Look Back at the 1967-68 Season, the season of the Frogs will be examined from their opening season setback to Oklahoma into their season-turning victory at the Holiday Classic before capturing the Southwest Conference Championship. Part II of the TCU Men's Basketball - A Look Back at the 1967-68 Season will be released on the TCU website this Wednesday. With a lineup that consisted of Tom Swift and Mickey McCarty at the forward position, James Cash in the middle and a three guard rotation of Bill Swanson, Rick Wittenbraker and Carey Sloan, the TCU men's basketball team overcame enormous odds both on the court and off the court in order to capture a Southwest Championship and a berth to the NCAA Tournament. The Horned Frogs entered the 1967-68 season with modest expectations in the Southwest Conference as the Purple and White were predicted to finish third overall in the eight-team league behind the University of Texas and Texas A&M.
Under the direction of first-year head coach Johnny Swaim - who spent the previous four seasons as an assistant coach under Buster Brannon - the Horned Frogs got off to a sluggish start after dropping three of their first four games and five of their first seven contests.
The season prior to the Christmas Holiday wasn't too special or memorable for the Purple and White, but the short break proved to be valuable for the Horned Frogs when they headed to the Holiday Classic in Storrs, Conn., hosted by the University of Connecticut. The Frogs went undefeated at the Holiday Classic after triumphing over Massachusetts by a 63-56 score followed by a 72-65 decision over the host-Huskies in the championship game. The victory at the Holiday Classic would include two of their first four-game winning streak of the season. Following the beginning of the New Year, the Frogs posted victories over Rice (84-75) then a double-overtime thriller triumph over Texas A&M (81-77). Following a loss to the University of Texas, the Frogs notched victories in eight of their next 12 games - including three victories to close out the season against Texas A&M (85-78), Texas (71-65) and Baylor (72-65). After the victory against Baylor, the Frogs were crowned the Southwest Conference champions with a 9-5 conference mark and 15-11 overall record. Swaim became the first coach in Southwest Conference history to capture the league title in his inaugural season and went on to earn Southwest Conference Coach of the Year honors. The Frogs advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in program history and the first time since the 1958-59 season. The Purple and White was paired up against a much taller and stronger Kansas State squad at Levitt Arena in Wichita, Kan. The Wildcats jumped out to a 41-37 lead heading into intermission - but the Frogs battled back in the second half to score a 40-31 advantage en route to claiming a 77-72 decision over Kansas State. The Frogs had five players reach double figures in Rick Wittenbraker (18), Mickey McCarty (17), Tom Swift (13), Jeff Harp (11) and James Cash (10). After advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history, the Frogs were matched-up against the number-one team in the country in the University of Houston - who was led by All-American Elvin Hayes. The magic of the Horned Frogs ended on that March 16th evening at Levitt Arena as Hayes finished the game with 39 points to go along with 25 rebounds to lead the Cougars to a 103-68 victory. Tommy Gowan was the lone Frog to reach double figures that evening with 11 points while the Cougar defense held the Purple and White to 29.7 percent (27-of-91) from the field. As the season came to an end, the memories never have and the Horned Frogs squad will be reunited on the floor of the Daniel-Meyer Coliseum on Saturday (Mar. 8). TCU Athletic Media Relations
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