Yeah, it's amazing this footage even exists. Before the 1970s the networks saved almost in terms of sports and Basketball at that time was not as big as it is today. I can tell you this film came from a University in the late 90s. Perhaps they recorded it in 1961 or maybe they got an Armed Forces network film which is why a lot of very early world series games and a couple army navy games exist. At any rate this is truely a national treasure. If you have not seem it, seach for my 1957 Penn State Syracue football game. Another early sports broadcast treasure with a little cold war drama mixed in.
Nice! It's certainly lucky, this is the oldest college basketball telecast that I am aware of. Very few telecast of any sports exist earlier than the mid-60s.
I was age 14 in 1961 when this game was played and I had some familiarity with both teams since I lived in Kansas City, Missouri. I am surprised that ABC even televised this relatively unimportant game because I don't remember regular season college basketball games ever being televised on network TV. In fact, the NCAA final four was not even televised nationally on the three big networks until 1968.
This is after Jack Buck had been fired by the Cardinals to make room for another announcer though Buck still worked for KMOX, owned by CBS. So the CBS employee worked for ABC for a few years (including AFL games).
Bill Bridges led the Big Eight Conference Conference in rebounding for his three years at Kansas. He also played 13 years in the NBA averaging 11.9 points per game and 11.9 rebounds per game. Before he joined the St. Louis Hawks of the NBA he played two years for the Kansas City Steers of the American Basketball League where he roomed with Charles Henke. Wayne Hightower was recruited out of Philadelphia's Overbrook High, the same school attended by Wilt Chamberlain. Wayne left Kansas after his junior season to play basketball in Spain while awaiting NBA draft eligibility. He subsequently played ten years in the NBA and ABA.
Obviously announcers didn't do their homework back then as the Kansas center was a junior when Jack Buck thought he was playing his final college game.
Wilbur "Sparky Stalcup" compiled 194-179 record at Missouri from 1946-47 to 1961-62, winning two pre-season Big 7 holiday tournaments in Kansas City but no conference regular season titles that would entitle Mizzou to enter the NCAA tournament. His early years at Missouri were fairly impressive, but his later years were not. He also served as Missouri Athletic Director from 1971 until his death in 1972. One of his players, Norm Stewart, became an All American in 1954 and later the most successful basketball coach in school history
3:20 "You're only starting 5 today, right?" On the fight at 1:07:40 - Jack Buck mentions some bad blood between the schools. Missouri's best shot at a national football championship was in 1960, when they won every game but an upset in which Kansas used an ineligible player and had to forfeit the game. But the polls ignored the forfeit and voted Minnestoa the national champ. But another factor could be that a black player for Kansas threw a punch at a white Missouri player. You'll notice the Tigers had no black players and this was played at Missouri. You've gotta love the band playing the national anthem to try to stop it. I wonder if this tape was retained because of the brawl and possible legal action regarding it.
I am unsure as to why the tape was saved. I do believe somebody found it in the universities archive. Early 60's college basketball is pretty rare. College football from that era is more plentiful.
