Originally published January 22, 2016
Join the UTEP family in celebrating this milestone that commemorates the historic game that forever changed college athletics. Buy tickets here for the 50th anniversary celebration on Feb. 6, 2016.
What: In 2016, The University of Texas at El Paso is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1966 NCAA Championship. It was March 19, 1966, in College Park, Maryland, when UTEP (then called Texas Western College) beat top-ranked Kentucky 72-65 in the title game — a game that forever changed college athletics.
Why is it important? Legendary Coach Don Haskins made history by starting five African-American players, the first time that had been done in an NCAA basketball championship game. After the 1966 championship, college teams throughout the South began aggressively recruiting black athletes, ending years of segregation. The Southeastern Conference admitted its first African-American basketball player in 1967.
How can I take part? The 50th anniversary of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship will be celebrated at the men’s basketball game against Western Kentucky on Feb. 6, 2016. The game, at the Don Haskins Center, will also be nationally televised on FOX Sports 1 with a tip-off time of 3 p.m. Mountain time. Tickets can be purchased at the University Ticket Center, or via ticketmaster.com.
Attend a live panel discussion with members of the 1966 championship team at Memorial Gym at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 5. Footage from the event will be incorporated into the CBS Sports Network documentary “1966 Texas Western: Championship of Change,” which will air later this winter. Buy tickets for the event here.
Learn more about how to participate in the 50th anniversary celebration here.
Submit your Miner Memory: Share your memories of 1966 and the historic men’s basketball team. Go to gloryroad.utep.edu/memories to submit your story.
Official site, social media hashtag:
#Miners1966
The Bigger Picture: UTEP has always been at the forefront when it comes to access. The University was the first state senior college to desegregate in 1955 when 12 African-American students were admitted, and today, UTEP continues to break barriers as the first national research university with a 21st century student demographic.
Fast Facts:
– To this day, UTEP remains the only Division I school in the state of Texas to capture a men’s basketball NCAA championship.
– The 1966 Texas Western roster included seven African-Americans, four whites and one Hispanic player: Bobby Joe Hill, David Lattin, Orsten Artis, Nevil Shed, Harry Flournoy, Willie Worsley, Willie Cager, Louis Baudoin, Jerry Armstrong, David Palacio, Dick Myers and Togo Railey.
– Texas Western was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007. They are one of 10 teams that have the honor.
– In 1967, Texas Western College changed its name to The University of Texas at El Paso, popularly known as UTEP.
– Members of the Texas Western College 1966 NCAA basketball championship team visited the White House on Feb. 22, 2006, joining President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush for dinner and a screening of “Glory Road,” the Disney movie about the historic championship.
– Haskins went on to produce many more winning teams and NBA stars before retiring from UTEP in 1999. Haskins passed away Sept. 7, 2008, in El Paso.
– Many Texas Western players continued their work on the basketball court as coaches, camp directors or educators. One member, Bobby Joe Hill, passed away in 2002 of a heart attack at age 59.