Game of the Century (college basketball)

The UCLA Bruins were the dominant NCAA men's basketball program of the era, having won Division I championships in 1964, 1965, and 1967. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then known as Lew Alcindor) of UCLA was a talented player credited with reviving interest in college basketball, with Bruin games selling out arenas. Houston Cougars coach Guy Lewis wanted to prove his program's worth to his critics, so he scheduled a game against UCLA that season. Houston and UCLA had met in the previous season in the semifinals of the 1967 NCAA Tournament. UCLA had beaten Houston 73–58 on the way to winning their third NCAA championship. ==The game==

Ted Nance, the sports information director for the University of Houston, put the schedule together. UCLA sports information director J. D. Morgan talked Bruins head coach John Wooden into the game by explaining how great it would be for college basketball. He had been hospitalized the previous week, missing two games, and it was only certain he would play the day before the game. The game was televised nationally via a syndication package through the TVS Television Network, with Dick Enberg announcing and Bob Pettit providing color commentary. Einhorn paid $27,000 for the broadcast rights on TVS. TVS signed up 120 stations, many of which would preempt regularly scheduled network programming. As the game was played in a baseball stadium, the basketball floor was brought in from the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. ==Aftermath==

is carried in a victory celebration on the Astrodome's floor Up to that point, only NCAA post-season games had been broadcast nationally, so there was much skepticism regarding where the broadcast would take the non-profit organization's policy. The broadcast drew a vast television audience in addition to the 52,693 fans who had filled the Astrodome for its first basketball game. Each school received $125,000 for the game, four times the 1968 NCAA tournament payout of $31,781. Wooden had benched him after 11 minutes, and he never re-entered the game. Upset with Wooden's public comments implying that he did not want back into the game, Lacy quit the team. "I've never enjoyed playing for that man," Lacy said of Wooden after quitting. In 2008, Wooden stated, "I'm sorry I said that. It hurt him, and that's why he quit. I was very disappointed. Edgar was a fine boy." Assistant coach Jerry Norman was credited by Wooden for devising the diamond-and-one defense that the Bruins used to contain Hayes, who was averaging 37.7 points per game but was held to only 10. UCLA advanced and defeated the North Carolina Tar Heels 78–55 for the 1968 title. Houston also lost the consolation game to Ohio State. Those games were at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, on the same floor used in the Astrodome game. The 1971 NCAA Tournament was held at the Astrodome following the success of the game and drew more than 31,000 spectators for both the semifinals and championship. The 1982 tournament was held at the Louisiana Superdome. Eventually, most Final Fours were awarded only to host cities with domed stadiums. Starting with the 1997 tournament, only domed stadiums have hosted the Final Four. UCLA and Houston played again in 1969 at Pauley Pavilion for the regular-season rematch. UCLA won 100–64. UCLA won six more national championships under Wooden. Lewis led his Phi Slama Jama teams to three consecutive Final Fours (1982–1984), advancing to the national championship game in 1983 and 1984. In 2006, Hayes, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lew Alcindor) and Wooden were inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, followed by Lewis in 2007. ==Significance==

Previously, only NCAA post-season games were broadcast on national television. The "Game of the Century" proved that a national audience would watch college basketball games during the regular season. Furthermore, it was telecast not by a Big Three Network but rather by the independent TVS Television Network. In 1969, NBC became the first major network to broadcast the championship game, at a cost of more than $500,000. In 2008, the NCAA deal with CBS to televise the entire tournament was worth $545 million. ==References==