I love two things, history and basketball. I read a lot because in my 38 years it amazes me how things have progressed from the time I was coming home as a newborn from St. Paul’s Medical in Dallas to the current day. How much our society has evolved and changed from 10, 20, 30 plus years ago is truly staggering. I have been around the game of basketball my entire life as most of you know and as much as I love football, Basketball has always been my first love regarding sports.

I have said this before, the first time I ever walked into the University Fieldhouse was in the Spring of 2005 as I saw the Van Vandals (my Dad’s High School) defeat the Tatum Eagles to capture the UIL Class 3A Region II Championship on their way to their second state championship in Basketball. I was still a student at Tyler Junior College but having decided to be attending school in Commerce and bypassing my chance to be in College Station that coming fall, I decided to go with my Dad and Brothers. I had never seen a college basketball venue so vast and with so many banners. I could hear the vastness of the hardwood floor vibrate with sound. Nearly 70,000 square feet spoke of the great ghosts of The University Fieldhouse.

When I actually set foot on campus and had a chance to walk in as a student, I went to the north end of the Fieldhouse and every banner told a story from the 1930’s to the previous spring when the Lions had made the Elite 8 in the NCAA DII tournament.

The NCAA and the NIT tournaments are starting off in ernest, and since the Lion Basketball team was not eligible to qualify for the tournament and had a rough season to start with, I felt that with the ground about to break on the new events center and me hoping there will be banners telling the history of Lion Basketball, both Men’s and Women’s, and the recruits and transfers will see that and see the great tradition, and behind that tradition are some great stories.

The year was 1939. Heading into that season, the Lion Men had won 3 conference championships in Basketball, but had never participated in a postseason tournament. Back then, the Lions were members of the Lone Star Conference on a conference level but the National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball (NAIB).

Dennis Vinzant, who was one of the most unsung coaching heroes in university history, had taken over during the 36-37 seasons, going 28-18 in his first two seasons. His predecessors, SJ Petty and J.V. Sikes had both won conference titles, but heading into his third season, Sikes felt like he had what it took to get this team to Kansas City where the NAIA tournament would be held.

The Lions notched a 15-6 record overall, but most importantly, a 7-1 mark in conference play. The lone conference loss was a 14 point loss to Stephen F. Austin, whom the Lions had defeated earlier that year in Commerce. It was also a tie for first, but a LSC title never the less. Now, the question came, would they be among the 32 teams to make the NAIA tournament?

The answer was yes as the committee phoned Vinzant to tell him that he and his squad had gotten a low seed in their first tournament, but had been invited. They had a date of March 13, 1939 with Southwest Missouri State, runner ups in the Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association.

With the field being 32 teams with no district playoffs to get the teams who they felt were the best of the best, it was tough sledding from the first game, however Old ET notched convincing 68-45 victory over SW Missouri, setting them up with a matchup against a very good San Diego State team. The Aztecs had won 23 games and only lost 6, to go along with their Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title. They had disposed of Northern State in the opening round, and believed they would do the same with the East Texans.

The game was close and and a back and forth affair, but the Aztecs, shocked that the Lions had stayed with them this long, greatly slowed down the pace of the game when their lead was 4 points. This was an uncomfortable way of doing things for the Aztecs, but they were able to keep the game at bay and keep the Lions away from the ball. The final score in the Round of 16 was San Diego State 41, East Texas State 36. The Aztecs would blitz their way to the national championship game where they were defeated by Southwestern Kansas College, 32-31. It was the second fewest points they had scored in the tournament, only the Lions of ET had kept the game closer.

The Lions returned home heros given what they were expected to do and not do, nobody thought that they would make the round of 16 and push the national finalists to the brink, but they did, and in that final NAIB tournament before it became known as the NAIA tournament, East Texas State started a tradition of tournament excellence that would echo into the decades to come.

Banners:

1939 Lone Star Conference Champions

1939 NAIB Round of 16