After 9 seasons and 105 wins, East Texas State basketball coach Dennis Vinzant decided to leave Commerce and hand the reigns over to his trusty assistant Darrell Tully. Tully was not just some assistant coach, he was an all time Lion great way before he took the head basketball coaching job. From 1935-1939, Tully was an offensive back, a conference champion, and a first team All-American in 1938. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1940 and played for one season before returning to Commerce to assist his alma mater in Basketball. When Vinzant left, it was Tully’s time to give back to his school.

Tully took over as the Lions had not made the NAIB postseason since 1942. His first season during the 46-47 season was a solid 13-8 overall record with a 7-5 record in conference, the next season would show that Tully had learned what he needed to be successful and get the Lions back to the NAIA postseason, but things had changed just a bit. The NAIB had become the NAIA and created districts, similar to the regions that are in the current NCAA tournaments. It kept the final tournament field to 32 teams, but decided to add districts all based on geography. Rather than taking at large bids as it had previously done, the NAIA expanded to create 32 districts with the top two teams in the NAIA districts getting selected to play. Getting invited to an NAIA district playoff and winning the NAIA district championship back then was like winning in the round of 68 (or 64). All teams before heading to Kansas City had to play in an NAIA playoff, and only 64 teams were invited. So, this NAIA playoff was the true first round of the NAIA national tournament, and of the 32 teams that win in the NAIA district round, they advance to Kansas City.

1947-48 was such a season for the East Texas State Lions. The Lions started out of the gate at 10-0, defeating Texas A&M among others. Their sole loss would not come until after the new year started in 1948 against Sam Houston, a 3 point heartbreaker. It was followed up by a 9-1 winning streak that left them with a 19-3 record overall, and clinching their sixth Lone Star Conference Championship in Basketball. With the conference championship, it earned them their first NAIA district playoff birth. They would face Texas Wesleyan in Fort Worth.

March 5, 1948 was a tough day to be a Lion, as the Rams of Texas Wesleyan took down the LSC Champion Lions 77-56 in the NAIA District playoff. That ended the Lions season, as Texas Wesleyan would advance to the round of 32 in the NAIA tournament in Kansas City, where they would fall to Gonzaga, (yes, that Gonzaga) 46-45 in the round of 32. After defeating Texas Wesleyan, The Zags would fall to Hamline, who would end their season in the NAIA Final Four to Indiana State.

It was a rough ending after such a promising season as after winning 19 games would not have been a team that wanted to lose in the preliminary playoff round, however with Tully at the helm it got the Lions back to the national postseason and also got them another banner to hang, and the banners were starting to collect fast.

1947-48 East Texas State Lions

Lone Star Conference Champions

NAIA District 4 Playoffs