Norm Carlson Looks Back.. - Florida's First Tournament Team
Tuesday, March 16, 2004 | Men's Basketball
The 1968-69 Gator basketball team not only turned out to be the first in school history to earn a post-season tournament berth, they did it with one of the most remarkable comebacks in Southeastern Conference history.
In mid-January Coach Tommy Bartlett's team was mired in a 2-4 SEC start, and was only 7-6 overall. They were in sixth place in a 10-team conference race. Jacksonville University had recorded their first ever win over Florida.
The Gators then reeled off 10 wins in their next 12 SEC games to finish in third-place in the SEC with a 12-6 record, and wind up 18-8 overall. The result was an invitation to the NIT (National Invitation Tournament), which was not played at campus sites in those days. Every game was at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The key to the season was a three-game stretch at Alligator Alley in six February days. LSU came in on Feb. 6 and Pete Maravich scored a gym record 50 points. It wasn't enough to overcome a 34-point, 22-rebound game by Florida's Neal Walk and Florida won 95-79. Walk made 18 free throws, which is still a UF single season record.
Three nights later Florida hosted Kentucky in one of the all-time classic games in the series. The Wildcats had come to Gainesville ranked fourth in the nation in 1968 and lost, 96-78. Just over one year later they were again ranked fourth in the nation, had won 11 consecutive games and led the SEC with a 12-0 mark.
Florida surged to an 11-point lead in the first half, then lost the margin after intermission as Mike Casey, Dan Issel and Mike Pratt powered Kentucky to a 63-58 lead, and with 5:38 remaining in the game both Walk and Boyd Welsch had been tagged with four fouls.
"It looked like Kentucky was pulling away and getting stronger," recalled assistant coach Dick Davis. "We had a resilient team with two exceptional players in Walk and Andy Owens, and three or four others who were quick, athletic and great competitors. They hung on that night and Welsch came up with the plays at the end."
Welsch, a graduate of Gainesville High School and the son of physical education professor Walter Welsch, scored the last six points for Florida. With nine seconds remaining in the game he calmly connected on two free throws for an 82-81 victory.
Florida only played six players in the game. Walk scored 19 points and added 18 rebounds. Owens had 17 points by making 6x6 field goal attempts. Ed Lucko (15), Mike McGinnis (14) and Welsch (13) added to the balanced scoring attack. Guard Mike Leatherwood only scored four points, but contributed 10 assists.
The win was Bartlett's third straight over Kentucky when the Wildcats were ranked fourth in the nation. In addition to the two wins at Alligator Alley, his Gators beat UK in Lexington in December of 1966, 78-75. Bartlett won four of his first six games against Adolph Rupp, and then beat ranked Wildcat teams in 1971 (74-65) and 1972 (72-70) after coming from a 11-point halftime deficit. His career record against some of Rupp's finest teams was 6-8.
Two nights after Florida's pulsating Kentucky victory in 1969, Tennessee came to town ranked 17th in the nation and sitting in second place in the SEC. The Gators stopped the Vols 65-63 to complete the three-game home sweep.
The Gators went on to win four of the final games in the 1968-69 season to get the NIT bid. They lost to Temple in that contest, 82-66, despite Walk's 26 points and 17 rebounds.
The 1968-69 Gator basketball team
First row: Coach Dick Davis, Kurt Feazel, Mike Leatherwood, Tony Duva, Mike McGinnis, Boyd Welsch, Richard Vasquez, Nick Fotiou, Andy Owens, Coach Tommy Bartlett. Second row: Coach Jim MCCachern, Jeff Miller, Skip Lewis, Robert Agee, Neal Walk, Vern Chewing, Todd Lalich, Ed Lukco, Jerry Hoover.
The first UF tournament team had earned the right to be in New York that night.
Norm Carlson recently retired from the University Athletic Association after 40 years of service. Carlson serves as historian for Gator athletics and will contribute a regular column to gatorzone.com.
