Indiana Hoosiers Basketball: 1970-71

Another Big 10 basketball season is about to begin, with both the Indiana men’s and women’s teams set to start the regular season in early November.

Before play commences, let’s rewind to the 1970-1971 season with the help of the History Center’s Herald-Times photo archives. It was a season notable for a number of firsts, lasts and “onlys.”

IU’s Steve Downing puts up a shot under the basket in early action against Purdue on
Feb. 6, 1971, at IU fieldhouse. IU lost the game 81-85.

It was the LAST season for IU head coach Lou Watson, who took over from Hall of Fame Coach Branch McCracken in 1966. It was the LAST season IU played home games at the so-called “New Fieldhouse,” known now as Gladstone Fieldhouse, home of indoor track and field at IU. Basketball games were played at New Fieldhouse beginning in 1960 and continuing until the construction of nearby Assembly Hall.

George McGinnis takes flight between two Minnesota players in a game on Jan. 12,1971. At left is Indiana’s John Ritter (42).

The 1970-’71 season was the FIRST opportunity Hoosier fans had to watch a talented trio of sophomores compete at the varsity level. At the time, freshmen were not permitted to play on varsity basketball and football squads by the NCAA.

New faces that year included Goshen sharpshooter John Ritter and two former teammates at Indianapolis Washington High School, Steve Downing and George McGinnis. As high school seniors in 1969, Downing and McGinnis led Washington to a 31-0 record and a state championship. All three had been Indiana All-Stars, and McGinnis had been named Indiana’s Mr. Basketball.

It would be the ONLY season that McGinnis, nicknamed “Big George,” would wear an IU varsity uniform. He turned pro after one year and was drafted by the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association. McGinnis made the most of his one season. He led the Big 10 that year in points scored and rebounds. He was named All-Big 10 and a first-team All-American. His season average of 30 points per game remains an Indiana all-time record.

Though not as productive as McGinnis, Downing averaged nearly 10 points and 10 rebounds per game. He became the FIRST player in IU men’s basketball history to record a triple-double, tallying 28 points, 17 rebounds and 10 blocked shots against Michigan on Feb. 23, 1971.

Joby Wright (44) awaits a pass in a game against Notre Dame on Dec. 12, 1970.

The team’s second-leading scorer was Joby Wright, a junior from Savannah, Ga., who averaged nearly 15 points per game and was third on the team in rebounds. He later would serve as an assistant coach at IU for nine seasons under Bob Knight.

Watson’s team had no problem scoring points, even though the three-point shot was not yet in existence. IU scored 90 or more points in 12 of its 24 games and more than 100 points on five occasions. For the season, the Hoosiers averaged nearly 91 points per game. However, the team allowed its opponents to score an average 86 points per games, which resulted in some scores looking more like professional, rather than college, results. For example, the Hoosiers scored 113 points against Northern Illinois on Feb. 1, 1971, a season high, yet won the game by only 1 point.

IU Coach Lou Watson talks to his team during a game with Minnesota on Jan. 12, 1971. Watson was an All-American player at IU in 1950 under Coach Branch McCracken, who he later succeeded as coach.

The 1970-71 Hoosiers were ranked in the Top 20 of the Associated Press poll through much of the season, rising as high as 11^th place. The team was in contention for a Big 10 title before losing three of its last four games to finish in fourth place. The Hoosiers ended the season with a record of 17-7, 9-5 in Big 10 play.

Sources: IU Athletics, men’s basketball records, player profiles, history; website, sportsreference.com

All photos from the Herald-Times Archive at the Monroe County History Center.