Episode 3 - The NIT

Episode 3 of The Dream Season Podcast details the 1987-88 season and the run to the NIT title.

GoFundMe for Willie McCloud

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Books referenced in this episode:
UConn Basketball Vault, by Ken Davis
Hoop Tales, by Wayne Norman & Robert Porter

Audio clips are from interviews conducted by myself and from YouTube.

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Transcript

Hi and welcome to The Dream Season Podcast, an oral history of the 1989-90 UConn men’s basketball season, also known as, The Dream Season.

This Episode 3, The NIT.

The 1987-88 UConn season began with an increased sense of optimism, despite finishing 9-19 the previous year.

One simple reason for the high hopes was that there were now 12 scholarship players at the first practice of the season, compared to only 8 the year before. 

The Huskies would miss forward Gerry Besselink, the lone senior from that 9-19 season. Two freshmen were being counted on to contribute right away, Lyman DePriest, a 6’6” forward from Detroit Michigan and 6’ 7” swingman Murray Williams from Torrington, CT. Williams choosing UConn was considered a major victory for Jim Calhoun and his plan to keep Connecticut high school stars from choosing other schools.

Another newcomer who the UConn coaching staff was excited about was Willie McCloud, a 6’ 4 ½ forward from Allegheny Community College in Cumberland, MD. McCloud is the first junior college transfer in the Jim Calhoun era. He is also the younger brother of Seton Hall legend Andre McCloud, who was the 4th leading scorer in Big East history when he graduated after the 1986 season.

There were two other newcomers on campus. Unfortunately, both were casualties of  Proposition 48 and would not be able to compete during their freshman year.

Marc Suhr, a 7 footer from Cologne, West Germany, by way of Lake Tahoe, is the first 7 footer to play at UConn. John Gwynn, a 6 foot shooting guard from Hyattsville Maryland, is a product of the famed DeMatha High School and their legendary head coach, Morgan Wootten.

Despite the recruiting successes over the previous months (including the most impactful one yet, maybe EVER, but we’ll get to that in the next episode), UConn still wasn’t at the level that Calhoun hoped to achieve.

The top recruiting priority for Calhoun and his staff was Perry Carter, a 6 foot 8 inch forward from Washington DC, who played his senior year of high school at Maine Central Institute. Calhoun wrote Carter a letter every week during the season and at least one member of the coaching staff attended 44 of the 45 games Carter had played since the summer of his senior year. Even UConn president John Casteen pitched in, making a call to Carter to try to convince him to come to Storrs.

Carter was also good friends with Phil Gamble and for most of his recruiting process, UConn was considered the favorite to land Carter. However, Carter surprised everyone by choosing to attend Ohio State over UConn, Duke, Boston College and Villanova.

Calhoun was disappointed, saying [QUOTE] “I didn’t look at Perry as a 6’8” 220 pound forward. More than that, I looked at Perry as being symbolic of a step forward.” [END QUOTE]

Here’s assistant coach Dave Leitao on Perry’s decision:

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The Perry Carter decision was big news in March of 1987, so much so that according to columnist Owen Canfield of the Hartford Courant, a flurry of phone calls from disappointed UConn fans flooded the Courant’s sports office as news of Carter’s decision broke.

Canfield ended his column on the subject with the following, “If there is a ray of pale sunlight in all this fuss, it can be heard in the ringing of the telephones. If they rang steadily in this office, they surely burned out the lines in the athletic offices in Storrs.

“UConn basketball is big stuff and people care enough to call and make no effort to stifle or disguise their disappointment when the news is bad. One of these days, the news is going to be good.”

(BREAK)

There were a couple of other important changes to the program that took place before the first practice in October.

First, Glen Miller joined the staff as an assistant coach, replacing Bill Cardarelli, who returned to coaching high school in Connecticut. Miller played at UConn for two years in the early 80s before transferring to Northeastern and playing for Jim Calhoun. In addition, Ted Woodard joined the staff as a graduate assistant.

More notably, on Monday, June 29, 1987, ground was finally broken on the $28.5 million dollar UConn Sports Center. The cost was five times the original estimate and is expected to be hosting games in 1990, 21 years after it was first proposed to the Board of Trustees.

The first official practice was held on Thursday, October 15. As was the case in Calhoun’s first season, this first practice of the year was a grueling affair.

Said Cliff Robinson, [QUOTE] “That was tougher than anything we went through last season” [END QUOTE] 

The Huskies played one exhibition game prior to the regular season, falling to the Canadian National Team, 86-79.

They opened the regular season with two non-conference wins at the Field House, defeating Maryland-Eastern Shore and Yale, avenging their loss to the Eli’s from last year.

Next up was a showdown with an ACC team, Virginia, at the Civic Center. Cliff Robinson, who only scored two points against Yale, struggled again, going 2 for 11 from the floor, as the Huskies fell in a non-competitive matchup, 72 to 59.

Aside from Cliff’s early season struggles, another surprise for UConn early in the season was Phil Gamble beginning the season as the team’s 6th man. He had started all 44 games of his career prior to this season, but he embraced his new role providing a scoring boost early in games.

Following the loss to Virginia, UConn traveled to Villanova for their Big East opener. For the third consecutive game, Cliff Robinson failed to score in double digits. Despite Cliff’s struggles, the Huskies held their own. With UConn trailing by two, Spider Ursery hit a bank shot from the right side of the lane to tie the score at 61 with 16 seconds left. However, Mark Plansky’s 12 foot jump shot with one second remaining gave the Wildcats a 63-61 win. This was UConn’s 13th consecutive loss to Villanova.

Next, UConn coasted to wins over Morgan State and Central Connecticut at the Field House. Cliff Robinson ended his scoring slump against Morgan State, scoring a career-high 31 points.

After a short break for Christmas, the Huskies then faced off with the University of Hartford in the first game of the Connecticut Mutual Classic at the Civic Center. 

In last year’s tournament, the Hawks beat the Huskies, 49-48. 

In a chippy, physical game, UConn survived blowing an 8 point lead with less than 2 minutes to play in regulation, and won a double-overtime thriller, 96-94. The Huskies were led by Cliff Robinson’s 42 points and moved on to play Princeton in the championship game the following night.

With UConn trailing Princeton by 11 points with 12 minutes 30 seconds left in the game, the Huskies used a full-court press to help hold the Tigers without a field goal for 14 minutes and nine seconds. The Huskies won the “root-canal-esque” championship game 49-46, claiming their first Connecticut Mutual Classic title since 1983. Cliff Robinson was named tournament MVP after going 25 of 37 from the floor and scoring 72 points over the two games.

After the calendar turned to 1988, the Huskies traveled to California for their first visit to the Golden State since the 1968-69 season, to take on the Pepperdine Waves. After some sightseeing in the LA area, UConn took care of business with a 63-60 victory. The win was the fifth consecutive for the Huskies, the longest streak since Jim Calhoun took over as head coach.

One day after returning to the east coast, the Huskies were in East Rutherford to face Seton Hall for their second Big East matchup of the season. The Pirates won easily, 71-58, to avenge their two losses to UConn the previous season.

The Seton Hall game began a stretch of eight consecutive Big East games for UConn, with four at home and four on the road. Of the four road games, three were at ranked opponents, #6 Pittsburgh, #9 Syracuse and #15 Georgetown.

The Huskies went 2 and 6 during that stretch. They lost to Seton Hall twice, with the second game being much closer than first, falling 61-59 at the Civic Center. They lost by 3 at Pitt, by 1 at Georgetown, and by 7 in overtime at St. John’s.

UConn also lost to Villanova again, this time at home, by 11 and defeated Providence at home by 7.

The highlight of that brutal part of the schedule was a 51-50 win at #9 Syracuse in front of 29,898 fans. With the score knotted at 50, Tate George made a nifty pass to Cliff Robinson in the lane, where he was intentionally fouled by Sherman Douglas. Robinson missed the first free throw but made the second and after UConn inbounded the ball successfully, they came away with one of the biggest wins for the program in many years.UConn’s record was now 9-8, with a Big East mark of 2-7.

The Huskies proceeded to go 4 and 5 over their next nine games. They defeated Holy Cross (by 1 point), Fairfield, Boston College and 14th ranked Georgetown at the Civic Center.

Of the five losses during that stretch, all but one were games UConn could have won. They lost to St. Johns again by 15, but the rest were close.

• 85-79 loss at Providence
• 64-56 loss at Boston College
• 74-69 loss at the Civic Center to #6 Pittsburgh

The most painful loss though, was to Syracuse.

In front of a sold-out Hartford Civic Center and the score tied at 71 all, UConn advanced the ball past halfcourt and used their final time out with 8 seconds left in the game. Senior Jeff King received the ball from the referee and struggled to find an open Husky. Nearing a five second violation, King threw the ball inbounds, but directly into the hands of Syracuse’s Steven Thompson, who had an unobstructed path to the hoop. Thompson’s dunk with 4 seconds left gave the Orange a 73-71 victory.

After the loss to St Johns to end February, the Huskies overall record stood at 13 and 13. The bad news was that they were locked into the dreaded 8 9 game in the Big East tournament.

The good news was that there was one more non-conference game on the slate. The matchup against tiny Brooklyn College was rescheduled, from a date earlier in the season to the end of the season, to allow for the trip to California to play Pepperdine in early January.

A win over Brooklyn College would guarantee a .500 record for UConn, which would make them excellent candidates to receive an NIT bid. No team with a record under .500 has ever made the tournament and in recent years, the NIT has chosen other Big East schools with similar records.

The shorthanded Kingsmen were no match for the Huskies, who won easily, 90-51.

Next up was the 8-9 game against Providence in the Big East Tournament. Even if UConn lost to the Friars, their record would be 14 and 14 and an attractive team for the NIT to select.

UConn made any worries about their record irrelevant after defeating Providence 75-62. It was the first Big East Tournament win for the Huskies since the 1979-80 season, the inaugural year of the conference. After the game, Jim Calhoun said [QUOTE] “This team has surprised me. They’ve been so competitive against everyone we’ve played. I feel a lot of pride.” [END QUOTE]

They moved on to play the #1 seeded Pitt Panthers, who made quick work of the Huskies, 75-58. Now, they had to sit and wait to see if the NIT would call…

The NIT did call, sending UConn on the road to take on West Virginia in the opening round.

West Virginia sported a 121-14 home record since the 1979-80 season, but the Huskies were not fazed. Coach Calhoun said [QUOTE] “We’re happy to be in and happy to have the opportunity to play a quality opponent. It’s a good problem.”[END QUOTE]

The West Virginia game would be game number 30 for UConn, which sets a new mark for the program, as no team has ever played more than 29 games in a season.

Here’s WFSB’s Phil Andrews, Jim Calhoun & Murray Williams to recap the game:

Longtime UConn radio color analyst Wayne Norman talks about the shot Tate George hit to send the game to OT:

Since the NIT didn’t have seedings or a bracket to determine matchups, UConn had to wait for word from tournament officials to find out who their next opponent would be and where the game would be held.

It turned out that UConn would host 22-8 Louisiana Tech on Monday, March 21 at the Civic Center. The Bulldogs were led by 6’ 8” junior forward Randy White, who was dubbed The Mailman Two, due to the similarities between his game and another former Bulldog, Karl Malone. White would end up being picked 8th in the 1989 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks.

The Huskies led 34-27 at halftime, but struggled at the start of the second half, failing to score on their first eight possessions. The Bulldogs scored 9 straight points to go up 36-34, when Calhoun called timeout.

UConn scored the next eight points and shut down White, who went the final 14 minutes and 23 seconds of the game without scoring a point. Despite the cold start to the second half, the Huskies shot a season-high 67.5% from the floor and held on for a 65-59 win.

The Huskies were now one win away from advancing to the NIT Final Four at Madison Square Garden. The opponent between them and Manhattan was Virginia Commonwealth. Finding a location to play the game proved to be a challenge.

The Muppet Babies were booked at the Civic Center and the New Haven Coliseum, Springfield Civic Center and Worcester Centrum were also unavailable. VCU’s home court, the Richmond Coliseum, was booked by George Thorogood and the Destroyers. 

The solution? The 4,500 seat Field House on campus at Storrs, where UConn had won 21 straight games.  The UConn athletic department would add as many seats as possible but many fans would surely be left on the outside looking in.

One person who was not happy with the location of the game was VCU head coach Mike Pollio. When asked his thoughts on the Field House after seeing it in person, his response, “That’s like asking, ‘Does Hitler like Russian winters? It’s just a shame that a quarterfinal game of the NIT has to be in a facility like that.”

Calhoun compared VCU’s style to Seton Hall. The Rams came into the game 5th in the nation in rebounding and averaged 10 more points per game than the Huskies.

In front of a Field House record crowd of 4,801, the Huskies advanced to the NIT Final Four with a 72-61 victory. It was a back and forth battle for most of the game, with UConn trailing at the half, 32-29. With the score tied at 51, the Huskies closed the game with a 21-10 run to earn the trip to MSG.

UConn’s former longtime Senior Associate Director of Athletics Communication Mike Enright talks about the electricity in the Field House that night:

Jeff King was the hero for the Huskies, coming off the bench to score 14 points. The other two standouts were the two players who a year ago, weren’t even sure they’d still be a part of the program. Phil Gamble scored 18 points and Cliff Robinson 17, and both were thrilled to be on this magical ride.

UConn’s opponent in the semifinals at MSG was a familiar one, the Boston College Eagles. The two teams split their two matchups during the regular season, with the home team holding serve in each game.

The key to beating the Eagles was containing their star guard, Dana Barros. In BC’s win, he scored 21 points. In the UConn win, the Huskies held him to 14. Barros was averaging 22 points in BC’s 3 NIT wins.

In the first half, Barros was seemingly unstoppable.

In that first half, Barros hit 5 of 7 three pointers, including that one you just heard at the end of the half, to give him 22 points and BC a 41-33 halftime lead.

Here’s UConn’s Willie McCloud on the halftime adjustments:

Lyman DePriest had an advantage of 6 inches and 25 pounds over Barros and he made it his mission to stop Barros. UConn switched to a box and one defense, keying on Barros. Barros only attempted two shots in the second half, scoring just two points. Shutting Barros down in the second half has rightly earned legendary status among UConn fans over the years.

Barros’ only two points in the second half gave Boston College their last lead of the game at 49-48. UConn went on a 24-8 run in the second half and defeated BC, 73-67. Cliff Robinson led the Huskies with 29 points and Phil Gamble added 15 as UConn advanced to the NIT championship game to face the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Ohio State was considered the first team out of making the NCAA Tournament, and they certainly played like it in the NIT. They were led by guard Jay Burson, along with freshman forward and former top recruiting target for UConn, Perry Carter.

As with all of UConn’s games during the NIT, this was another close game throughout. This time, Cliff Robinson was not much of a factor. He picked up his fourth foul early in the second half, sitting for nearly 12 minutes before fouling out with just under three minutes left and scoring only 5 points.

After only leading 27-25 at halftime, the Huskies put together an 8-0 run to give them a 59-48 lead with 4:55 to play. The Buckeyes would never get closer than 4 points, as the Huskies earned their first-ever national championship, winning 72-67.

Phil Gamble scored 25 points and was named tournament MVP.

Jim Calhoun was moved to near tears after the game. Said Calhoun, [QUOTE] “I’ve never been as proud of a group of kids in 22 years of coaching as I am of this team. I told them before the game that I would be proud of them no matter what they did. I just really feel great for Gamble. It’s not a basketball thing, it’s a personal thing. I told him after everything he’s gone through, it felt like he was my own son. He really deserved it. I’m just proud as heck of the whole team.” [END QUOTE]

Willie McCloud still has fond memories of the NIT run to this day:

Here’s WFSB’s Bill Patrick, with a segment that aired the following day. You’ll hear from Patrick, Cliff Robinson, Murray Williams, Athletic Director Todd Turner & Jim Calhoun:

Here’s Assistant Coach Dave Leitao on the importance of winning the NIT:

Former Norwich Bulletin UConn beat reporter Pete Abraham, who now covers the Boston Red Sox for the Boston Globe, reflects on the NIT championship:

Here’s UConn’s longtime director of athletic communications, Tim Tolokan, on how the NIT was a major building block for the future:

April 26, 1988, was declared UConn Basketball Team Day in Connecticut by Governor William O’Neill. That afternoon, the entire team and staff spent the day at the State Capitol and were introduced to both the House and the Senate, receiving standing ovations from both groups. 

After winning the NIT in only Calhoun’s second year, which followed a 9 and 19 record in his first season, expectations had been raised, seemingly overnight. The 1988-89 team would return every starter from the NIT title game, along with some significant recruits. Cliff Robinson talked about the team’s expectations heading into the next season. [QUOTE] “We came so far this year. I would expect us to go to the NCAAs. If we don’t, I’d be upset.” [END QUOTE]

Coming up on the next episode of The Dream Season Podcast, setting the table for The Dream Season.

Before I wrap up this episode, I want to take a few minutes to talk about the untimely passing of three members of that NIT championship team.

Jeff King passed away in 1997 at just 31 years old, a victim of Marfan’s Syndrome, a genetic condition that affects the heart. Jeff was an art major at UConn, who continued his basketball career in the CBA and in Europe.

Robert “Spider” Ursery battled Hodgkin’s Disease for six years before finally succumbing in 2008 at the age of 44. Spider was a probation officer in Hartford for more than 15 years and always found time to attend UConn games. 

Cliff Robinson died after a year-long fight with lymphoma in 2020. He was just 53. Cliff had an incredible 18 year career in the NBA, averaging 14.2 points for his career, winning the NBA 6th Man of the Year Award in 1992-93 and was an All Star in 1994.

I mention the passing of those three teammates not to end this episode on a down note, but to shed light on another member of that team who is currently dealing with some health issues.

Willie McCloud has been battling prostate cancer for the past two years. He’s had successful surgery and is currently doing well but is not out of the woods just yet. 

Here’s Willie:

I’ll have a link to the GoFundMe page in the show notes, where you can find information on how to donate to help offset the costs of Willie’s treatment and how to send him a note of encouragement. Thank you…

The Dream Season Podcast is researched, written & produced by me, Matt Edwards. Written sources for this episode include, the Hartford Courant archives, Ken Davis’ University of Connecticut Basketball Vault and Hoop Tales, UConn Huskies Men’s Basketball by Robert Porter and The Mayor, Wayne Norman.

If you have any memories to share about anything I just mentioned, want to correct me on something I screwed up or just have general feedback to give, send me an email at dreamseasonpodATgmail.com or call and leave me a message at (903) 884 - EIGHTY NINE NINETY. 

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Thank you for all the positive feedback I’ve received so far. As always , I really, really appreciate you listening. THANK YOU!