While the memories have faded, both Oklahoma and Texas have contributed to basketball’s rich history. Few may now be aware that Oklahoma enjoyed a high basketball profile in the 1940s. That’s when Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) won back-to-back NCAA championships in 1945 and 1946 under coach Henry Iba, who led the US men’s Olympic teams in 1964, 1968, and 1972.
The Phillips 66ers, a corporately sponsored team based in Bartlesville, Okla., also was a powerhouse in the 1940s, winning six straight Amateur Athletic Union championships when AAU ball was a big deal nationally.
As for Texas, it can claim one of the most historic teams in all of basketball, the Texas Western (now UTEP) team that in 1966 broke the color barrier by starting five black players for the first time in an NCAA championship game. That team beat an all-white Kentucky squad, a development that helped to speed up integration of college teams throughout the South.
