March madness, the NCAA tournament and “the big dance” are just a few names that come to mind when the month of March arrives. In March, 68 spots are up for grabs by 346 schools that are considered Division One by the National Collegiate Athletics Association. However, when most of students of N.C . State look for new teams to cheer for in the month-long tournament, they probably aren’t aware of the once renowned Dixie Classic Tournament that ruled Raleigh and Reynolds Coliseum.
“Since the beginning of the tournament, it had been the biggest event Raleigh hosted,” said Bethany Bradsher, author of an upcoming book, titled “The Classic. “Kids would hope for a hot ticket in their Christmas stockings. It was more of a family event and for the people of the Triangle, before games had even been aired on national television.”
Bradsher majored in Journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill and in her book she recaps the entire history of the tournament, even the issue of point shaving.
The Dixie Classic, started in 1949, was the brainchild of then-Wolfpack basketball coach Everett Case and Raleigh News and Observer sportswriter Dick Herbert. The tournament was available to fans at the best time of the year — a three-day affair held at Reynolds Coliseum between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
The field consisted of what was then known to be the “big four” North Carolina schools: State, the Tar Heels, Duke Blue Devils, Wake Forest Demon Deacons, and four randomly chosen teams from across the country.
It was the big four versus the rest of the world, as some labeled it. Choosing the four visiting teams was fairly easy for the tournament, by allowing for the top teams across the country to compete, Case made sure to fill those spots with the best the NCAA could offer.
When it came to extending bids out to visiting teams, Case used his experience in the sport to choose the most deserving schools. He coached for years back in Indiana, which at the time was one of the top states to provide quality ball players. Other visiting teams included Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Kansas, and Michigan State.
“Case extended invitations a year or two years in advance, with no invites more than twice for any visiting school, the only team to have come twice in a row was Minnesota” said Bradsher. “Teams that were traditionally strong or recruited a specific player were desired to play in the tournament.”
Coach Case did great things for our state when it came to basketball. Some would consider him as the reason why we have four teams in the ACC from the state of North Carolina. He introduced traditions such as cutting the net down after big games, along with the simple plays such as the fast break.
“There is a reason why N.C. State won the tournament for 7 of the 12 years, including the first four tournaments,” said Bradsher. “At the time, [Case] recruited from Indiana and New York, both being hubs that developed star players.”
The most exciting year for the Dixie Classic was the 1958 tournament. That year the tournament featured four of the top five teams from across the nation, including first ranked Cincinnati. The Bearcats boasted the nation’s top player and first African American of the tournament, 6’5″ junior Oscar Robertson. The “Big O” averaged 35.1 points per game the previous season and came to Raleigh averaging 38 points per game on the season to that point.
It was a compelling tournament for Pack fans, as UNC had been the champion of the tournament for the previous two years, Cincinnati had gone 1-2 in the opening rounds and N.C. State upset Cincinnati and Michigan State, in turn winning the 1958 Dixie Classic.
However, problems began to rise towards the final years of the Classic. Claims, such as point shaving paired with illegal gambling taking place in New York City, became a problem for the Dixie Classic. Nobody would have ever assumed that a coach would be the one to deliver bad news about his team until Coach Case had come forward in 1961. Suspicions of point shaving had been around dating back to 1959, however there was never any concrete evidence found.
“It was in 1961, during the NCSU v. Georgia Tech game, that Case had noticed something was wrong after watching his players,” said Bradsher. “After five NCSU players and two UNC players had admitted to the point shaving [scheme], a pipeline was discovered to the streets of New York city where gang members had been paying players up to $1,500 a game to shave points.”
Following the scandals, the decision to cancel the tournament was left to William Friday, president of the UNC system, and the two Chancellors at the time for State and UNC. Since then the tournament has been discontinued and all eyes stay on the NCAA Tournament now.
The Dixie Classic is a tradition that for over a decade ruled the streets of Raleigh and the N.C. State campus. Top-ranked schools, along with the home court advantage for the Wolfpack, allowed the tournament to thrive years before games were aired on national television. It was a time for tradition and an opportunity for families to enjoy a lifetime experience. It was “The Classic”.