1951–52 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team
| 1951–52 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| 1951–52 record | 7–15 (4–10 Big Ten) |
| Head coach | Ernie McCoy |
| MVP | Jim Skala |
| Captain | Jim Skala |
| Home arena | Yost Field House |
| 1951–52 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| #2 Illinois | 12 | – | 2 | .857 | 22 | – | 4 | .846 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| #7 Iowa | 11 | – | 3 | .786 | 19 | – | 3 | .864 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 10 | – | 4 | .714 | 15 | – | 7 | .682 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 9 | – | 5 | .643 | 16 | – | 6 | .727 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | 6 | – | 8 | .429 | 13 | – | 9 | .591 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ohio State | 6 | – | 8 | .429 | 8 | – | 14 | .364 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 5 | – | 9 | .357 | 10 | – | 12 | .455 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan | 4 | – | 10 | .286 | 7 | – | 15 | .318 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 4 | – | 10 | .286 | 7 | – | 15 | .318 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 3 | – | 11 | .214 | 8 | – | 14 | .364 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rankings from AP Poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 1951–52 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team represented the University of Michigan in intercollegiate basketball during the 1951–52 season. In their fourth season under head coach Ernie McCoy, the Wolverines team compiled a 7–15 record and finished in a tie for eighth place in the Big Ten Conference. Senior Jim Skala was the team captain, leading scorer and Most Valuable Player. The team was notable as the first racially integrated Michigan basketball team with Don Eaddy and John Codwell becoming the first two African-American players.
The 1951–52 team finished the season in a tie for eighth place in the Big Ten Conference with an overall record of 7-15 and 4-10 against conference opponents.Ernie McCoy was in his fourth and final year as the team's head coach.
The 1951-52 team was inexperienced with only one senior, Jim Skala, on the squad. The team narrowly averted a last place finish with a victory over Purdue in the final game of the season. The Wolverines' total of 787 points was the lowest in the Big Ten. The team also recorded the lowest field goal percentage (28.4%) and free throw percentage (59.2%) in the conference.
Jim Skala was both the team captain and the team's leading scorer. He totaled 258 points in 22 games (169 points in conference games) for an average of 11.7 points per game. At the end of the season, Skala was voted by his teammates as the team's Most Valuable Player. Skala later served as the head basketball coach at Eastern Michigan University (1954-1960) before returning to Michigan as an assistant basketball coach under Dave Strack from 1960 to 1966.
The team's second leading scorer was Milt Mead, a six-foot, seven-inch sophomore from Bay City, Michigan. Mead scored 238 points (10.8 points per game) over the course of the 1951-52 season. Mead also won the 1953 NCAA championship in the high jump.
...
Wikipedia