NIT 10: Empire State of Mind
Part V: Valparaiso caps off historic season with bittersweet trip to the Big Apple
Madison Square Garden and New York City have long been woven into Valparaiso’s basketball history.
Loren Ellis took over the basketball program in 1941 and coached his first game two days before the attack on Pearl Harbor. It was a 34-24 victory over Elmhurst. Valpo beat Concordia (Ill.) a week later, but then proceeded to drop 13 of its final 15 games.
By the winter of 1942, Valparaiso’s roster looked entirely different. The United States was preparing for entry into World War II and many college-aged basketball players were foregoing the sport in exchange for military service. The military had height restrictions at the time, so a fair amount of taller individuals were unable to serve. This, coupled with the Big Ten scaling back its athletic offerings during the war, allowed Ellis to get taller players to enroll at Valparaiso.
And just like that, The World’s Tallest Team was born.
NIT 10: An Oral History of Valparaiso’s March to Madison Square Garden
Introduction: The Last Meeting
Part I: The Return of the Mayor
Part II: The Sprint and the Marathon
Ellis led Valpo to a 17-5 record in 1942-43, which ended with a trip to the National Intercollegiate Basketball Tournament. Valparaiso rattled off seven straight wins to open the following season before dropping back-to-back games to the Cessna Bobcats and Boeing Aircraft. Valpo bounced back in a big way by knocking off No. 1 DePaul and star big man George Mikan. The squad finished the season 17-8.
By the time the fall of 1944 arrived, Ellis had built a juggernaut. Bob Dille, John Janisch and Milt Schoon all eventually played in the NBA and the fourth-year coach looked to play a difficult schedule. In addition to a game at the Boston Garden in late January, Ellis scheduled Valparaiso to travel to New York and take on Long Island at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 9. Valparaiso won 64-59 and the victory was part of a season-opening 11-game winning streak. Valpo finished the year with a 21-3 record.
The trip to New York was immortalized in a photo that had been on display in various parts of campus for the next 70 years. Valparaiso was about to bring that photograph back to life.