1954–55 Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball team

1954–55 Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball
Big 7 Conference champion
NCAA tournament, Final Four
ConferenceBig 7 Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 11
APNo. 15
Record19–6 (11–1 Big 7)
Head coach
Home arenaBalch Fieldhouse
Seasons
← 1953–54
1955–56 →
1954–55 Big Seven Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 15 Colorado 11 – 1   .917 19 – 6   .760
Missouri 9 – 3   .750 16 – 5   .762
Kansas State 6 – 6   .500 11 – 10   .524
Nebraska 6 – 6   .500 9 – 12   .429
Kansas 5 – 7   .417 11 – 10   .524
Iowa State 4 – 8   .333 11 – 10   .524
Oklahoma 1 – 11   .083 3 – 18   .143
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

The 1954–55 Colorado Buffaloes Men's basketball team represented the University of Colorado in the 1954–55 NCAA men's basketball season. Led by fifth-year head coach Bebe Lee, the Buffaloes were Big Seven Conference champions and made a run to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. In the National semifinals, Colorado lost to Bill Russell and San Francisco by a respectable 62–50 margin. The Buffaloes bounced back in the consolation game to defeat Iowa to finish the season with a 19–6 record (11–1 Big Seven).

Roster

1954–55 Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
C 22 Burdette Haldorson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Austin HS Austin, Minnesota
F Robert Jeangerard 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Sr New Trier HS Winnetka, Illinois
Head coach

Bebe Lee

Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Non-conference regular season
Dec 4, 1954*
 Brigham Young W 88–66  1–0
 Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Dec 5, 1954*
 Brigham Young W 65–46  2–0
 Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Dec 11, 1954*
 Colorado State W 66–47  3–0
 Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Dec 17, 1954*
 at California L 44–57  3–1
 Men's Gym 
Berkeley, California
Dec 18, 1954*
 at California L 46–59  3–2
 Men's Gym 
Berkeley, California
Dec 21, 1954*
 at No. 17 UCLA L 62–65  3–3
 Men's Gym 
Los Angeles, California
Dec 27, 1954*
 vs. Oklahoma
Big Seven Holiday Tournament 		L 71–73 OT 3–4
 Municipal Auditorium 
Kansas City, Missouri
Dec 29, 1954*
 vs. Nebraska
Big Seven Holiday Tournament 		W 89–47  4–4
 Municipal Auditorium 
Kansas City, Missouri
Dec 30, 1954*
 vs. California
Big Seven Holiday Tournament 		W 69–60  5–4
 Municipal Auditorium 
Kansas City, Missouri
Big 7 Regular season
Jan 8, 1955
 at Oklahoma W 61–55  6–4
(1–0) 		McCasland Field House 
Norman, Oklahoma
Jan 10, 1955
 at Kansas W 65–54  7–4
(2–0) 		Hoch Auditorium 
Lawrence, Kansas
Jan 17, 1955
 Oklahoma W 91–82  8–4
(3–0) 		Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Jan 24, 1955
 Iowa State W 78–71  9–4
(4–0) 		Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Feb 5, 1955
 at Iowa State W 86–70  10–4
(5–0) 		Iowa State Armory 
Ames, Iowa
Feb 7, 1955
 at Nebraska L 77–84  10–5
(5–1) 		Nebraska Coliseum 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Feb 12, 1955
 No. 14 Missouri W 80–71  11–5
(6–1) 		Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Feb 19, 1955
 Kansas State W 61–53  12–5
(7–1) 		Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Feb 22, 1955
 Kansas W 80–69  13–5
(8–1) 		Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
Feb 26, 1955
 at Kansas State W 63–60  14–5
(9–1) 		Ahearn Field House 
Manhattan, Kansas
Feb 28, 1955
 at No. 20 Missouri W 66–57  15–5
(10–1) 		Brewer Fieldhouse 
Columbia, Missouri
Mar 5, 1955
 Nebraska W 77–66  16–5
(11–1) 		Balch Fieldhouse 
Boulder, Colorado
NCAA Tournament
Mar 11, 1955*
 No. 15 vs. No. 16 Tulsa
Midwest Regional semifinal 		W 69–59  17–5
 Ahearn Field House 
Manhattan, Kansas
Mar 12, 1955*
 No. 15 vs. Bradley
Midwest Regional final 		W 93–81  18–5
 Ahearn Field House 
Manhattan, Kansas
Mar 18, 1955*
 No. 15 vs. No. 1 San Francisco
National semifinal – Final Four 		L 50–62  18–6
 Municipal Auditorium 
Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 19, 1955*
 No. 15 vs. No. 5 Iowa
Consolation 		W 75–54  19–6
 Municipal Auditorium 
Kansas City, Missouri
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
E=East.
All times are in Mountain Time.

[2]

Rankings

See also: 1954–55 NCAA men's basketball rankings

[3][4]

NBA draft

Main article: 1955 NBA draft
Round Pick Player NBA Club
4 23 Burdette Haldorson St. Louis Hawks

[5]

References

  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1954-55 Big Seven Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ "1954-55 Colorado Buffaloes Schedule and Results - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  3. ^ *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 634–635. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
  4. ^ "1954-55 College Basketball Polls". Sports Reference. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  5. ^ "1955 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved December 30, 2021.