One of the most storied collegiate basketball programs in the nation, the Kansas Jayhawks have produced some of the greatest players to ever hit the hardwood. In this updated edition of Tales from the Kansas Jayhawks Locker Room, diehard Jayhawks fans will thrill over the treasure trove of stories and memories from the players and coaches who have made the University of Kansas into a basketball powerhouse. For over a century, Kansas has been the home of storied coaches—from the game’s inventor James Naismith to the current reign of Bill Self—and prominent players including Wilt Chamberlain, Paul Endacott, Danny Manning, Paul Pierce, Drew Gooden, and dozens more. ,i>Tales from the Kansas Jayhawks Locker Room includes stories of all of them and is a must-read for any Jayhawks fan.

For more than a century, Kansas Jayhawks football has developed a lasting tradition of exciting and heart-stopping moments. KU has produced a variety of great football legends--coaches and players alike. From their beginning in 1890 to the present-day coaching regime of Mark Mangino, the Jayhawks have provided their fans with many thrilling wins. Some of college football's greatest players led the Jayhawks to many notable wins while gathering numerous honors for themselves, including Gale Sayers, John Riggins, Bobby Douglas, Dana Stubblefield, John Hadl, and Nolan Cromwell. In Tales from the Jayhawks's Gridiron, many former Kansas football stars share their firsthand accounts of playing for the University of Kansas. Those stories, plus tales from other great games and rivalries--the situations, anecdotes, and triumphs that have delighted KU football fans for decades--are highlighted throughout the book, capturing the tradition of Kansas football.

Remembered in name but underappreciated in legacy, Forrest “Phog” Allen arguably influenced the game of basketball more than anyone else. In the first half of the twentieth century, Allen took basketball from a gentlemanly, indoor recreational pastime to the competitive game that would become a worldwide sport. Succeeding James Naismith as the University of Kansas’s basketball coach in 1907, Allen led the Jayhawks for thirty-nine seasons and holds the record for most wins at that school, with 590. He also helped create the NCAA tournament and brought basketball to the Olympics. Allen changed the way the game is played, coached, marketed, and presented. Scott Morrow Johnson reveals Allen as a master recruiter, a transformative coach, and a visionary basketball mind. Adolph Rupp, Dean Smith, Wilt Chamberlain, and many others benefited from Allen’s knowledge of and passion for the game. But Johnson also delves into Allen’s occasionally tumultuous relationships with Naismith, the NCAA, and University of Kansas administrators. Phog: The Most Influential Man in Basketball chronicles this complex man’s life, telling for the first time the full story of the man whose name is synonymous with Kansas basketball and with the game itself.

With a foreword by current coach Phil Martelli, Tales from Saint Joseph's Hardwood: The Hawk Will Never Die recounts the storied history of St. Joe's basketball through the eyes and eras of its great coaches. Hawk Hall of Fame coach (and former NBA Coach of the Year) Jack McKinney studs the fast-moving account with poignant and humorous anecdotes. Jack and author Bob Gordon interview hundreds of former and current players, coaches, Hawk mascots, and fans who add a trove of zippy Hawk lore. There's a lot of lore. St. Joe's has competed in parts of 11 decades standing toe to toe with all the big guys of college hoops. The Hawks have tumbled many a Goliath in chalking up over 1000 wins--more wins than all but a couple dozen other colleges in the entire nation. The book gives an in-depth profile of Jack McKinney from his youth in Chester to his two NBA championship rings. You'll also chuckle at the inside story of the Hawk mascot, which ESPN chose as college basketball's best. The Phillie Phanatic (a former Hawk himself) guest authors in the mascot chapter. All the memorable wins and heart breaking defeats are recaptured. Through the prism of 45 years, Tales from Saint Joseph's Hardwood: The Hawk Will Never Die looks back at the heart breaking 1960 point-shaving scandal. Up-close-and-personal profiles of Hawk stars like George Senesky, Matty Guokas, Cliff Anderson, Mike Bantom, Jameer Nelson, and Delante West stud the narrative. Palestra and Big Five lore abounds. Past and present Big Five coaches pick their all-time Big Five teams and recount their greatest memories. Finally, hilarious tales about Hawk teams playing overseas spice a must-read entertaining and informative book for collegebasketball lovers everywhere.

The images are forever etched in the minds of Arizona basketball fans, from Miles Simon falling to the court clutching the basketball as Arizona won its first and only NCAA title in 1997, to Lute Olson's hair being mussed in the process, to Jason Terry sleeping in his uniform for four consecutive games in the middle of all the madness. All are indelible in wildcats history as Arizona calmly drove the winding and bumpy road to the Final Four and beyond. Before Simon, Terry, and Olson, however, there were the likes of Sean Elliott, Steve Kerr, Fred Enke, and Pop Mckale--all pivotal figures in Arizona's hoops history. There were also Fred Snowden, Mo and Stewart Udall, and a host of others who helped bring prominence to a school looking for respect in the Southwest first, and then in the rest of the nation. Arizona's rise has made them one of television's must-see teams and one of the country's top winning programs over the past 25 years. In Tales from the Arizona Wildcats Hardwood, author Steve Rivera takes readers back to the time when James Pierce wanted to be more of a movie idol than a coach. They will learn about the troubled times of the 1950s and '60s when racial tensions were high and how Arizona's first black player, Hadie Redd, dealt with them. Rivera also details Arizona's participation in the Border Conference, its switch to the Western Athletic Conference, and its current dominance of the Pacific-10 Conference. Fans will hear from Bob Big Bird Elliott, who helped Snowden achieve heights never before seen in the UA program as it fell one game short of the Final Four; from favorite son Steve Kerr, who suffered heartache and achieved hero status while at Arizona; and about theups and downs of Miles Simon, the Most Valuable Player of UA's NCAA championship, as he became a star while in an Arizona uniform. The troubles the program has faced are also detailed, like Ben Lindsey failing as coach in his one and only year; the academic troubles of Simon and Joseph Blair; and the unfortunate death of Bobbi Olson, Coach Lute Olson's wife of 47 years. Tales from the Arizona Wildcats Hardwood is sure to be a must-have book for any true Arizona fan.

A collection of first-hand accounts, personal recollections, and anecdotes that trace the history of the Syracuse University basketball team.

Marquette University Men's Basketball has a long and storied tradition. Tales of Marquette Basketball takes a look at the high, and low points from McGuire to Crean and everything in between by weaving personal interviews with many great Marquette players and coaches including Hank Raymonds, Rick Majerus, Mike Deane, Tom Crean, Glenn 'Doc' Rivers, Jim Mcllvaine, Travis Diener and Tony Smith as they give insight to memorable moments, both on and off the court. Under the colorful Coach Al McGuire, Marquette University basketball flourished as one of the top collegiate programs in the country. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the super salesman made successful pitches to some of America's finest young players. These young men experienced an entirely different way of life. But the life lessons they learned from Al prepared them for success-in the basketball arena-and beyond. Behind the scenes stories, based on numerous interviews, will help give unique insight to this mesmerizing personality. Of course, the focal point is that magic carpet ride to the 1977 NCAA Championship! Many observers wondered if the once proud Marquette program would ever again approach the standards set by Al McGuire. Exit Bob Dukiet, enter Kevin O'Neill, in 1989. The ultra intense assistant coach at Arizona used salty language, but in his fifth season at the helm, K.O. took Marquette to the NCAA's Sweet Sixteen. In his fourth season, Crean and All-American Dwyane Wade led Marquette to the Conference USA championship and a return to the Final Four! Somehow, the Marquette program had come full circle. Before his death, Al McGuire spent hours just talking with Tom Crean. In some ways, Al became the father Tomnever had. We hope you enjoy these Tales of Marquette Basketball.

Spanning decades with great columns from renowned writers, this time capsule recounts the greatest moments in Kansas lore and tracks the chronological progression of sports writing styles from the esoteric to the ultra-modern. The account details the Jayhawks from their roots of glory to their modern-day triumphs.