THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 25, 1995 TAG: 9502250324
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 227 lines
``It's a feeling you can't describe. Most coaches go a lifetime and never win a national championship.'' - ODU basketball coach Sonny Allen, March 14, 1975
Sure I still have my championship watch. Right here it is. I haven't had it off a day since I got it.'' - Sonny Allen, Feb. 15, 1995
The timepiece has measured the minutes of 20 years that have left Sonny Allen happy and healthy and scouting for the Charlotte Hornets out of Reno, Nev.
It has marked the march of two decades and the gathering of fog over precise moments of that one particularly marvelous season. Time, though, has not drained Allen's memory of being carried off the court of Roberts Stadium in Evansville, Ind., that Friday night in March 1975.
``We were national champions,'' he said. ``The best that we could be.''
In the last game he would coach in 10 seasons at Old Dominion, Allen directed a 76-74 victory over the University of New Orleans that gave ODU the Division II national title. Four years earlier, on the same floor, ODU had lost to Evansville in the final.
It was the first of Old Dominion's 19 national titles to date. And with all due respect to ODU's multiple-champion women's basketball, field hockey and sailing teams, even athletic director Jim Jarrett calls it ``the most gratifying'' of them all.
It's one that still ignites conversations, sparks warm feelings and captures the imaginations, in some fanciful way, of the participants and fans who shared 3 1/2 glorious months of late 1974 and early 1975.
The team will be honored in a halftime ceremony at tonight's ODU-William and Mary game at the field house. The game is sold out.
``People still say to me, `Oh, you played back in the good old days,' '' says Jeff Fuhrmann, a teacher and coach in Portsmouth who, as a sophomore, led the title team in scoring. ``I'm flattered and honored, but I still think there are good days for Old Dominion there.''
``I hear a lot of people say that's when they really liked Old Dominion basketball, for one reason or another,'' says Norfolk attorney Dave Moyer, a reserve forward in 1974-75. ``There was a lot of support for Old Dominion back then. There seemed to be a closer-knit following, there seemed to be more interest, for what reason I don't know.
In that vein, they do say it was the good old days of Old Dominion basketball.''
Thirteen players, three coaches, three managers and about 500 ODU fans in a crowd of only 4,000 watched helplessly as New Orleans star Wilbur Holland launched a 15-footer that hit the right side of the rim, then bounced up and off as the final horn sounded in Evansville.
It culminated a season that was supposed to be promising but, even with the midseason arrival of superstar center Wilson Washington, meandered into a 10-6 stall following a three-game losing streak in late January.
They were a good, close team, with tremendous balance and the kind of cohesive family spirit that has waned through 20 years of athletic evolution. But even after they ran roughshod over Kentucky Wesleyan to break the streak, amassing a season-high 120 points with Allen's patented fast break, the Monarchs could not have been certain what was in store.
But one by one, inside ODU's locker room, posted index cards that bore the name of each remaining opponent were taken down and ceremoniously torn up after their defeat. Yes, two years before they were part of an exodus to Division I, they were going to conquer Evansville and all of Division II, the Monarchs believed. And they went on to do it in a style that bordered on ease.
They averaged 86.6 points per game. All five starters scored in double figures, from Fuhrmann's 16.3 average to Gray Eubank's 12.0. Joey Caruthers played the point, but senior captain and shooting guard Oliver Purnell ran the team on the floor, without dispute.
Eubank fired up rainbow jumpers, Fuhrmann wore out nets from the corner. And in the middle loomed Washington, a precocious 6-foot-9 jumping jack of a sophomore, a shot-blocking, rebounding wonder who unabashedly played to the crowds and beckoned opponents' with his hands - come on, bring it on in here. Let's see what happens.
Everybody knew what would happen. That was hardly the case, though, on Nov. 30, a snowy night in Dayton, Ohio, when the Flyers, now coached by none other than Purnell, welcomed the Monarchs to the 1974-75 season.
Game 1: Nov. 30, 1974 Dayton 90, ODU 69 ``They'll get a lot of problems straightened out when they get that kid Washington in there.'' - Don Donoher, Dayton coach
Extending their opening-game futility to five seasons in a row, the Monarchs shot 34 percent and were blistered by the Flyers in front of 12,179 fans. Dayton was one of 11 Division I teams on ODU's schedule - ODU was 6-5 that season against its future division-mates.
``Division I was the more prestigious level,'' said Jarrett, who was in his fifth year at ODU. ``You had a better chance to get on TV, for more exposure, and from a university standpoint, athletics are one of its PR arms. Image was a big issue.''
ODU, which moved up in '76-77, spanked Virginia and Georgetown in its first Division I season and narrowly lost to Syracuse and Villanova, with Washington as a senior. But in the '74-75 opener, without Washington, the Monarchs were outrebounded, 65-38.
The word was out, though, on Washington. About how he had gone from Norfolk's Booker T. Washington High School to the University of Maryland, but stayed only one semester in coach Lefty Driesell's program before heading back home. He would not be eligible to play, however, until Jan. 11.
Game 5: Dec. 14 ODU 101, Roanoke 100 ``It's going to be after the Christmas tournament before we can get a true evaluation of our team.'' - Sonny Allen
The Monarchs needed a basket by Fuhrmann with 18 seconds left to knock off the former Division II national champion Maroons at the field house and move to 3-2.
Fuhrmann had arrived from Annandale and had played in only 17 games as a freshman, averaging 3.1 points. But he came back with 15 fewer pounds on his 6-5 frame and blossomed into an offensive force. Fuhrmann led ODU in scoring 11 times, shooting 53 percent from the floor and 86.8 percent from the line.
``That kind of goes unnoticed, huh?'' said Fuhrmann, 39, who teaches math and coaches the girls varsity and boys junior varsity at Portsmouth Christian. ``I just happened to get a few more shots than the other guys. Defenses were always sagging in on Wilson. I just took advantage of the situation. That's one reason we were so good. You couldn't focus on just one or two guys.''
Game 8: Dec. 28 ODU 84, California 73 ``You guys aren't supposed to let anyone know you can win without me.'' - Wilson Washington
A day after the Bears had knocked off 10th-ranked Arizona, ODU swamped them to win the ODU/Kiwanis Classic before about 5,000 at Scope. ODU was the only Division II team in the field, which also included Columbia. The victory pushed ODU, eighth-ranked in Division II, to 6-2. To date, Allen called it his biggest regular-season victory at ODU.
Fuhrmann had 26 points and 6-10 senior center Jay Rountree, in one of the last games he would start, had 14 points and nine rebounds.
``We knew we had a good group of people, we knew we could play,'' said Rountree, 43, a parts procurement specialist for IBM in Mechanicsburg, Pa. Because he sat out a year due to academic trouble, Rountree was the only player to go to ODU's title games in '71 and '75. ``As long as everyone would stay healthy, we knew we could play with any of them.''
Game 11: Jan. 11, 1975 ODU 107, Bloomsburg State 79 ``We are now awesome.'' - Unidentified ODU fan
Washington scored 10 points and had nine rebounds in 16 minutes in his ODU debut. Waiting under the basket to swat away shots, he suddenly gave ODU the luxury of taking more chances with its press. He also added to the team's excellent front-court depth, along with seniors Rountree, Tom Street and Curtis Cole.
Washington, who was not highly recruited, had gambled on a future in the ACC but quickly discovered the bustle of the big time not to his liking. He left Maryland the first semester.
``As soon as he signed (with Maryland),'' Allen recalled, ``Dean Smith calls me and says, `Sonny, who's this kid from Norfolk? Who is this guy?' I said, `I think he can play.' ''
Washington, who played briefly in the NBA and a few years in Europe, led ODU in rebounds in 19 of his 21 games, averaging nearly 13 a game.
``I hated to lose, but more so than hating to lose, I didn't want to let the guys down,'' Washington, 39, a car salesman in Norfolk, said at his office last week. ``They supported me too much and too long for me to let them down.''
Game 17: Feb. 1 ODU 120, Kentucky Wesleyan 87 ``We'd lost three straight. If we want to go to the tournament, if we want to win the national championship, we've got to start winning now.'' - Wilson Washington
Two losses in Florida and one to East Carolina, by a total of 10 points, left ODU 10-6. The Monarchs never lost again in 15 games, and the rest of the regular season won just one game by fewer than 10.
That game, against Randolph-Macon 16 days later, was a huge step in the validation of ODU's supremacy.
Game 21: Feb. 17 ODU 86, Randolph-Macon 85 (2 OTs) ``I like to tell it the way it is, and I don't think we can come back.'' - Sonny Allen, on his halftime speech
In Ashland, Randolph-Macon was 21-1, ranked fourth in Division II and coached by Paul Webb, who would replace Allen at ODU the next season. The Yellow Jackets also owned a 55-37 halftime lead, which turned to 20 early in the second half.
Astoundingly, ODU, which switched from zone to man to man, scored the next 20 points and tied it, 61-61, with about nine minutes to go. Regulation ended at 72-72.
Washington fouled out with more than six minutes left in regulation, and later, Street and Eubank also fouled out.
Nevertheless, Fuhrmann forced a second overtime with a basket with 11 seconds left to make it 78-78. ODU opened an 86-81 lead with two minutes to go, and the Yellow Jackets, back to within a point, missed a desperation last shot to end one of the most-talked-about games in ODU history.
``I told the guys at halftime, `We can't beat them. The bus is parked right outside the locker room. I'll shake hands with Paul, you guys shower and we can be on the bus headed home in 10 minutes,' '' Allen said.
Charlie Woollum, an ODU assistant and now William and Mary's head coach, remembers Allen walking in and challenging the Monarchs. ``He said, `You're absolutely horrible, you're not going to get it done,' and walked out. He gave them the biggest challenge they'd have. I attribute (the comeback) to Sonny's genius.''
Whatever, it ``gave us the impetus and confidence to go on,'' said Purnell, who coached ODU for three seasons before moving to Dayton last spring. ``It solidified us as a team. I've never been around a team any closer.''
Game 25: Feb. 26 ODU 104, Philadelphia Textile 77 ``They're fast and deep and that guy in the middle is terrific. They told me to take it to him. You might as well hand the ball to him.'' - Herb Magee, Philadelphia Textile coach
Fuhrmann, 19 points. Washington, 12 rebounds.
Game 27: March 7 ODU 95, Baltimore 72 (First round, NCAA playoffs) ``Washington is great, but their strength is unity. That Fuhrmann does as much for them as anyone.'' - Baltimore coach Frank Szymanski
Fuhrmann, 21 points. Washington, 15 rebounds.
Game 31: March 14 ODU 76, New Orleans 74 ``I think right now we could compete with any team in the country.'' - Sonny Allen
Dog-tired in its third game in as many nights, ODU still grabbed a 44-38 halftime lead. Out of respect for their fatigue, Allen did not have his troops press - until near the end. After Street gave ODU the lead, 70-68, with two free throws, ODU pressed and Purnell stole the ball and hit a layup. It pressed again, produced another steal and Caruthers hit a jumper.
``I've always said Tommy Street hit the biggest two points of my coaching career,'' Allen said. ``His free throws allowed us to go into the press.''
ODU held on, even after Caruthers missed the front end of a one-and-one with seven seconds left. New Orleans streaked down court and Holland took his final, errant shot. Caruthers made the all-tournament team, as did Washington, who was named the most valuable player.
``Wilson had great fun, he loved playing the games,'' said Caruthers, 39, who teaches at Kempsville Middle School, coaches its basketball team and officiates high school games. ``He had so much fire and intensity, it rubbed off on the whole team. I'm not going to say he was that way in practice, too. But there was never a game he wasn't ready to play.''
Probably, the Monarchs could not have done it without Washington. Then again, Washington, the homebody who became the top individual story of that season, needed a special place to bloom, and got it.
``Nobody seemed to mind I got the attention I got,'' Washington said. ``There was no jealousy, absolutely none, which makes it all the more remarkable. They're my buddies, my guys. I love them all. They're the closest friends I have on this earth. Every one of them.'' MEMO: Related stories on pages C1 and C2
ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Sonny Allen gets a helping hand from Wilson Washington, left, as he
is carried off the court following ODU's 76-74 title victory over
New Orleans.
KEYWORDS: OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL TEAM by CNB