1949–50 Baylor Bears basketball team

1949–50 Baylor Bears men's basketball
1949–50 Baylor Bears men's basketball
Southwest Conference champions
NCAA tournament, Fourth place
Conference	Southwest Conference
Record	14–13 (8–6 SWC)
Head coach	Bill Henderson (7th season);
Home arena	Marrs McLean Gymnasium
	Seasons ← 1948–49 1950–51 →

1949–50 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Baylor	8	–	4	.667	14	–	13	.519
Arkansas	8	–	4	.667	12	–	12	.500
SMU	7	–	5	.583	10	–	13	.435
Texas	6	–	6	.500	13	–	11	.542
Texas A&M	6	–	6	.500	10	–	14	.417
TCU	5	–	7	.417	13	–	11	.542
Rice	2	–	10	.167	8	–	15	.348

Rankings from AP poll

The 1949–50 Baylor Bears men's basketball team represented the Baylor University as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1949–50 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by 7th-year head coach Bill Henderson, the team played their home games at Marrs McLean Gymnasium in Waco, Texas.

After a February 3 loss to Texas A&M, the Bears were 8–11 overall and 3–4 in SWC games. They ran off five consecutive wins to close the regular season and tie for the conference title with an 8–4 record. Due to a season sweep of Arkansas, Baylor was selected to play in the 8-team NCAA tournament. The Bears defeated BYU before losing to the No.1 ranked, eventual National champion Bradley Braves.^[1] Baylor would travel to New York City for the National consolation game, where they were defeated by No. 5 NC State to close the season with a 14–13 record.

This season marked the second Final Four for the Bears in three seasons (1948). Baylor would not return to the Final Four until winning the National championship in 2021.

Roster

1949–50 Baylor Bears men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown
F	14	Bill DeWitt	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	—	Sr
C		Don Heathington	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	—	Sr

Head coach

Bill Henderson

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Non-conference regular season
Dec 5, 1949*	North Texas	W 59–37	1–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Dec 8, 1949*	Texas Tech	W 58–37	2–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Dec 10, 1949*	at Stephen F. Austin	W 57–47	3–0	Nacogdoches, Texas
Dec 13, 1949*	Texas Wesleyan	W 52–51	4–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Dec 16, 1949*	at Kansas State	L 30–78	4–1	Nichols Hall Manhattan, Kansas
Dec 17, 1949*	at Nebraska	L 55–69	4–2	Nebraska Coliseum Lincoln, Nebraska
Dec 20, 1949*	vs. Tulane	L 53–86	4–3	San Antonio, Texas
Dec 27, 1949*	at Oklahoma City All-College Basketball Classic	L 32–43	4–4	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 28, 1949*	vs. Vanderbilt All-College Basketball Classic	W 61–53	5–4	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 29, 1949*	vs. Texas All-College Basketball Classic	L 41–49	5–5	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 30, 1949*	vs. Saint Louis Cotton Bowl tournament	L 50–58	5–6	Dallas, Texas
Dec 31, 1949*	SMU Cotton Bowl tournament	L 37–61	5–7	Dallas, Texas
Southwest Conference regular season
Jan 7, 1950	Texas	W 49–43	6–7 (1–0)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Jan 14, 1950	at SMU	L 47–50	6–8 (1–1)	Perkins Gym Dallas, Texas
Jan 18, 1950	at TCU	L 54–64	6–9 (1–2)	Will Rogers Memorial Center Fort Worth, Texas
Jan 21, 1950	Rice	W 52–43	7–9 (2–2)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Jan 27, 1950	Texas A&M	L 45–56	7–10 (2–3)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Jan 28, 1950	at Arkansas	W 60–49	8–10 (3–3)	Men's Gymnasium Fayetteville, Arkansas
Feb 3, 1950	Texas A&M	L 54–56	8–11 (3–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Feb 4, 1950	Arkansas	W 52–42	9–11 (4–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Feb 15, 1950	at Rice	W 60–59	10–11 (5–4)	Houston, Texas
Feb 21, 1950	at Texas	W 43–41	11–11 (6–4)	Gregory Gymnasium Austin, Texas
Feb 25, 1950	TCU	W 57–42	12–11 (7–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
Feb 28, 1950	SMU	W 70–61	13–11 (8–4)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium Waco, Texas
NCAA tournament
Mar 24, 1950*	vs. BYU National Quarterfinal – Elite Eight	W 56–55	14–11	Municipal Auditorium Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 25, 1950*	vs. No. 1 Bradley National Semifinal – Final Four	L 66–68	14–12	Municipal Auditorium Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 28, 1950*	vs. No. 5 NC State Third place game	L 41–53	14–13	Madison Square Garden New York, New York
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

^[2]^[3]

References

^ "Bradley Halts Baylor in Western N.C.A.A. Basketball Final at Kansas City". The New York Times. March 26, 1950. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
^ "1949–50 Baylor Bears Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
^ "2022-23 Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Baylor University Athletics. p. 82. Retrieved August 7, 2023.

[1] "Bradley Halts Baylor in Western N.C.A.A. Basketball Final at Kansas City". The New York Times. March 26, 1950. Retrieved August 7, 2023.

[2] "1949–50 Baylor Bears Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved August 7, 2023.

[3] "2022-23 Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Baylor University Athletics. p. 82. Retrieved August 7, 2023.

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