Tales From The Villanova Wildcats Locker Room

Take a bunch of nice kids, dump in gobs of fiery Italian seasoning, mix in copious measures of robust Augustinian teaching, and stir gently for four years. That’s the winning recipe that transformed April Fool’s Day 1985 into a feast for underdogs and everymen everywhere. March Madness maddened to the max that year with the crowning of perhaps the NCAA Tournament’s most unlikely champion, the Villanova Wildcats. The most unlikely and perhaps the most liked team to ever win the championship, the Villanova kids won the nation over with courtesy and class more than jump shots and slam dunks. The NCAA final was supposed to be a slam dunk for Georgetown, the defending national champions. But ’Nova never buckled under "Hoya Paranoia," the fear factor that paralyzed most Georgetown opponents in the John Thompson era. Paternal coach Rollie Massimino drilled commitment, loyalty, and honor into his "family" as much as Xs and Os. The result was a poised, disciplined, and undaunted quintet who played what some have called the perfect basketball game where they sizzled the cords with unprecedented 78.6 percent shooting accuracy. Wildcat icon Ed Pinckney, along with teammates and other members of Coach Mass’s "family," relate the tale of how "Villa-nowhere," as the ’Cats were dubbed before April 1, fooled the whole world. This reissue of Tales from the Villanova Wildcats Locker Room is a perfect gift for fans of Villanova basketball! Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team. Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

There is no richer tradition in college sports than University of Kentucky basketball. Tales from the Kentucky Locker Room recounts the school’s glorious roundball history through timeless stories from the players and coaches who shaped it. Some of the stories will leave the reader howling with laughter, others will inspire tears, but all will enable the reader to experience a feeling of closeness to the unique phenomenon that is Kentucky basketball. Former University of Kentucky play-by-play telecaster Denny Trease highlights the hilarious anecdotes and poignant tales told and retold during more than 70 years of Wildcat mania. From the Adolph Rupp era through the new millennium, there has been an endless parade of legendary characters associated with the Big Blue basketball machine, including all-time leading scorer Dan Issel, Kenny Walker, C. M. Newton, and many more. Their remarkable on-court performances, zany antics, and sometimes-subtle one-liners make Tales from the Kentucky Locker Room a must-read for any Wildcat fan.

Take a bunch of nice kids, dump in gobs of fiery Italian seasoning, mix in copious measures of robust Augustinian teaching, and stir gently for four years. That's the winning recipe that transformed April Fool's Day 1985 into a feast for underdogs and everymen everywhere. March Madness maddened to the max that year with the crowning of perhaps the NCAA Tournament's most unlikely champion, the Villanova Wildcats. The most unlikely and perhaps the most liked team to ever win the championship, the Villanova kids won the nation over with courtesy and class more than jump shots and slam dunks. The NCAA final was supposed to be a slam dunk for Georgetown, the defending national champions. But 'Nova never buckled under Hoya Paranoia, the fear factor that paralyzed most Georgetown opponents in the John Thompson era. Paternal coach Rollie Massimino drilled commitment, loyalty, and honor into his family as much as Xs and Os. The result was a poised, disciplined, and undaunted quintet who played what some have called the perfect basketball game where they sizzled the cords with unprecedented 78.6 percent shooting accuracy. Wildcat icon Ed Pinckney, along with teammates and other members of Coach Mass's family, relate the tale of how Villa-nowhere, as the 'Cats were dubbed before April 1, fooled the whole world.

The Duke Blue Devils have a long and glorious history of success, and that history comes alive in this newly revised edition of Tales from the Duke Blue Devils Locker Room. The Blue Devils’ storied past includes forty NCAA tournament appearances, sixteen trips to the final four, and five national titles. In this treasure trove of Duke history, Jim Sumner recalls the most legendary games and unique players that have come to define this championship team. Read about the 1968 ACC Tournament, North Carolina’s scoreless half at Duke in 1979, Duke’s upset win over UNLV in the 1991 Final Four, and the 1992 Duke-Kentucky Eastern Regional classic. Duke University has been home to thirty-six All-American basketball players. Nine of them have been named national player of the year: Dick Groat, Art Heyman, Johnny Dawkins, Danny Ferry, Christian Laettner, Elton Brand, Shane Battier, Jason Williams, and J. J. Redick. Their tales are included here along with stories from Duke coaching legends Eddie Cameron, Vic Bubas, Bill Foster, and Mike Krzyzewski. This is a must-read for any fan of Duke basketball. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Sports Publishing imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in sports—books about baseball, pro football, college football, pro and college basketball, hockey, or soccer, we have a book about your sport or your team. Whether you are a New York Yankees fan or hail from Red Sox nation; whether you are a die-hard Green Bay Packers or Dallas Cowboys fan; whether you root for the Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, UCLA Bruins, or Kansas Jayhawks; whether you route for the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, or Los Angeles Kings; we have a book for you. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to publishing books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked by other publishers and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Tales from the Tar Heel Locker Room: Second Edition is a compilation of the best notes, quotes and anecdotes from North Carolina lore. In these pages, you will meet a coach nicknamed Bloody Neck, a player called The Blind Bomber, and a team known as the White Phantoms. Of course, there is also Bones McKinney, one of basketball's all-time funnymen. With Bones, the Heels laughed all the way to the 1946 NCAA finals. At the end, they cried after losing. Then there is Frank McGwire, whose Underground Railroad carried the Tar Heels to an undefeated season and a national title in 1957. The 2005 NCAA championship run is told! And, of course, there is Smith and the extraordinary Michael Jordan.

Ken Rappoport’s Tales from the North Carolina Tar Heels Locker Room is a compilation of the best notes, quotes, and anecdotes from North Carolina lore. Meet a coach nicknamed “Bloody Neck,” a player called “The Blind Bomber,” and a team known as the “White Phantoms.” And, of course, there is the extraordinary Michael Jordan. Tales from the North Carolina Tar Heels Locker Room captures the anecdotes and memories that have defined this team from the early twentieth century up through their incredible success in the 2000s and beyond. A must-have for any Tar Heels fan!

Orange is a state of mind for fans of Syracuse University basketball. Think Orange and images of greatness appear, from Vic Hanson in the Roaring ’20s through Carmelo Anthony in the 21st century. Think Orange and the sounds of glory are heard, from old Archbold Gym to the gleaming Carrier Dome. Think Orange and the memories of 1,607 victories are stirred, from SU’s first win in 1901 over Cornell to its 2003 triumph over Kansas that brought home the national championship. Many of the stories that have contributed to the phenomenon known as Orangemen basketball now come to life in Bud Poliquin’s updated edition of Tales from the Syracuse Orange's Locker Room. Dave Bing, Jim Boeheim, Jim Brown (yes, he played hoops, too), Bouie and Louie, Leo Rautins, Pearl Washington, and Derrick Coleman—all of them and numerous other SU legends join Hanson and Anthony in the pages of this anecdotal anthology of Syracuse University basketball, certain to complete the bookshelf of any Orange fan. This book looks at the team’s infamous 27-game losing streak in the early 1960s; Roy’s Runts; the Pearl’s stunning half-court buzzer-beater that knocked off Boston College in 1984; the fabulous Final Four runs of 1975, 1996, 2003, 2013, and 2016; and Anthony’s freshman brilliance that delivered the school’s first-ever NCAA tournament title in 2006.

It is often said that while Dr. James Naismith invented basketball in Massachusetts, the sport was raised and ultimately came of age in the high schools of Indiana, the state where politics, religion, and sweet corn fall in line behind the game played with the round orange ball. Tales from Indiana High School Basketball, now newly revised, centers on those special people who have played the game—their stories, their passion, their drive for excellence, their laughs, and their tears. This is a book about Lebanon schoolboy hero Rick Mount, the first prep basketball player ever featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated; it’s about Gene Cato, the Indiana High School Athletic Association’s former commissioner whose father—his high school coach—would not put the young scoring phenomenon into a game until his team’s fans demanded it; it’s also about Marion’s “Purple Reign”—consecutive state championships in 1985, 1986, and 1987 when the Giants were the most important game on every opponent’s schedule. John Wooden, Bobby Plump, Steve Alford, Damon Bailey—it’s as easy for an Indiana high school basketball fan to roll the names off the tongue as it is to find the broadcast of a high school game on AM radio on any Friday night during an Indiana winter. Tales from Indiana High School Basketball is not so much about statistics and winning streaks as it is about the personalities and emotions of those who created a phenomenon that became a way of life in the Hoosier State.

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.

At a school where basketball is king, the Villanova football team fights its opponents both on and off the field. This book tells the story of Villanova's 2005 season and of how coach Andy Talley and his team negotiate this thorny territory. It takes a broader view of the class system that exists in college football.