1947–48 Baylor Bears basketball team

The 1947–48 Baylor Bears men's basketball team represented the Baylor University as a member of the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1947–48 NCAA men's basketball season. Led by 5th-year head coach Bill Henderson, the team played their home games at Marrs McLean Gymnasium in Waco, Texas.

1947–48 Baylor Bears men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Runner-up Southwest Conference champions
National Championship Game, L 42-58 vs. Kentucky
Conference	Southwest Conference
Record	24–8 (11–1 SWC)
Head coach	Bill Henderson (5th season)
Home arena	Marrs McLean Gymnasium

1947–48 Southwest Conference men's basketball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Baylor	11	–	1		.917			24	–	8		.750
Texas	9	–	3		.750			20	–	5		.800
Arkansas	8	–	4		.667			16	–	8		.667
Rice	6	–	6		.500			10	–	14		.417
SMU	5	–	7		.417			13	–	10		.565
Texas A&M	2	–	10		.167			7	–	17		.292
TCU	1	–	11		.083			3	–	20		.130

This season marked the first Final Four appearance in program history for the Bears. Baylor would return again in 1950, but then waited another 71 years before winning the national championship in 2021.

Roster

1947–48 Baylor Bears men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown G Red Owens 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Houston, Texas F 14 Bill DeWitt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) — So C Don Heathington 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) — So	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	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Non-conference regular season
Dec 8, 1947*		North Texas	W 51–43	1–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Dec 9, 1947*		North Texas	W 64–53	2–0	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Dec 12, 1947*		at Wichita	W 52–43	3–0	Wichita, Kansas
Dec 13, 1947*		at Saint Louis	L 38–65	3–1	St. Louis Arena  St. Louis, Missouri
Dec 18, 1947*		at Arizona	L 54–62	3–2	Tucson, Arizona
Dec 19, 1947*		at UCLA	W 45–42	4–2	Men's Gym  Los Angeles, California
Dec 29, 1947*		vs. Wyoming All-College Basketball Classic	W 36–29	7–3	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 30, 1947*		vs. Oklahoma A&M All-College Basketball Classic	L 21–22	7–4	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 31, 1947*		vs. Alabama All-College Basketball Classic	W 29–24	8–4	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Southwest Conference regular season
Jan 10, 1948		at SMU	W 43–42	9–4 (1–0)	Perkins Gymnasium  Dallas, Texas
Jan 13, 1948		Texas A&M	W 57–41	10–4 (2–0)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Feb 17, 1948		SMU	W 51–49	18–4 (10–0)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
Feb 25, 1948		at Texas	L 28–32	18–5 (10–1)	Gregory Gymnasium  Austin, Texas
Feb 28, 1948		TCU	W 61–47	19–5 (11–1)	Marrs McLean Gymnasium  Waco, Texas
NCAA Division Six Playoffs
Mar 12, 1948*		vs. Arizona	W 65–59	20–5	Dallas, Texas
Mar 13, 1948*		vs. Arizona	W 64–54	21–5	Dallas, Texas
NCAA tournament
Mar 19, 1948*		vs. Washington Regional Semifinal – Elite Eight	W 64–62	22–5	Municipal Auditorium (9,700) Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 20, 1948*		vs. Kansas State Regional Final/National semifinal – Final Four	W 60–52	23–5	Municipal Auditorium  Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 23, 1948*		vs. Kentucky National championship game	L 42–58	23–6	Madison Square Garden  New York, New York
Olympic Basketball Trials
Mar 27, 1948*		at NYU	W 59–57	24–6	Madison Square Garden  New York, New York
Mar 30, 1948*		vs. Kentucky	L 59–77	24–7	Madison Square Garden  New York, New York
Mar 31, 1948*		vs. Denver Nuggets	L 64–73	24–8	Madison Square Garden  New York, New York
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.