Reprinted from the April 3, 1986 edition of The Louisville Cardinal, the University of Louisville’s independent student newspaper
By Mark Clark
Cardinal Sports Editor
The University of Louisville is home to the best college basketball team in the country.
The U of L Cardinals earned a 72-69 victory over the Duke Blue Devils in Dallas Monday evening to claim their second national championship.
“I couldn’t feel any better,” said Louisville coach Denny Crum. “If I could (feel better), I don’t know how I could.”
If Crum was delighted with the victory, he was no less exhilarated than senior guard Milt Wagner, who played in his third Final Four.
“It took three times, but I finally accomplished my mission,” said Wagner. “I’m the happiest man in the world.”
Wagner had been tagged as the player to watch in the Cardinal lineup, but suffered through a dismal two-for-six field goal shooting night before icing the game by hitting two free throws with two seconds left to play.
Freshman center Pervis Ellison emerged as the deciding factor in the contest, carrying the Cards to their second national crown in seven years. Ellison, who garnered a career-best 25 points and 11 rebounds, was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.
“Pervis had a great night,” said Crum. “Our game plan was to go inside as much as we could. In the talent matchup, we had an advantage at the center spot.”
Ellison, who was joined on the All-Tournament team by fellow Cardinal Billy Thompson, seemed to undervalue his individual honors.
“What’s the MVP when you’ve got the national championship?” Ellison said.
But the Cards might not have won the big (national championship) trophy if Ellison had not earned his small (MVP) prize.
The game had see-sawed between the Cards and the Blue Devils for nearly 30 minutes when Duke made a furious charge and took a 56-50 lead with 11:03 to play.
With seniors Wagner and Thompson benched with foul difficulties, Duke seemed ready to clamp down its first NCAA title.
Then Ellison took control. Playing with four personal fouls himself, Ellison scored half of the Cardinals’ final 22 points and sparked an 18-10 burst that put U of L in the driver’s seat, 70-65 with 27 seconds left in the game.
But the Cards blew consecutive one-and-one free throw attempts and Duke clawed back to within a point before fouling Wagner at the :02 mark.
Then it was Wagner who put the icing on the national championship cake.
“I loved that situation at the end,” said Wagner, known as “The Iceman” for his coolness under pressure. “It was a great way to go out on top of the world.”
Neither Wagner nor Ellison was totally responsible for the win, however. The Cardinals earned their national crown with a true team effort.
Reserves Tony Kimbro, Mark McSwain and Kevin Walls provided strong play off the bench when Wagner and Thompson were sidelined with fouls.
Senior guard Jeff Hall handcuffed All-American Johnny Dawkins, who led Duke with 24 points, during the game’s final 15 minutes.
With their go-to man, Dawkins, riddled by Hall, Duke fell out of sync during the game’s waning moments, as Louisville was gaining momentum.
“Just because he didn’t score in the last 15 minutes doesn’t mean I stopped him alone,” Hall said. “He got away from me a couple times, but other people were there to pick him up for me.”
The victory was a tremendous accomplishment for U of L, who faced a team which had been ranked No. 1 for much of the season and entered the tournament as the top seed in the East Region. The Blue Devils set an all-time NCAA record for wins in a season with their 37-3 campaign.
But in the 32-7 Cardinals, Duke met the hottest team in the country. The Cards won 17 games in a row and were victors in 21 of their last 22 outings, including an 88-77 national semifinal victory over Louisiana State on Saturday.
Crum said this championship was even sweeter than his first crown in 1980. “I’m a lot happier, to be honest,” Crum said. “Last time (in 1980) we were under so much pressure it was hard to relax and enjoy it, but I promise you I will definitely enjoy this one.”
View The Louisville Cardinal’s entire April 3, 1986 issue at
https://lcag.site/2026/03/26/the-louisville-cardinal-april-3-1986/
Scans provided by University of Louisville Archives & Special Collections.
Visit their website at https://library.louisville.edu/archives/home
View more back issues of The Louisville Cardinal at
https://digital.library.louisville.edu/collections/ulua_cardinal
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