At a time when broadcasting college basketball on localtelevision was rare -- and airing them in prime time was rarer still-- University of Dayton games were beamed throughout the MiamiValley by WHIO-TV.
The first season was 1951-52. Don Wayne and Bill Kehl were the TVcrew. And the Flyers were coming off their initial appearance in theNIT the year before, making a splash on the national stage with arunner-up finish.
'It's been a great 60-year hook-up, and I'll tell you why:Channel 7 would pre-empt (prime-time programs) when the network wasreally sacred,' said Tom Hamlin, who became the primary TV and radiovoice in 1960. 'Nobody would do it. And we did it. As a result,that's what helped build the great fan base for Dayton.'
UD celebrated its 60-year partnership with Cox Media Group, theparent company of WHIO-TV and radio and the Dayton Daily News, byrecognizing Hamlin and others at the Duquesne game Wednesday.
Lou Emm and longtime Dayton Daily News sports editor Si Burickwere the first radio duo, while current play-by-play man MikeHartsock has worked TV games for the last 30 years.
Hamlin, 84, is the oldest living regular broadcaster for UD. Hegrew up listening to boxing matches from Madison Square Garden onthe family farm in the Franklin-Carlisle area. By the end of hisfirst season, he had done a regular-season game and three NITcontests from the fabled arena.
'I had to pinch myself,' he said.
Hamlin did simulcasts (radio and TV at the same time) during theearly days of his 29-year career, working with color analyst LouHinchman. He called the Flyers' 1962 and '68 NIT championship yearsas well as the run to the '67 NCAA title game, which ended with a 79-64 loss to UCLA.
'It was 20-4 after about three minutes, and I said silently tomyself, 'Oh Lord, keep the clock moving.' ' Hamlin said.
Scorching: Duquesne was 11th in the Atlantic 10 in 3-pointshooting at 32 percent, but the Dukes hit their first five bombs andseven of 10 while building a 30-15 lead.
The visitors shot 61.3 percent from the field and 62.5 on 3s (10-of-16) in the first half. And it's been a recurring theme. In a four-half stretch, including the second half of the St. Joe's loss andthe defeat to Rhode Island, UD opponents shot 60 percent from thefield and 50 percent on 3s.
'We believe with mostly guards in our lineup, we have to shoot itwell to be good,' said Dukes coach Ron Everhart, whose team finished12-for-23 on 3s. 'We have good passers. We're going to get open. Wejust have to be able to make them, and, fortunately, we were able todo that tonight.'
Take a seat: Josh Parker started in place of the slumping PaulWilliams, who was 1-for-15 from the field in his last two games andwas shooting 33.3 percent this season and 22.6 in A-10 play.Williams went 1-for-8, Parker 0-for-2.
Four figures: Junior point guard Kevin Dillard needed threepoints to score 1,000 for his career, counting his two seasons atSouthern Illinois, and he tallied 22.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2125 or dharris@DaytonDailyNews.com.
