ACC Basketball - by J Samuel Walker (Paperback)

About the Book

ACC Basketball: The Story of the Rivalries, Traditions, and Scandals of the First Two Decades of the Atlantic Coast Conference

Book Synopsis

Since the inception of the Atlantic Coast Conference, intense rivalries, legendary coaches, gifted players, and fervent fans have come to define the league's basketball history. In ACC Basketball, J. Samuel Walker traces the traditions and the dramatic changes that occurred both on and off the court during the conference's rise to a preeminent position in college basketball between 1953 and 1972.

Walker vividly re-creates the action of nail-biting games and the tensions of bitter recruiting battles without losing sight of the central off-court questions the league wrestled with during these two decades. As basketball became the ACC's foremost attraction, conference administrators sought to field winning teams while improving academic programs and preserving academic integrity. The ACC also adapted gradually to changes in the postwar South, including, most prominently, the struggle for racial justice during the 1960s. ACC Basketball is a lively, entertaining account of coaches' flair (and antics), players' artistry, a major point-shaving scandal, and the gradually more evenly matched struggle for dominance in one of college basketball's strongest conferences.

Review Quotes

"A lively account of the ACC's rise as a basketball powerhouse." -- The Wall Street Journal


"A must for any sports-history collection in ACC territory." -- Booklist


"A timely and enjoyable text that exposes tensions endemic to big-time college athletics and is a must-read for serious fans of men's college basketball and the ACC." -- Journal of American History


"Academically rigorous, yet highly readable. . . . A well-written and engaging case study in the history of college sports." -- History of Education Quarterly


"ACC Basketball has become an economic and cultural behemoth. It is beloved by the multitudes, continually challenged to blend the disparate goals of winning championships and entertaining fans with real college students. Walker admirably tells the story of how that challenge began." -- North Carolina Historical Review


"Does an excellent job of recounting the events, players, rivalries, scandals, and coaches that made the ACC a prominent player at the national level. . . . A must-read for anyone interested in ACC basketball." -- Journal of the North Carolina Association of Historians

"Recommended. All Readers." -- CHOICE


"These are the stories that laid the foundation for the most dominant conference in the sport. Any reader curious about how it got that way will find the book well worth their time." -- SLAM Magazine


"This is serious (though fun) history. One hopes that a sequel is in the works." -- Star-News

About the Author

J. Samuel Walker is a prize-winning historian and author of several books, including Prompt and Utter Destruction: Truman and the Use of Atomic Bombs against Japan. He has been a devoted fan of ACC basketball for over 40 years.