The following story originally ran in the March 24, 1957 issue of The Daily Tar Heel.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — North Carolina’s Tar Heels proved they are the nation’s No. 1 team here last night.

They did it by beating Kansas and Wilt the Stilt Chamberlain, 54-53, in a triple-overtime battle that left 10,500 fans gasping after the hectic conclusion.

Joe Quigg, 6-9 center, who did a miraculous defensive job on Chamberlain, was directly responsible for Carolina’s bringing home the national collegiate basketball championship from this midwestern city.

It was Quigg’s two free throws with six seconds to go in the final overtime that brought Carolina the championship.

And it was Quigg’s interception of a Kansas pass, intended for Chamberlain, that insured the dream victory.

The battle of the titans was a fitting climax to the long NCAA grind. UNC was rated No. 1 in all the major polls with Kansas close behind in second place at the regular season’s end.

And when all the shouting of the NCAA title game was over, it was still Carolina No. 1.

Carolina won without their All-American ace, Lennie Rosenbluth. Rosenbluth fouled out with 1:45 to go in the regulation game, and was not available for the three overtimes. But his teammates proved up to the challenge.

Chamberlain got 23 points while Rosenbluth had 20 when he made his big exit.

It was the second consecutive triple overtime game in as many nights for the Tar Heels. Friday night they whipped Michigan State, 74-70, in a semifinal test.

Carolina initiated stalling tactics at the opening tipoff, and jumped to a 19-7 lead. Kansas then scored 10 straight points before the Tar Heels could rally to run up a 29-22 halftime spread.

The Tar Heels stayed on top until Kansas guard Maurice King put his team ahead for the first time at the 11:33 mark, 36-35.

From here on out it was a see-saw, with Kansas maintaining a very slight advantage. Then with 1:45 to go, Rosenbluth fouled out and Kansas took the lead at 44-41. But Tommy Kearns and Quigg put the Tar Heels back into contention and the regular game ended in a deadlock, 46-46.

In the first overtime period, each team scored two points as Bob Young and Chamberlain matched baskets. Each team went scoreless in the second overtime but both missed numerous opportunities to win.

The stops were pulled out in the last overtime period. Kearns picked up four points on a layup and two free throws, but Chamberlain hit a three-pointer to make the score 53-52 with 32 seconds left.

The Tar Heels refused to be rattled. Thy brought the ball down the floor, fed to Quigg, and the lanky center drove for the basket. King blocked on the drive, and with six seconds left, Joe calmly dropped in the game-winning points.

Kansas put the ball in play, but when Quigg deflected a pass meant for Chamberlain, it was all over.

It was a great win for a great Carolina team. The Tar Heels scrapped throughout with murderous aggressiveness. They out-fought the Jayhawks and dominated the backboards, 42-28. Chamberlain got 14, but Brennan was close behind with 11.

Kansas Coach Dick Harp called Carolina, “The No. 1 team in the nation,” after the game. He pointed to the superb Tar Heel defense and rebounding as deciding factors. “Nobody has played us that tough on the boards. That was the major point in the game.”

Coach Frank McGuire had nothing but praise for his victorious Tar Heels after the nerve-straining battle.

“I’m real proud of all our boys, and of course this is the greatest team I’ve ever coached. It seems uncanny that we could have gone through this whole season undefeated playing so many fine teams.” The Tar Heels finished with a 32-0 record.

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.