List of SIAA basketball champions
The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) was one of the earliest collegiate athletic conferences, formed in December 1894. Though many of its earliest schools departed in the 1920s to form the Southern Conference, and later the Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference, it existed until 1942.
The first post-season college conference basketball tournament was staged in 1921 by the SIAA.[1][2] In 1922 and 1923, the SIAA and SoCon shared a common tournament. Western Kentucky under Edgar Diddle won the last 6 tournaments, with 3 led by center Carlisle Towery. In 1947 there was an attempt, led by Western Kentucky, to revive the SIAA. Western Kentucky hosted an SIAA basketball tournament that turned out to be little more than an invitational tournament because most former SIAA members declined to participate.[3]
Basketball was invented by James Naismith in 1891. It seemed to take off in the South in 1906-07, when Yale's basketball team traveled throughout the South.[4] In 1909, continuous dribbling and shots off the dribble was allowed.[5]
Champions by year[edit]
This is an incomplete list of champions of the SIAA.
| Year | Team |
|---|---|
| 1910 | Centre |
| 1911 | Centre |
| 1912 | Mississippi A&M |
| 1913 | Mississippi A&M |
| 1914 | Mississippi A&M |
| 1915 | LSU |
| 1916 | Mississippi A&M |
| 1917 | Georgia and LSU |
| 1918 | LSU |
| 1919 | Centre |
| 1920 | Vanderbilt[6] |
| 1921 | Kentucky |
Post SoCon[edit]
| Year | Team |
|---|---|
| 1922 | Mercer |
| 1923 | Chattanooga |
| 1924 | Mercer |
| 1925 | Mercer |
| 1926 | Mississippi College |
| 1927 | The Citadel |
| 1928 | Mississippi College |
| 1929 | Mississippi College |
| 1930 | Louisiana-Lafayette |
| 1931 | Centenary |
| 1932 | Chattanooga and Mississippi College |
| 1933 | ? |
| 1934 | Western Kentucky |
| 1935 | Millsaps |
| 1936 | Murray State |
| 1937 | Western Kentucky |
| 1938 | Western Kentucky |
| 1939 | Western Kentucky |
| 1940 | Western Kentucky |
| 1941 | Western Kentucky |
| 1942 | Western Kentucky[7] |
Revival[edit]
| Year | Team |
|---|---|
| 1947 | Western Kentucky |
References[edit]
- ^ "Why Are There So Many Major College Post-Season Conference Basketball Tournaments When Forty Years Ago There Were Almost None? – Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog".
- ^ "The Early SIAA/Southern Conference Atlanta Basketball Tournament". www.bigbluehistory.net.
- ^ SIAA having trouble filling basketball tournament, [1], The Paducah Sun-Democrat 02 Mar 1947 Page 16, retrieved April 30, 2019.
- ^ Mike Donahue (1907). "Intercollegiate Basket Ball in the South". Spalding's official collegiate basket ball guide: 55.
- ^ "NCAA Basketball Rule Change History". Retrieved 15 April 2023.
- ^ "Vanderbilt SIAA champs in 1920". Vanderbilt University Athletics.
- ^ "2017-18 WKU Hilltopper Basketball Media Guide". Issuu.