The 1953 Dixie Classic was a mid-season college basketball tournament held December 28–30, 1953 at NC State's Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was the fifth iteration of the Dixie Classic and it was part of the 1953–54 NCAA men's basketball season. The Duke Blue Devils won the final, defeating the Navy Midshipmen 98–83.

1953 Dixie Classic
Cover of the tournament program
Season1953–54
Teams8
Finals siteReynolds Coliseum
Raleigh, North Carolina
ChampionsDuke (1st title)
Runner-upNavy (1st title game)
Winning coachHarold Bradley (1st title)
MVPRudy D'Emilio (Duke)
Attendance60,000[1]
Dixie Classic
«1952 1954»
Bernie Janicki and Rudy D'Emilio of Duke with their trophies

Coming into the tournament, 9th-ranked host NC State, who had won the first four Dixie Classics, and 12th-ranked Oregon State were favorites to win the tournament.[2] However, the final was contested by Duke and Navy. Duke won 98–83, breaking Navy's six-game unbeaten streak.[3]

Teams

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Each year, the Dixie Classic included the "Big Four" teams (Duke, NC State, North Carolina, and Wake Forest), as well as four other invited teams. The 1953 teams were:[4]

Bracket

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Consolation finalConsolation semifinalsQuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal
Dec. 28, 2:00pm
North Carolina62
Dec. 29, 2:00pmNavy86Dec. 29, 4:00pm
North Carolina63Navy85
Seton Hall73Dec. 28, 4:00pmNC State75
NC State72
Dec. 30, 4:00pmSeton Hall70Dec. 30, 9:00pm
Seton Hall77Navy83
Tulane68Dec. 28, 7:30pmDuke98
Duke71
Dec. 29, 7:30pmOregon State61Dec. 29, 9:30pm
Seventh placeOregon State70Duke83Third place
Dec. 30, 2:00pmTulane74Dec. 28, 9:30pmWake Forest66Dec. 30, 7:30pm
North Carolina53Wake Forest72NC State79
Oregon State65Tulane65Wake Forest86

Game log

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December 28
2:00pm
North Carolina 62, Navy 86
Scoring by quarter: 16–27, 17–21, 14–14, 15–24
Pts: Radovich (15) Pts: Lange (29)
No. 1[5]
Attendance: 11,600
December 28
4:00pm
NC State 72, Seton Hall 70
Scoring by quarter: 17–19, 14–18, 21–21, 20–12
Pts: Molodet (19) Pts: Brooks (19)
No. 2[5]
Attendance: 11,600
December 28
7:30pm
Duke 71, Oregon State 61
Scoring by quarter: 20–17, 15–11, 18–14, 18–19
Pts: D'Emilio, Belmont (19) Pts: Halbrook (23)
No. 3[5]
Attendance: 12,000
December 28
9:30pm
Wake Forest 72, Tulane 65
Scoring by quarter: 14–13, 16–20, 21–16, 21–16
Pts: Davis (25) Pts: P. Wallace (18)
No. 4[5]
Attendance: 12,000
December 29
2:00pm
North Carolina 63, Seton Hall 73
Scoring by quarter: 17–16, 11–16, 19–19, 16–22
Pts: Likins (16) Pts: Ring (18)
No. 5[6]
Attendance: 9,500
December 29
4:00pm
Navy 85, NC State 75
Scoring by quarter: 16–19, 16–20, 24–16, 29–20
Pts: Clune (27) Pts: Thompson (23)
No. 6[6]
Attendance: 9,500
December 29
7:30pm
Oregon State 70, Tulane 74
Scoring by quarter: 21–16, 23–19, 6–19, 20–20
Pts: Halbrook (23) Pts: Cervini (18)
No. 7[6]
December 29
9:30pm
Duke 83, Wake Forest 66
Scoring by quarter: 30–10, 13–22, 22–21, 18–13
Pts: D'Emilio (23) Pts: Hemric (26)
No. 8[6]
December 30
2:00pm
North Carolina 53, Oregon State 65
Scoring by quarter: 11–22, 6–18, 18–9, 18–16
Pts: Maddie (17) Pts: Halbrook (16)
No. 9[7]
December 30
4:00pm
Seton Hall 77, Tulane 68
Scoring by quarter: 22–21, 16–19, 18–15, 21–13
Pts: Long (21) Pts: Brennan, Stoll (13)
No. 10[7]
December 30
7:30pm
NC State 79, Wake Forest 86
Scoring by quarter: 21–24, 13–21, 14–21, 31–20
Pts: Thompson (24) Pts: Hemric (24)
No. 11[7]
Attendance: 12,000[8]
December 30
9:00pm
Navy 83, Duke 98
Scoring by quarter: 22–25, 20–21, 19–20, 22–32
Pts: Lange (25) Pts: D'Emilio (24)
No. 12[7]
Attendance: 12,000[8]

References

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  1. ^ Hart, Reese (December 29, 1954). "State Vs. Minnesota In Finals". The Durham Sun. Associated Press. p. 15. Attendance of 22,500 yesterday brought the two-day figure to 46,000. Last year's record was 60,000.
  2. ^ Hart, Reese (December 27, 1953). "5th Annual Dixie Classic Starts Play Tomorrow". Durham Morning Herald. p. 13.
  3. ^ Brooks, Bob (December 31, 1953). "Duke Wins Dixie Classic Championship; Deacs Wallop State". The News and Observer. p. 13.
  4. ^ "Program, Men's basketball, Dixie Classic, 5th Annual, 28 December to 30 December 1953". Men's Basketball, 1911-2008 (UA015.010 Series 4), Special Collections Research Center at NC State University Libraries.
  5. ^ a b c d "Seton Hall Bows in Dixie Tourney". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 29, 1953. p. 26. ProQuest 112709210.
  6. ^ a b c d "Navy, Duke Reach Basketball Final". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 30, 1953. p. 18. ProQuest 112528924.
  7. ^ a b c d "Duke Wins Dixie Classic, 98–83, Toppling Hitherto Unbeaten Navy". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 31, 1953. p. 15. ProQuest 112719025.
  8. ^ a b "Wake Forest Again Beats N. C. State". The Washington Post. Associated Press. December 31, 1953. p. 10. ProQuest 152602232.
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