House's 61 Points Differed from Alcindor's

The crowd gathered in Pauley Pavilion on Feb. 25, 1967 kept chanting, "Give the ball to Lew," so what else were the UCLA Bruins supposed to do?

Sophomore center Lew Alcindor responded with one of the greatest performances of his legendary career, scoring a conference-record 61 points in UCLA's 100-78 victory over Washington State.

To do it, Alcindor hit 26 of 35 shots and made three baskets in the final minute, including a dunk at the buzzer. If the big fella had made more than 9 of 18 free throws, he'd have approached 70.

"They played him straight (man-to-man defense)," UCLA coach John Wooden said at the time. "I don't believe you can handle him this way."

For 33 years, Alcindor's performance stood as the greatest in league history. Now it has company.

Last Saturday, in Cal's sparkling new Haas Pavilion, Arizona State senior guard Eddie House scored 61 in a double-overtime victory over the Bears.

It was the most points by a major college player since Kansas State's Askia Jones hit 62 six years ago and the most points ever scored in the Bay Area (any level) by someone not named Rick Barry or Wilt Chamberlain.

Athletes sometimes talk about being "in a zone." House was in a different dimension. He scored 19 points in the overtime periods and secured victory with two free throws with 2.9 seconds left. He made 18 of 30 field goals, was 7 of 10 on 3-pointers and hit 18 of 19 free throws.

Afterward, House screamed,"This is my house," and with good reason. The Union City resident and Hayward High School graduate did not receive a scholarship offer in 1995-96 from then-Cal coach Todd Bozeman.

"It means a lot to me to come back home and get a win like this," said House, who had his number retired at Hayward last week.

House saved his best for the Bears, but he's been picking on everyone. In the six games since an 0-of- 16 performance against Brigham Young,he's averaging 37.5 points. He's the first player to win the Pac-10 Player of the Week award three straight weeks.

"I don't know what Cal was thinking," said UCLA guard Ray Young, an Oakland native who played against House in high school. "I never envisioned anybody going for 60 at this level, but I could definitely see Eddie getting 40. He puts in the work. The dude just works."

It's impossible to compare House's 61 to Alcindor's 61. House had 10 more minutes, courtesy of two overtimes, and he made seven 3- pointers, which didn't exist in Alcindor's time. (The issue is moot anyway; Wooden never would have let Alcindor shoot from 19 feet.)

Then again, the 7-1 Alcindor was physically superior to his competition, while House, at 6-1,is small by today's standards.

There's really only one way to solve the argument. House has to score 62.