the secret game of 1944
By Helen Yu
On March 12, 1944, the Duke School of Medicine’s all-white intramural basketball team secretly played North Carolina College for Negroes’ all-black team.[1] The Duke players drove to the other campus on a Sunday morning, when most people were in church. The Eagles were led by 28-year-old John B. McLendon, who would later be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.[2] The Eagles beat the Blue Devils 88-44. As much pride as Duke students have in their men’s basketball team, few know of the Secret Game, which quietly shattered social norms in the Jim Crow South.
[1]. Ellsworth, Scott, The Secret Game: A Wartime Story of Courage, Change, and Basketball’s Lost Triumph, Back Bay Books, 2016.
[2]. Jacobs, Barry, “An Overdue Honor for Basketball Coach John B. McLendon | News & Observer,” News and Observer (Raleigh), April 15, 2016, http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/article72065627.html.
[2]. Jacobs, Barry, “An Overdue Honor for Basketball Coach John B. McLendon | News & Observer,” News and Observer (Raleigh), April 15, 2016, http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/article72065627.html.
