1-1                                     1
 1-2                          SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 294
 1-3           WHEREAS, The Texas Senate proudly joins citizens across the
 1-4     country in recognizing February, 1999, as Black History Month;
 1-5     and
 1-6           WHEREAS, People from all over the world have settled in the
 1-7     United States of America, bringing with them invaluable parts
 1-8     of their own heritage and time-honored traditions; their
 1-9     backgrounds and achievements have had a tremendous impact on
1-10     our country; and
1-11           WHEREAS, An extremely important basketball game was played
1-12     in 1966, which underscored the importance of the progress
1-13     against racism that we have made as a state and country since
1-14     that relatively recent time; and
1-15           WHEREAS, That year the Final Four battle was between the
1-16     University of Kentucky, the University of Utah, Duke University,
1-17     and Texas Western College; everyone in the country was familiar
1-18     with the first three teams, but not Texas Western College, as it
1-19     was the classic underdog; Kentucky had won four national
1-20     championships, Utah had won one, and Duke had been a runner-up;
1-21     and
1-22           WHEREAS, The first game was between Duke and Kentucky, with
1-23     the Kentucky Wildcats winning by 83-79, and Texas Western beat
1-24     Utah with a score of 85-78; everyone expected Kentucky to beat
 2-1     Texas Western; the Texas Western Miners coach, Don Haskins, knew
 2-2     that he was up against a team without much height, so he started
 2-3     some of his shorter players for quicker play; he started his best
 2-4     players, five African Americans; and
 2-5           WHEREAS, This was the first instance of a team of black
 2-6     players in a contest against a team of white players, and
 2-7     Texas Western won 72-65; the National Collegiate Athletic
 2-8     Association had a new championship team for 1966, and it was
 2-9     a team of five starting African Americans; this was a historic
2-10     game for all sports; and
2-11           WHEREAS, This basketball game represented a cultural
2-12     watershed in American sports; after that point, African Americans
2-13     playing on American sports teams was commonplace, and widespread
2-14     recruiting of black players began soon afterward; and
2-15           WHEREAS, Our state and country have benefitted immeasurably
2-16     from the influence of talented black leaders and dedicated
2-17     black citizens who have inspired Americans of all races and
2-18     from all parts of the country to reaffirm their commitment to
2-19     equal justice and opportunity for all; now, therefore, be it
2-20           RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
2-21     76th Legislature, hereby commend the winning coach and players
2-22     of the Texas Western College 1966 National Collegiate Athletic
2-23     Association Championship team and encourage all Texans to observe
2-24     Black History Month; and, be it further
2-25           RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared as an
2-26     expression of the highest regard and esteem of the Texas Senate.
 3-1                                                  Shapleigh, Ellis, West
 3-2                                  ______________________________________
 3-3                                          President of the Senate
 3-4                                       I hereby certify that the above
 3-5                                  Resolution was adopted by the Senate
 3-6                                  on February 25, 1999.
 3-7                                  ______________________________________
 3-8                                          Secretary of the Senate
 3-9                                  ______________________________________
3-10                                           Member, Texas Senate
3-11                                  ______________________________________
3-12                                           Member, Texas Senate
3-13                                  ______________________________________
3-14                                           Member, Texas Senate