High school basketball: Vince Lombardi coached, won one of lowest-scoring games in history

Parker (Birmingham) beat Carver (Birmingham) last week 6-4 in an Alabama playoff contest, one of the lowest scoring games in high school basketball history. In fact, in order to find a lower scoring game, you would have to go all the way back to the sport's dark ages in the year ... 2015?

Wait. What?

Yes, the most recent low-scoring affair occurred 50 miles away from Birmingham in Centreville. On Jan. 31, 2015, Bibb County (Centreville) defeated Brookwood 2-0.




Here's a look at a list of 29 games where the winning total was six points or less. Sources include the National Federation of High Schools Record Book and the website Luckyshow.org. This is likely just a small sampling of games with this criteria since low scoring games were the norm in the early part of the 20th century and low-scoring games are not well documented in the record books.

For any additions or corrections contact Kevin Askeland at kevinaskeland65@gmail.com.

Lowest Scoring Games of All-Time

Georgetown (Ill.) def. Homer (Ill.)
Score: 1-0
Date: March 6, 1930
Note: Before anyone gets too excited about this low score in a playoff game, consider this. Of the other district playoff games played on the same night, 15 teams scored in the single digits, the highest winning score was 52-3 and 13 teams won despite scoring fewer than 20 points in the game. That being said, Georgetown scored on a free throw in the first period of this game and Homer really never made an attempt to go on offense until there were about three minutes left in the game, according to the Moline Dispatch.

Magnolia (Ill.) def. Granville Hopkins (Ill.)
Score: 1-0
Date: Nov. 20, 1929
Note: Five days after being held scoreless in a 24-0 loss, Magnolia scored one against Hopkins and won. Magnolia knocked down a free throw in the fourth quarter to pick up the victory.

Drain (Ore.) def. Wilbur (Ore.)
Score: 1-0
Date: 1927
Note: According to the National Federation of High Schools Record Book, Drain defeated Wilbur by a 1-0 score, but no other information is available.

Bibb County (Centreville, Ala.) def. Brookwood (Ala.)
Score: 2-0
Date: Jan. 31, 2015
Note: Bibb County scored in the first 15 seconds on a basket by Brandon Rutledge. The two teams stalled for the remainder of the game for the lowest-scoring game in nearly 40 years.

New Knoxville (Ohio) def. Buckland (Ohio)
Score: 2-0
Date: Dec. 23, 1939
Note: Don Schrouke scored in the first 20 seconds of the second quarter, but otherwise the two teams held the ball throughout. No fouls were called on either team. New Knoxville attempted five shots and Buckland only three.



Hillside (Durham, N.C.) def. Person (Roxboro, N.C.)
Score: 2-0
Date: Feb. 1, 1977
Note: The only points in the game came in the first four seconds on a 20-foot basket by Hillside's Leon McRae. Roxboro Person then stalled the rest of the first period and did the same in the second quarter. Roxboro Person attempted seven shots in the game while Hillside attempted four.

Crown Point (Ind.) def. Hobart (Ind.)
Score: 2-0
Date: Feb. 18, 1944
Note: Crown Point scored in the first four minutes of this one. After gaining possession of the ball following the bucket, Crown Point held the ball without attempting a shot. Hobart stayed in its zone defense and never pressed the action. Crown Point had six shots in the game and Hobart had three, according to the Paladium-Item.

White Plains (N.Y.) def. Mount Vernon (N.Y.)
Score: 2-0
Date: 1911
Note: Games ended in single digits for both teams were not uncommon in 1911, but the NFHS Record Book lists this outing as one of the lowest scoring games of all-time.

Pocahontas County (Dunmore, W.Va.) def. Montcalm (W.Va.)
Score: 2-1
Date: Jan. 19, 1965
Note: After losing by 30 to Pocahontas earlier in the season, Montcalm tried to stall for most of the game to keep it close. Bill Murphy scored on a tip-in with three minutes left in the first half for the only basket of the game. Montcalm held the ball the rest of the game until only a few seconds remained when Jim Bailey made a free throw. Montcalm attempted three shots while Pocahontas attempted two, according to the Kingsport Times.

Florence (Wis.) def. Crandon (Wis.)
Score: 2-1
Date: Jan. 21,1977
Note: Crandon held the lead in this one when Ben Samz hit a free throw in the first quarter. Florence immediately went on the offensive and scored a bucket by Nick Baumgart. After that, neither team really tried to score. Crandon missed all four of its shot attempts while Florence was 1 of 3.

Batavia (Ill.) def. St. Charles (Ill.)
Score: 3-0
Date: Feb. 6, 1959
Note: This game pitted the top two teams in the Little Seven Conference. Batavia stayed undefeated as Dick Abhalter scored a bucket in the first quarter and a free throw in the fourth. 



Parker (Chicago) def. Marshall (Chicago)
Score: 3-2
Date: Dec.12, 1921
Note: The two junior varsity teams had a scored of 14-13. Neither team shot very well in the varsity game, however. 

Glenbard (Glen Ellyn, Ill.) def. York (Elmhurst, Ill.)
Score: 3-2
Date: Feb. 21, 1930
Note: All of the scoring occurred in the third quarter with Glenbard scoring on a field goal and a free throw and York scoring on two free throws.

Marshall (Ill.) def. Paris (Ill.)
Score: 4-2
Date: Jan. 3, 1930
Note: Four points might seem like a low-scoring total, however Marshall only averaged 23 points a game with a high of 32. The game before, Paris won 24-18 over Marshall.

Benton (Ill.) def. Johnson City (Ill.)
Score: 4-2 (OT)
Date: March 7, 1936
Note: This game was a regional final, which went into overtime before Benton pulled out the win. Neither team scored in the first half.

Canistota (S.D.) def. Spencer (S.D.)
Score: 4-2
Date: Dec. 12, 1947
Note: Canistota had a team considerably shorter than Spencer, so once it had a 4-2 lead, it held the ball for the remaining 32 minutes to claim the win.

West Division (Chicago) def. English (Chicago)
Score: 4-3
Date: Feb. 8,1901
Note: Nothing seemed too out of the ordinary in the reporting of this game, possibly since it was only 10 years after the game of basketball had been invented. The two teams combined for one field goal.

St. Mel (Chicago) def. St. Rita (Chicago)
Score: 4-3
Date: Feb. 2, 1921
Note: St. Rita was one of three teams in Chicago to lose while scoring just three points on this date.



Rossville-Alvin (Rossville, Ill.) def. Catlin (Ill.)
Score: 5-0 (OT)
Date: Feb. 4, 1930
Note: Regulation ended in a 0-0 tie with Rossville pulling it out in overtime.

Waukegan (Ill.) def. Evanston (Ill.)
Score: 5-3
Date: Feb. 2, 1945
Note: Neither team scored in the first half and Waukegan broke a 3-all tie with a shot at the buzzer.

Englewood (Chicago) def. Phillips (Chicago)
Score: 5-3
Date: Jan. 16, 1920
Note: The Chicago Tribune called the game "an airtight exhibition of guarding."

Aurora East (Ill.) def. DeKalb (Ill.)
Score: 5-4
Date: March 1, 1923
Note: East advanced in the playoffs with this district win over DeKalb.

Pekin (Ill.) def. Springfield (Ill.), 5-4
Score: 5-4
Date: Dec. 26, 1929
Note: The two teams stalled for nearly the entire game until Pekin scored in the final seconds.

Altona (Ill.) def. Toulon (Ill.)
Score: 5-4 (2OT)
Date: Jan. 10, 1930
Note: Altona reportedly needed two overtimes to pick up the win over Toulon.

Waukegan (Ill.) def. Evanston (Ill.)
Score: 5-3
Date: Feb. 2, 1945
Note: The two teams played a scoreless tie for three periods before both teams made a free throw in the fourth quarter and a single bucket afterward to create a 3-3 tie. Waukegan won the game on a basket at the buzzer.

Bergenfield (N.J.) def. Park Ridge (N.J.)
Score: 5-4
Date: Feb. 19, 1952
Note: Park Ridge had a number of opportunities to shoot free throws in this game, but rules of the day allowed teams to choose between taking free throws or retaining possession. Neither team made much of an effort to shoot the ball, according to the Passaic Herald News.



St. Cecilia (N.J.) def. Bogota (N.J.)
Score: 6-1
Date: Feb. 19, 1940
Note: The coach of the St. Cecilia team was none other than future NFL Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi. His team defeated a highly-favored Bogota team which inexplicably held the ball for 15 minutes without attempting a shot. "(Coach) Hebel astonished me by telling his boys to go into a shell. They were the favorites," Lombardi told the Hackensack Record.

Mount Pleasant (Wilmington, Del.) def. Dickinson (Wilmington, Del.)
Score: 6-2
Date: Feb. 12, 1974
Note: Dickinson tried to pull Mt. Pleasant out of its zone defense, but it didn't work. Mt. Pleasant scored four points in the first quarter including two points in the first 15 seconds. Dickinson didn't score until there was 1:34 left in the game.

Sierra (Whittier, Calif.) def. San Clemente (Calif.)
Score: 6-4
Date: Feb. 23, 1979
Note: The two teams went on a scoring flurry, scoring four points combined in the final 10 seconds of the game. In fact Sierra won the game on a 25-foot shot by Steve Egbert with one second remaining. However the previous 31 minutes and 50 seconds, Sierra stayed in a zone defense and San Clemente passed the ball back and forth near the halfcourt line. The two teams combined for 14 shots in the game.