Eastern Intercollegiate Conference

For a later organization, see Eastern Intercollegiate Conference (1953–1959).

Not to be confused with Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League.

Eastern Intercollegiate Conference

Association	NCAA
Founded	1932
Ceased	1939
Sports fielded	College basketball
Division	Division I (post-1973 equivalent)
No. of teams	5 (1932-33 and 1934-35) 6 (1933-34; 1935-36 through 1938-39)
Locations

The Eastern Intercollegiate Conference (EIC) was an athletic conference in the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the United States. The conference sponsored men's college basketball and existed from 1932 to 1939, with teams in the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The 1937–1938 conference champion, Temple, went on to win the 1938 National Invitation Tournament.[1]

Although the Associated Press described the conference as "one of the best in the nation,"[2] its members agreed to disband it at the end of the 1938–1939 season because geographical problems had made scheduling difficult.[2]

Member schools

Over its seven seasons of existence, the conference's membership varied between five and six schools each season.[3]

Final members

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined[a]	Left[b]	Current conference
Carnegie Institute of Technology	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	1900	Nonsectarian	10,875	Tartans	1932	1939	University (UAA)[c]
Georgetown University	Washington, D.C.	1789	Catholic (Jesuit)	19,371	Hoyas	1932	1939	Big East[d]
Pennsylvania State University	State College, Pennsylvania	1855	Public	45,901	Nittany Lions	1935	1939	Big Ten (B1G)[d]
University of Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	1787	Public	28,664	Panthers	1932	1939	Atlantic Coast (ACC)[d]
Temple University	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	1884	State related	39,755	Owls	1932	1939	The American[d]
West Virginia University	Morgantown, West Virginia	1867	Public	26,839	Mountaineers	1932	1939	Big 12[d]

Notes

1. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
2. Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
3. Currently an NCAA Division III athletic conference.
4. Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.

Other members

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined[a]	Left[b]	Current conference
Bucknell University	Lewisburg, Pennsylvania	1846	Nonsectarian	3,650	Bison	1933	1934	Patriot[c]

Notes

1. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
2. Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
3. Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.

Membership timeline

Member Non-member

Champions

The conference championships were determined by the best regular season conference records except in the event of teams having identical conference records. In the case of such ties, the conference championship was decided by a one-game playoff championship game at the conclusion of the regular conference season. Conference championships were decided by this playoff game in 1935, 1936, and 1937. However, following the 1938–1939 season, no playoff game was held despite identical records held by Carnegie Tech and Georgetown, and the two schools were declared co-champions for the season.

Pittsburgh dominated the conference results with four championships in the conference's seven seasons, winning the first two seasons by having the best regular-season record and winning championship playoff games in 1935 and 1937, but losing the 1936 championship playoff game.[3]

• 1932–1933 Pittsburgh
• 1933–1934 Pittsburgh
• 1934–1935 Pittsburgh*
• 1935–1936 Carnegie Tech*
• 1936–1937 Pittsburgh*
• 1937–1938 Temple
• 1938–1939 Carnegie Tech/Georgetown**

* Conference title decided by a playoff game
** No playoff game held. The two teams were declared co-champions based on identical regular-season conference records.

Scoring record

During the 1937–1938 season, Carnegie Tech′s Melvin Cratsley set the league′s single-game scoring record in men's basketball with 34 points against West Virginia. He scored 12 field goals during the game, ten of them on tip-ins or by shooting from directly beneath the hoop and the other two on set shots from inside the free throw line.[1]

Season standings

Each team played each other team in the conference twice each season in a home-and-home schedule except for the 1933–1934 season, when Bucknell, Carnegie Tech, and Pittsburgh did not play a complete 10-game home-and-home schedule for the season.

1932–1933

1932-33[4]	Conference			Overall
	W-L	Pct.	GB	W-L	Pct.
Pittsburgh	7–1	.875	–	17–5	.773
Temple	5–3	.625	2	15–6	.714
Carnegie Tech	4–4	.500	3	4–5	.444
Georgetown	3–5	.375	4	6–11	.353
West Virginia	1–7	.125	6	10–14	.417

1933–1934

1933-34[5]	Conference			Overall
	W-L	Pct.	GB	W-L	Pct.
Pittsburgh	8–0	1.000	–	18–4	.818
West Virginia	7–3	.700	2	14–5	.737
Georgetown	5–5	.500	4	12–11	.522
Temple	5–5	.500	4	9–12	.429
Carnegie Tech	2–7	.222	6½	1–8	.111
Bucknell	0–7	.000	7½	2–16	.111

1934–1935

1934-35[6]	Conference			Overall
	W-L	Pct.	GB	W-L	Pct.
Pittsburgh*	6–2	.750	–	18–6	.750
West Virginia*	6–2	.750	–	16–6	.727
Temple	5–3	.625	1	17–7	.708
Carnegie Tech	2–6	.250	4	3–6	.333
Georgetown	1–7	.125	5	6–13	.316

*Conference playoff championship game, March 18, 1935, in Morgantown, West Virginia.
Pittsburgh 35, West Virginia 22[7]

1935–1936

1935-36[8]	Conference			Overall
	W-L	Pct.	GB	W-L	Pct.
Carnegie Tech*	7–3	.700	–	8–3	.727
Pittsburgh*	7–3	.700	–	18–9	.667
Temple	6–4	.600	1	18–6	.750
West Virginia	6–4	.600	1	16–8	.667
Georgetown	4–6	.400	3	7–11	.389
Penn State	0–10	.000	7	6–11	.353

*Conference playoff championship game, March 14, 1936, at Pitt Stadium Pavilion, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Carnegie Tech 32, Pittsburgh 27[9]

1936–1937

1936-37[10]	Conference			Overall
	W-L	Pct.	GB	W-L	Pct.
Temple*	7–3	.700	–	17–6	.739
Pittsburgh*	7–3	.700	–	14–7	.667
Penn State	6–4	.600	1	10–7	.588
Carnegie Tech	4–6	.400	3	9–11	.450
Georgetown	3–7	.300	4	9–8	.529
West Virginia	3–7	.300	4	9–14	.391

*Conference playoff championship game, March 22, 1937, at Philadelphia Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Pittsburgh 35, Temple 29[7]

1937–1938

1937-38[11]	Conference			Overall
	W-L	Pct.	GB	W-L	Pct.
Temple	9–1	.900	–	23–2	.920
Penn State	6–4	.600	3	13–5	.722
Pittsburgh	5–5	.500	4	9–12	.429
Georgetown	5–5	.500	4	7–11	.389
Carnegie Tech	3–7	.300	6	3–7	.300
West Virginia	2–8	.200	7	6–13	.316

1938–1939

1938-39[12]	Conference			Overall
	W-L	Pct.	GB	W-L	Pct.
Carnegie Tech*	6–4	.600	–	12–7	.632
Georgetown*	6–4	.600	–	13–9	.591
Penn State	5–5	.500	1	13–10	.565
Pittsburgh	5–5	.500	1	10–8	.556
West Virginia	4–6	.400	2	10–9	.526
Temple	4–6	.400	2	10–12	.455

*No conference championship playoff game was held, so Carnegie Tech and Georgetown finished as co-champions.

Overall team results

Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Team Results during conference membership[13]
Team	Sea- sons	Years	EIC Record*	EIC Winning Pct.	EIC Champion- ships	Overall Record	Overall Winning Pct.	Postseason**
Bucknell	1	1933–1934	0–7	.000	0	2–16	.111	N/A
Carnegie Tech	7	1932–1939	29–37	.439	2***	40–47	.460	1–0 in EIC playoff games
Georgetown	7	1932–1939	27–39	.409	1***	60–74	.448	none
Penn State	4	1935–1939	17–23	.425	0	42–33	.560	none
Pittsburgh	7	1932–1939	47–20	.701	4	104–51	.671	2–1 in EIC playoff games
Temple	7	1932–1939	41–26	.612	1	109–51	.681	0–1 in EIC playoff games; Won 1938 NIT
West Virginia	7	1932–1939	29–38	.433	0	81–69	.540	0–1 in EIC playoff games
Totals	7	1932–1939	—	—	—	438–341	.562	One NIT championship

*Includes conference playoff games.
**The National Invitation Tournament did not begin play until 1938. The NCAA tournament did not begin play until 1939. "N/A" (not applicable) indicates neither tournament existed during the school's membership in the conference.
***Includes a conference co-championship Carnegie Tech and Georgetown shared in the 1938–1939 season.

Head coaches

Eleven men served as head coaches of EIC teams during the conference's seven seasons of play. Only three of them — Pittsburgh's Doc Carlson, Carnegie Tech's Max E. Hannum, and Temple's James Usilton — coached their teams throughout the EIC's existence.

Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Head Coaches during Eastern Intercollegiate Conference membership[13][14]
Coach	Team	Sea- sons	Years	Confer- ence Record*	EIC Winning Pct.	EIC Champion- ships	Overall Record	Overall Winning Pct.	Postseason**
Doc Carlson	Pittsburgh	7	1932–1939	47–20	.701	4	104–51	.671	2–1 in EIC playoff games
Marshall Glenn	West Virginia	5	1933–1938	24–25	.490	0	61–46	.570	0–1 in EIC playoff games
Max E. Hannum	Carnegie Tech	7	1932–1939	29–37	.439	2***	40–47	.460	1–0 in EIC playoff games
John Lawther	Penn State	3	1936–1939	17–13	.567	0	36–22	.621	none
Earl Leslie	Penn State	1	1935–1936	0–10	.000	0	6–11	.353	N/A
Fred Mesmer	Georgetown	6	1932–1938	21–35	.375	0	47–65	.420	none
Malcolm Musser	Bucknell	1	1933–1934	0–7	.000	0	2–16	.111	N/A
Dyke Raese	West Virginia	1	1938–1939	4–6	.400	0	10–9	.526	none
Elmer Ripley	Georgetown	1	1938–1939	6–4	.600	1***	13–9	.591	none
Francis Stadsvold	West Virginia	1	1932–1933	1–7	.125	0	10–14	.417	N/A
James Usilton	Temple	7	1932–1939	41–26	.612	1	109–51	.681	0–1 in EIC playoff games; Won 1938 NIT

*Includes conference playoff games.
**The National Invitation Tournament did not begin play until 1938. The NCAA tournament did not begin play until 1939. "N/A" (not applicable) indicates coaching tenures in the conference during which neither tournament existed.
***Includes a conference co-championship Carnegie Tech and Georgetown shared in the 1938–1939 season.

References

1. College Hoopedia: 1937-38
2. College Hoopedia: 1938-39
3. sports-reference.com Eastern Intercollegiate Conference
4. "1932-33 Men's Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
5. "1933-34 Men's Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
6. "1934-35 Men's Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
7. Hotchkiss, Greg, ed. (2013). 2013-14 Pitt Men's Basketball Media Guide. University of Pittsburgh Athletic Media Relations Office. pp. 172–173. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
8. "1935-36 Men's Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
9. Biederman, Lester (March 17, 1936). "Tartan Five Whips Panthers to Annex Eastern Intercollegiate Court Crown!". The Pittsburgh Press. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
10. "1936-37 Men's Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
11. "1937-38 Men's Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
12. "1938-39 Men's Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Season Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
13. sports-reference.com Eastern Intercollegiate Conference Coaches Accessed 19 December 2020
14. athletics.cmu.edu Carnegie Mellon University Men's Basketball Year-by-Year Coaching Records