[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 57 (Wednesday, March 29, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E273]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     TRIBUTE TO WALTER DUKES AND SETON HALL'S 1953 NIT CHAMPIONSIP

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. DONALD M. PAYNE, JR.

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 29, 2023

  Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Walter Dukes 
and the 1953 Seton Hall University National Invitational Tournament 
(NIT) Championship team. It was exactly 70 years ago that Dukes led the 
Seton Hall Pirates to the NIT championship. It was a remarkable 
achievement for Dukes and his teammates, who fought racism and 
segregation during their historic championship season.
  Walter Dukes was Seton Hall's seven-foot tall, African-American 
center during that magical 1952-53 season. Like most championship 
teams, the 1952-53 Seton Hall was well-coached with strong players at 
every position. The Pirates won 31 games that season and lost only two 
games. They remain the only New Jersey college basketball team to have 
won a national tournament championship. Dukes was their indisputable 
leader who pulled down a remarkable 734 rebounds that year, an NCAA 
Division 1 record that still stands.
  Yet, many college basketball fans didn't approve of his presence on a 
basketball court dominated by white players. At the time, Life Magazine 
wrote about the experience for Dukes and the Seton Hall Pirates under 
the headline: ROUGH GAME. ROUGHER SEQUEL. In a four-page article, the 
magazine memorialized one of the ugliest, race-related moments in 
college basketball history- an angry mob attacking Dukes and his 
teammates following a loss against the University of Louisville 
Cardinals.
  At the end of the 1952-53 regular season, the Pirates chose the NIT 
instead of the NCAA Tournament in order to avenge their loss to 
Louisville. Unfortunately, they never had that opportunity as 
Louisville was eliminated from the tournament. But, the Seton Hall 
Pirates continued to win and beat St. John's University, 58-46, to win 
the 1953 NIT title. Walter Dukes, Seton Hall's star center, was named 
NIT Most Valuable Player.
  Walter Dukes continued to play basketball professionally for a few 
years with the Harlem Globetrotters and then in the National Basketball 
Association (NBA) with the New York Knicks, Minneapolis (now Los 
Angeles) Lakers, and the Detroit Pistons. After his basketball career, 
Dukes became a civil rights lawyer to protect the rights of African 
Americans. He died in 2001 of natural causes at the age of 70.
  Walter Dukes and his Seton Hall teammates are legends in New Jersey 
and college basketball lore. They are a team that should inspire all of 
us for their courage as they battled racism in their pursuit of a 
championship. Their 1952-53 championship season bears witness to the 
importance of character and faith to success.

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