In 1945, the Loyola New Orleans Wolf Pack became the city's first basketball team to earn a national championship. The Cinderella season was chronicled in the "Times Picayune," the student newspaper "The Maroon" and letters from students and alums fighting overseas. The 1944-45 run to the championship was an amazing boon to the community during trying times. The group of boyhood friends and rivals beat out previous national champions and exhausted opponents. Take a courtside seat as journalist Ramon A. Vargas chronicles the season, including heartfelt personal narratives to tell the story of the championship and legacy of a team that led Loyola to national prominence.
Ramon Antonio Vargas is a native of the New Orleans area and staff writer for NOLA.com, The Times-Picayune and former editor and sports writer for The Maroon, Loyola University New Orleans' campus newspaper. His writing has been honored by the Louisiana Press Association, Press Club of New Orleans and Associated Press Media Editors.