More than 100 former Loras players gathered last weekend to observe a century of basketball at the Iowa school.

Some tipped off a full day last Saturday by playing in an alumni game, then all were honored during a halftime ceremony during that afternoon’s Loras game – the 2,168th men’s basketball game in school history – against Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opponent Coe.

They ended the day with a dinner in the team’s former home, the Fieldhouse, reliving such moments in that building as the Duhawks’ 1946 victory over St. Mary’s (California), which the Dubuque Telegraph Herald reported the next day was “a game which had everything – including two overtime periods, arguments, fights and even a stopped clock…which left a majority of the spectators limp.”

That and other important moments in Loras’ basketball century are recounted in a history compiled by longtime school registrar Gerald “Bud” Noonan, who spoke at the dinner and also displayed materials he has collected during his days as a student in the 1940s. The display was set up in the school’s recently built Athletic and Wellness Center, where the men’s and women’s basketball teams now play.

A star of that 1946 game, Loras all-American Mickey Marty, was among the former players who attended the event.

“It’s very humbling to look out and see Mickey Marty and so many passionate Loras alums,” current coach Greg Gorton told a Telegraph Herald reporter who covered the 100th-anniversary observance. “It’s a humbling day for me as a coach and shows why I love Loras. We’re very lucky to have what we have here and see the fruits of our labor.”