Between the men’s and women’s games against DuPage on Jan. 22, the 1958-59 LaSalle-Peru-Oglesby Junior College team that qualified for the National Junior College Tournament in Hutchinson, Kansas, was introduced.
Those L-P-O Apaches, led by Jimmy Mini and Bobby Walsh, had a 19-6 record, won the Region IV championship and finished 11th at the NJC championship. Tournament officials at Hutchinson described Mini and Walsh as "the greatest pair of guards ever to perform on a single team in the tournament’s history."
Other members of that history-making team were John Ossola, Bob Mueller, James Neps, George Pohl, Dave Simkins, Irving Batten, and Don Wyzgowski.
The team was coached by John Strell, long-time L-P-O and IVCC athletic director and football coach.
WLPO Sports Director Lanny Slevin, College President Dr. Jean Goodnow, Athletic Director Mike Riley, and VP of Student Services Dr. Robert Marshall presided over 75th Anniversary ceremonies honoring the team.