32 Lucian Whitaker

Lucian Whitaker was born Lucian Cary Whitaker Jr. on August 29, 1930, in Quantico, Virginia, the son of career Marine officer Lucian Cary Whitaker Sr. and Lucille Wilson Whitaker. Known as “Skippy,” he spent part of his youth in Louisville before the family moved to Sarasota, Florida. At Sarasota High School, Whitaker was a four-sport athlete in basketball, football, baseball and track and emerged as one of Florida’s leading basketball prospects.

Whitaker arrived at Kentucky in 1948 and immediately displayed the speed that became his trademark. He helped the freshman basketball team finish 15-0 in 1948-49, including a team-high 22 points against Cumberland Junior College. Once eligible for varsity play, the 6-foot guard became a natural fit for Adolph Rupp’s fast break. A polished dribbler and deft ballhandler, he was called “the fastest player in the country” by Rupp. Whitaker played 91 varsity games from 1949-50 through 1951-52, scored 512 points, helped Kentucky win three consecutive SEC championships and was a member of the 1951 NCAA championship team.

Some of Whitaker’s finest moments came in tournament play. In the 1949 Sugar Bowl tournament, he tied the DePaul game and sank the winning free throw, then scored five points in overtime against Villanova as Kentucky captured the championship. He scored 16 points against Louisville in the opening round of the 1951 NCAA Tournament and nine against Kansas State in the national championship game. As a senior, he set his Kentucky career high with 18 points against Florida and, after returning from an illness, scored 13 crucial points in the Wildcats’ 44-43 victory over LSU for the 1952 SEC Tournament title. Kentucky finished that season ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press poll.

Whitaker also competed for Kentucky’s track team, serving as the only senior on the 1952 squad and participating in the sprints, relay, broad jump, high jump and javelin. A commerce major and member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, he graduated in 1952 and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. Indianapolis selected him in the 1952 NBA Draft, and he later appeared in three games for the Boston Celtics during the 1954-55 season.