33 Tom Heitz

Tom Heitz was born on February 23, 1961, in Hamilton, Indiana to Robert and Mary Ann Heitz.  Heitz was the youngest of three sons and one daughter; he was the middle child on the measuring scale.  Tallest is 7-0 Mike Heitz, who played at West Virginia from 1968-72.  No. 2 son Jim at 6-11 played at Oklahoma from 1966-70.  The family “runts” are 6-4 Phil and Rosie.  Dad and Mom? Robert is 6-4 and Mary Ann is 6 foot.

Heitz grew up in Hamilton, Indiana, and attended Hamilton High School, where he developed his basketball skills. He averaged 27.4 ppg and 17.9 rebounds his senior season, earning first-team All-State honors.  Playing at a small school in the extreme northeast corner of the state, Heitz gained little attention until his senior year when he led the Hamilton High School Marines to one of their finest years ever with a 17-6 record and champions of the North East Corner Conference.  He scored 1,437 over his high school career for a 21.8 average.  He had single-game career highs of 39 points against Ft. Wayne Bishop Luers and 23 rebounds against Edon and West Noble, 10 blocked shots against Eastside. Heitz rewrote virtually every Hamilton scoring and rebound record on the books with 631 points for one season and 1,437 for his career, 412 rebounds for one season and 849 career. He shot 65 percent from the field and 69 percent at the foul line.  He won nine high school letters in basketball, baseball, and track.

Coach Joe B. Hall said his first contact with Heitz came when he was a few years younger when he was trying to recruit his brother, Mike, who played college ball at West Virginia.  Hall added, “We kept in contact and followed Tom’s career and as a result, he came to our summer camp and got to know us better. We are impressed with his fundamentals and his hard work habits. He is a hard-nosed player who is a good rebounder and a good battler.”

He verbally committed to Kentucky on March 16, 1979 (officially signing on April 23, 1979), joining Sam Bowie, Derrick Hord, Charles Hurt, and Dirk Minniefield to form that year’s much-heralded recruiting class.  He chose Kentucky over West Virginia, Ohio State, and Purdue.  He began his college career in the 1979-1980 season.

“I always wanted to play at Kentucky,” Heitz said. “I was the Hoosier anomaly. If I had a choice between starting for four years at Indiana or coming here and being a role player, I’d pick here.”  Heitz became a UK fan as an 8-year-old watching Hall recruit older brother Mike Heitz.  “I despised IU,” Heitz said, adding, “You can quote me.”  Asked why he felt so strongly about Indiana, Heitz said, “I just wasn’t a Bobby Knight fan.”

During his time at Kentucky, Heitz played as a forward. He was a rugged and strong player who always gave 110 percent.  He played for the Wildcats from 1979 to 1984, although he redshirted during the 1980-1981 season.

As a freshman, Heitz played 108 minutes in 24 games.  He averaged 1.3 points and 0.8 rebounds.  Heitz scored five points and grabbed two rebounds in only three minutes of action against California.

Heitz worked hard during the offseason between his freshman and sophomore seasons and gained much strength.  He clean and jerked more than 300 pounds during the preseason conditioning and weightlifting program.

Heitz redshirted during the 1980-1981 season.  “About a month after the season, I got to evaluating the past season,” Heitz said. “I didn’t like the idea of redshirting at first, but more I knew about it, the more I thought it would help.”  So Heitz conferred with Hall and requested shortly after practice began in October 1980 to be redshirted. Hall, despite never having had to redshirt a player at UK (other than transfer Kyle Macy), did not put up a fight. “It was his decision,” Hall said, “and I agreed with it. It will be good.”

Heitz’s sophomore season in 1981-82 was his best season, where he averaged 3.1 points and 3.6 rebounds per game as he played backup to center Melvin Turpin.  He scored a career-high 15 points at Florida on January 20, 1982, and he hit 60 percent from the field and 62.1 from the free throw line.  He played a career-high 21 minutes against Auburn on January 6, 1982.

In May of 1982, tragedy struck the Heitz family. Tom’s older brother Jim, who once played at Oklahoma and had taken Tom by the hand and introduced him to basketball, died tragically in a drowning accident at the age of 34.

As a junior, Heitz played in 20 games averaging 1.2 points and 0.6 rebounds per game.  He was bothered by bruised ribs for part of the season.  He shot 22 free throws, making 16, in only 103 minutes of action.

Heitz earned a business degree in the spring of 1983, rarely played for the Wildcats and could have foregone his last year of eligibility to stick with his lucrative job trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, as he had for the past two summers.

“I had some second thoughts, but when we made the Final Four, I was glad I chose to come back for my fifth year,” Heitz said. “It would have been hard to be in Chicago, no matter how much money I was making, and watching my teammates in Seattle.  I came back for the chance to win the national championship,” he said.  “Money can’t buy that. So few people can get involved in a national champion — you can’t put a price on that.”

He made one start in his career and that was the final home game against LSU on March 3, 1984, in honor of his status as a senior.  The eight minutes he played were a season-high.  Heitz usually didn’t get in a game until it was a blowout and the fans had lost interest. But when he scored, his teammates were as happy as if it had been Bowie hitting an alley-oop from Dicky Beal.

“Tom Heitz is just as important to the team as Melvin and me,” said Sam Bowie, “He provides a lot of leadership.  No one is happier when Tom makes a hoop than me.  He works harder than anyone in practice, and we appreciate that.”

Over his career, Heitz played in 94 games, scoring a total of 177 points.

After graduating from Kentucky, Heitz was drafted by the Indiana Pacers in the 8th round (163rd overall) of the 1984 NBA Draft. Although he did not have a long professional career, he continued to be involved in basketball and contributed to the sport in various capacities.

Heitz was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2004.