20 Tony Cooper

Tony Cooper was born Philip Anthony Cooper on October 17, 1971, in Nashville, Tennessee, to Dr. Philip and Connie Cooper. He grew up in Savannah, Georgia, and attended Windsor Forest High School, where he played basketball under his uncle, Louis Jenkins. Cooper earned All-Region honors as a junior and helped Windsor Forest reach the state quarterfinals in two consecutive seasons. He also earned All-Tournament recognition at the Joe Greene Classic, a Christmas tournament his team won.

Cooper came to Kentucky in 1989 and earned a place on Rick Pitino’s first Wildcat team through student tryouts that October. Listed at 5-foot-9 and 150 pounds, the freshman guard wore No. 20. With Kentucky’s roster depleted by departures and scholarship losses, walk-ons helped supply the depth needed for Pitino’s demanding practices, full-court pressure, and fast-paced offense. Cooper’s opportunity came at an unusual moment in program history, as Kentucky began rebuilding under its new coach.

His first game action came against Mississippi State in Lexington on December 4, 1989. Two nights later, Cooper scored his first Kentucky basket on a layup during a 111–75 victory over Tennessee Tech at Rupp Arena. He averaged 0.5 points per game and shot 75 percent from the field during the 1989–90 season. His reserve role made him a small part of the team remembered as “Pitino’s Bombinos,” the first squad of Kentucky’s new era.

Cooper also figured in a heated moment at Alabama on February 17, 1990. Just 1:42 into the game, Kentucky’s Reggie Hanson and Alabama’s Robert Horry exchanged blows while battling for position. Officials ejected both players, and referee Don Ferguson also ejected Cooper for leaving Kentucky’s bench during the confrontation. Contemporary coverage noted that Cooper was neither the only Wildcat nor the first to leave the bench. Kentucky lost, 83–58.

Away from game action, Cooper found friendship and support among his teammates. In a November 1989 Kentucky Kernel feature, he described his surprise at getting to know players he had never expected to call friends and credited them with helping him through occasional homesickness. For a student who had recently been uncertain where he would attend college, earning a Kentucky uniform brought an unexpected place in the program.

Although Kentucky’s following preseason guide listed Cooper as a sophomore with an undeclared major, his playing career ended after his freshman season. Pitino announced that Cooper and fellow walk-on Michael Parks had been released after being offered the choice of remaining with limited opportunities or concentrating on their academics. Both chose their studies. Explaining that the newcomers would leave little playing time for either player, even in practice, Pitino thanked them for their contributions and wished them well.