Guard
Larry Pursiful was born Larry Wayne Pursiful on June 14, 1940, in Four Mile, Kentucky, to Arva and Della Pursiful. Pursiful was a standout player for Kentucky during the early 1960s under coach Adolph Rupp. He earned All-SEC first team honors and was the team’s second-leading scorer with 19.1 points in the 1961-62 season, trailing…
Doug Pendygraft was born Douglas Pendygraft on December 29, 1939, in Parksville, Kentucky to Emanuel and Bertha Pendygraft. The 6-2 native Kentuckian from Parksville, spent his first two collegiate years at Lindsey Wilson Junior College of Columbia, Kentucky. During the 1959-60 campaign, Pendygraft developed into one of the nation’s top JC cagers. He set all…
Eddie Mason was born Edward Young Mason on December 23, 1939, to Edward Young Mason and Catherine J. McClure Mason. Mason starred for Elizabethtown High School in 1958, averaging 28 points per game. Coach Adolph Rupp announced on March 16, 1958, that Mason had applied for a basketball grant-in-aid at Kentucky and would join the…
From the 1961 University of Kentucky Media Guide: Captain of the 1961 Wildcats and one of the most honored athletes in UK history, Dick (Little Man) Parsons is a diminutive (5-9 and 155) playmaker equally dangerous in every phase of the cage game. The smallest regular ever to play for Coach Rupp, he can dash…
Lowell Hughes was born Lowell Thurman Hughes in Prestonsburg, Kentucky on February 26, 1938, to John Thurman Hughes and Gladys Jean Stambaugh Hughes. Lowell Hughes was a distinguished three-sport athlete at the University of Kentucky during the late 1950s, excelling in basketball, football, and baseball. Born in Prestonsburg, Kentucky, Hughes was recognized as a schoolboy…
Al Robinson was born Alford Merritt Robinson on February 17, 1938, in Fayette County, Kentucky, to Roscoe Merritt Robinson and Louise Hurt Robinson. He grew up in Lexington, where he attended Lafayette High School before joining Adolph Rupp’s basketball program at the University of Kentucky. A 6-foot-1, 185-pound guard, Robinson wore No. 12 and was…
Bennie Coffman was born Benjamin Cameron Coffman in Lexington, Kentucky, and grew up in Huntington, West Virginia. At Vinson High School, he played guard and forward, earned second-team all-state honors as a senior and also starred in baseball, batting .387 in his final season. Coffman first enrolled at Kentucky in 1955 but did not play…
Adrian Smith was born on October 5, 1936, in Farmington, Kentucky, where he grew up on his family’s Graves County farm and became known to everyone as “Odie.” A standout at Farmington High School, Smith continued his development at Northeast Mississippi Junior College before Kentucky assistant coach Bonner Arnold recognized his potential and convinced Adolph…
Lincoln Collinsworth was born Abraham Lincoln Collinsworth in Salyersville, Kentucky, on February 12, 1936 (Abraham Lincoln’s birthday) to Judge Green and Kitty Collinsworth. He is better known as the father of NBC football analyst and former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Cris Collinsworth. Collinsworth was known as “Lincoln” in High School, where he played basketball and…
Vernon Hatton was born Walter Vernon Hatton on January 13, 1936, in Owingsville, Kentucky to Dawson Hatton and Rebecca Boswell Ginter Hatton. Hatton was a standout guard for the University of Kentucky Wildcats in the late 1950s, known for his leadership, scoring ability, and clutch performances. He became a key figure in Kentucky basketball history…