Slo time UK trivia

[bthaunert]

Ed Davender? I'm thinking guard due to the assists and steals

Yep....his numbers are crazy good. When he left UK in 1988, he was the following:

7th all time in points
4th all time in assists
1st all time in steals
4th all time in free throws made

[South jones]

South Carolina was in the Southern Conference but declined joining the SEC. They were in the ACC until the start of the 1970s, then went independent, then were in the Metro Conference in the 1980s. They weren’t in the SEC until 1992.

Sewanee was also in the SEC for a while, long ago.

You sir are correct, I stand corrected

[bthaunert]

You sir are correct, I stand corrected

It's amazing looking at the rise and fall of athletics programs based on conference affiliation.

• Washington State and Oregon State in recent years
• Rice back in 1996. The only school that was a part of the Southwest Conference when the Big12 started that never landed in a major conference (Houston, SMU and TCU being the most recent)
• Tulane in 1966 leaving the SEC

[Old School]

Yep....his numbers are crazy good. When he left UK in 1988, he was the following:

7th all time in points
4th all time in assists
1st all time in steals
4th all time in free throws made

Underrated and under appreciated IMO.

He was a third round draft pick but didn’t play in the pros. Do I recall correctly that he may have had a heart issue detected that kept him out of the NBA, or am I thinking of someone else?

[Old School]

It's amazing looking at the rise and fall of athletics programs based on conference affiliation.

• Washington State and Oregon State in recent years
• Rice back in 1996. The only school that was a part of the Southwest Conference when the Big12 started that never landed in a major conference (Houston, SMU and TCU being the most recent)
• Tulane in 1966 leaving the SEC

Also the University of Chicago left the Big Ten. (For that school and its mission, that was probably wise.)

I think what those other schools did to Washington State and Oregon State was pretty bad.

The Metro Conference might’ve been something if they’d tried. Florida State, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, Cincinnati, Tulane, Memphis, Louisville - if they’d beaten the Big East to Miami, Virginia Tech, Pitt, Boston College, Syracuse, West Virginia, and Rutgers, they might’ve hung around like the Big XII did.

[bthaunert]

Underrated and under appreciated IMO.

He was a third round draft pick but didn’t play in the pros. Do I recall correctly that he may have had a heart issue detected that kept him out of the NBA, or am I thinking of someone else?

Good memory. This is from a 1988 article, "Former Kentucky guard Ed Davender failed his physical with the Washington Bullets because of a possible heart problem, a condition undetected in his four years at Kentucky. Bullets General Manager Bob Ferry said an electrocardiogram showed 'an irregularity' in Davender's heartbeat, and Bullets trainer John Lally declined to elaborate. "

Completely agree about underrated and underappreciated. From Tipton's article after his death...The Kentucky Basketball Encyclopedia said Davender was "arguably, the most under-rated, under-appreciated guard in UK history."

He was a great on the ball defender too....one of the best defensive guards in UK history.

Of all the former players that should be considered to have their jersey in the rafters, I always thought Davender and Turpin are the two biggest.

[Old School]

Completely agree about underrated and underappreciated. From Tipton's article after his death...The Kentucky Basketball Encyclopedia said Davender was "arguably, the most under-rated, under-appreciated guard in UK history."

He was a great on the ball defender too....one of the best defensive guards in UK history.

Of all the former players that should be considered to have their jersey in the rafters, I always thought Davender and Turpin are the two biggest.

I’d never seen that. I wouldn’t argue with it.

I had forgotten how well he played defense.

It’s too bad his last team lost that game to Villanova instead of getting a shot at that Oklahoma team for a Final Four slot. Maybe even moreso, his 1985-86 team and that 2 point regional final loss to an LSU team they’d beaten three times that year. LSU then lost to a Louisville team that Kentucky had beaten already that year and won the championship.

It’s more sad that so many players didn’t have heart issues detected, and died as a result - not just in big time basketball, but even people like the retired Pete Maravich.

I agree with you and I wish Turpin could’ve enjoyed that honor before he passed.