2012-13 Memphis Basketball
Memphis takes on UCLA in the championship game of the 1973 NCAA Tournament.
into a new major basketball conference, which will begin operation immediately. The official name of the new conference is the Metropolitan Collegiate Athletic Conference, and can be referred to as the MCAC or the Metro 6.” The Tigers joined with Cincinnati, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Saint Louis and Tulane. u A tragic event hit the Tiger basketball program in the winter of 1976 when, after only three games, star player John Gunn was taken ill with a rare disease, Stevens-Johnson syndrome, and was admitted to the hospital on Dec. 11. Only 90 minutes before the tipoff of the Memphis-Ole Miss game on Dec. 21, at about 6:35 p.m., Gunn died from complications of the disease which attacks the body’s mucous membrane. “John Gunn was a great, strong competitor, full of life and energy,” athletic director Billy J. Murphy said. “It is very difficult to even imagine that he
1980-89
u In the 1980s, Memphis had such stars as Keith Lee, Elliot Perry, Andre Turner, Bobby Parks, Phillip “Doom” Haynes, Derrick Phillips, Baskerville Holmes, William Bedford, Willie Becton, VincentAskew, Dwight Boyd, Sylvester Gray and Marvin Alexander. The Tigers made eight postseason tournaments (7 NCAAs, one NIT) and registered a record of 230-87 (.726) during the decade. u The 1980s saw the great one-on-one battles of Keith Lee vs Hakeem Olajuwon, Keith Lee vs Patrick Ewing and Keith Lee vs Wayman Tisdale, not to mention the classic MemphisLouisville confrontations. u In 1981, Memphis signed a 6-11 basketball phenom from West Memphis, Ark., who would rewrite the Tiger basketball record book. Keith Lee, who had led West Memphis High School to two undefeated seasons, made an immediate impact on Memphis basketball. During his four-
HISTORY
1997, rewrote the Memphis record book in 1973 claiming nine of 13 individual records. During his career, the 6-2 guard earned All-Missouri Valley Conference Team honors three times, MVC Player of the Year award in 1972 and All-American accolades (seven teams). Finch’s sportsmanship on the court and his community involvement off combined to make him one of the best-loved players ever to wear the Blue and Gray. Finch’s number 21 is one of eight retired jerseys hanging in the rafters of FedExForum. u In 1973, the Memphis established the M Club Athletic Hall of Fame. Each year an annual induction ceremony is held during the fall and eight new members are installed. Since its inception, 39 former Tiger basketball players have been inducted into the M Club Hall of Fame. A complete list of basketball hall of famers is included in this section of the Memphis media guide. u In 1974, Gene Bartow left Memphis and former Tiger All-American Wayne Yates was hired to guide the basketball team. Yates had served as an assistant coach under Bartow. In his five years at the helm, Yates led the Tigers to three-straight 20-win seasons, one NCAA and two NITs. During his tenure, the Tiger roster read like a Who's Who of college basketball with the likes of Bill Cook, Dexter Reed, John Gunn, Marion Hillard, Clarence Jones, John Washington,Alvin Wright, James Bradley, Dennis Isbell, Hank McDowell and Otis Jackson all contributing to the Tigers’ success. u On June 13, 1975, Memphis announced that it was joining with five other major universities in the formation of a new athletic conference. The following is a statement that was released by athletic director Billy J. Murphy: “We are very pleased to announce that our president, Dr. Billy M. Jones, has approved Memphis’entrance
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is gone. Our community and our University will miss him greatly. He fought with all his might to overcome this disease because that’s the type person he was. Now it is up to all of us to carry on. That’s the way John would have wanted it.” The remainder of the 1976-77 season was dedicated to Gunn, and the players wore black bands on their uniforms as a sign of mourning. u In 1979, Wayne Yates left Memphis and Dana Kirk was hired to direct the Tiger basketball program. Kirk had led Virginia Commonwealth to a 24-5 record during the 1978-79 season, and prior to three seasons at VCU, was an assistant coach for five years at Louisville. He hired two young assistants in Larry Finch, former Tiger head coach, and Lee Fowler, current athletic director at North Carolina State, to help structure the program.
Gene Bartow’s 1972 Memphis team was the first Tiger club in five years to advance to postseason play, accepting a bid to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).
University of Memphis
2012 • 13
Tigers Hoops Fact Book