Men's Basketball Media Guide 06-07.qxp - LaGrange College

three all-American representatives, and numerous
all-NAIA District and all-conference accolades.
Other Panther Greats
Jeff Anderson was the Panthers “Iron Man” in
basketball from 1974 to 1978. He started all 125
games in his career. Anderson scored 1,306
points and pulled
down 902 rebounds
during his career.
He averaged 10.4
points per game
and 7.2 rebounds
per game during his
career. Anderson
was the GIAC
Freshman of the
Year and a member
of the Panthers’
GIAC Tournament Championship team for the
1974-75 season. He is a senior parole officer for
the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles in
LaGrange. Anderson was a participant at the
2004 G-8 summit at Sea Island. He is the
trustee chairman for Warren Temple Methodist
Church, along with being a member of the
Methodist Men and a youth Sunday school
teacher.
Luke Hill was a four-year letterman in basketball
for the Panthers from 1970 to 1974. He
was a member
of the Panthers’
GIAC championship
team of
1973. Hill is the
fourth member
off that team to
be inducted into
the LaGrange
College Athletic
Hall of Fame,
joining Bob
Eble, Floyd Mack and Calvin Williams. As a
junior, he was named to the GIAC second-team
all-conference team after averaging a career-best
11.2 points per game. Hill finished his career
with 1,044 points. He is president of Certified
Plumbing & Sprinkler, Inc. of LaGrange and
member of First Methodist Church.
Mary Wright Horton
Major Thomas Duckett- Duckett was a fouryear
letterman in basketball for the Panthers
from 1964-68. He averaged 10 points per game
and a team-leading nine rebounds per game his
senior year.
Robert Eble- Eble finished his four-year career
as one of LaGrange College’s all-time basketball
scoring and rebounding leaders. He was the
leading scorer on the record-setting 1972-73
team. The team set a school record with 23
wins, won the GIAC
championship and
was the NAIA
District 25 runner-up.
Eble finished his
career with 1,817
points and 1,021
rebounds.
Joe Copeland- Copeland came to LaGrange
College after transferring from Young Harris
Junior College. Copeland served as student
coach for a season and became the school’s first
full-time basketball coach from 1959 to 1962.
He had a record of 31-39, which included the
season he served as student-coach. Copeland
left LaGrange College to work with the FBI.
He retired as a special agent after 22 years.
Copeland worked on the John F. Kennedy
assassination for three years.
Hiram Reeves- Reeves was LaGrange
College’s first basketball coach from 1956 to
1959. He had a three-year record of 38-21,
including a 16-5 mark during the 1958-59 season.
The Hiram Reeves Dedication Award is
given annually to a men’s basketball player.
Dr. Todd Whitsitt- Dr. Whitsitt was a fouryear
letterman in basketball. He played in 95
games, averaging 8.0 points per game and finishing
with 173 career assists. Dr. Whitsitt led
the team in assists for two years. He was the
NAIA National Scholar/Athlete in 1979, also
receiving the Glen Simpson Leadership Award
and the President’s Award.
Ralph T. Johnson- Johnson played basketball
for LaGrange College for two seasons after
transferring from Young Harris College. He
scored more than 50 points in a game, a record
that stood for over 30 years.
Al Mariotti- Mariotti was the school’s basketball
coach from 1962 until 1974. During this 12
year span, Mariotti posted a 186-141 record. He
retired as the school’s all-time career leader in
wins. Mariotti’s 1972-73 team set a school
record for wins with 23, including a record 17-
game winning streak. The 72-73 team also won
the GIAC championship
and was
runner-up in
NAIA District 25.
During his last
three years as
coach, the
Panthers posted
three-straight 20-
win seasons and
lost only four
conference games
during that time. The Al Mariotti Gymnasium is
named in his honor.
Phillip Ray Williamson- Williamson is the
current athletics director at LaGrange College
and has been at the school since 1969. He has
been the head coach for baseball, basketball and
tennis. He was head basketball coach from
1974-81, winning a GIAC title and being named
GIAC Coach of the Year. He began the baseball
program in 1983 and was the head coach
until 1996. Under his leadership as athletics
director, the number of teams fielded by the
college has grown from three to 15, with football
starting in 2006.
An Even Brighter Future
LaGrange’s history of success, and the honors
and accolades that have been awarded to the
players and coaches over the years, are evidences
of a special spirit that imbues LaGrange
College basketball. The current coaches and
players continue to build on this tradition of
excellence in pursuit of an even more glorious
future.