212-Rupp Arena.qxp - University of Kentucky Athletics

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Tradition (1924-50; Won 247, Lost 24) Alumni Gym is actually “the first house that Rupp built.” A house filled with tradition. A house where Kentucky basketball began. Memorial Coliseum is often referred to as “the house that Rupp built.” The Wildcats’ current home, Rupp Arena, was dedicated to the legendary coach in 1976. But the rich Kentucky basketball tradition began 26 years before the ink was even dry on the Memorial Coliseum plans. In 1923, the Athletics Council members argued to the Board of Trustees that the old gym in Barker Hall’s Buell Armory was unsafe for even the small number of people it could accommodate. Large crowds that had to be turned away and the probability that the popular state high school tournament would be moved away were two major factors that convinced the Board members that a new gym was in order. Soon, the 2,800-seat structure was approved and the Alumni Association began efforts to raise the $100,000 needed for the Wildcats new home — a home critics labeled as a “white elephant.” Alumni Gym, which was complete for the 1924-25 season, holds claim to the birth of Wildcat basketball mania. The building served as the home floor for Wildcat squads until 1950. During that time, Kentucky lost only 24 of its 271 games, while laying the groundwork to become the winningest college basketball team in the nation. Alumni Gym When Rupp took the reins of the program in 1930, his squads established a home record of 201 victories against just eight losses in 19 seasons. He led the Cats to 84 consecutive wins in the confines of Alumni including 64 consecutive victories in the Southeastern Conference. During the last 17 seasons in the gym, the Wildcats won 12 conference tournament crowns and three Sugar Bowl championships. Through 26 seasons at the corner of the Avenue of Champions and South Limestone, Kentucky suffered only one losing season, while having 12 campaigns with three or fewer losses. The tradition of winning established by the Kentucky Wildcats created a popularity unmatched nationwide. The situation soon developed to where only a portion of the student body and faculty were admitted to games. Once inside, fights would break out over the small number of seats. And for many years, about all that Kentuckians-at-large knew of their state University’s famed cage teams consisted of information gleaned from radio broadcasts and newspaper reports. Kentucky basketball became a dynasty in 1948 after winning the SEC and NCAA championships and the coveted Olympic gold in London, England. Led by All-Americans Alex Groza, Ralph Beard and Wallace “Wah Wah” Jones, with Rupp coaching from the sidelines, the United States squad soundly defeated France 65-21 in the gold medal game to become the 1948 World Champions. Kentucky closed out its tenure at Alumni Gym with 84 consecutive victories. The gym still stands at the corner of South Limestone and Avenue of Champions. In 1950, Kentucky’s reign in Alumni Gym came to an end following the completion of the new Memorial Coliseum. Year-by-Year at Alumni Gym Year Won Lost Pct. 1924-25 8 2 80.0 1925-26 9 1 90.0 1926-27 2 8 25.0 1927-28 6 2 75.0 1928-29 7 2 77.8 1929-30 12 1 92.3 1930-31 9 0 100.0 1931-32 10 1 90.9 1932-33 10 1 90.9 1933-34 10 0 100.0 1934-35 13 0 100.0 1935-36 11 1 91.7 1936-37 9 1 90.0 1937-38 9 0 100.0 1938-39 9 1 90.0 1939-40 8 1 88.9 1940-41 9 1 90.0 1941-42 10 0 100.0 1942-43 8 1 88.9 1943-44 8 0 100.0 1944-45 10 0 100.0 1945-46 12 0 100.0 1946-47 17 0 100.0 1947-48 11 0 100.0 1948-49 10 0 100.0 1949-50 10 0 100.0 Totals 247 24 91.1 2004-05 Kentucky Basketball • 217
Tradition (1950-76; Won 306, Lost 38) For 26 years, the pulsating cries of “Rip ‘em Up, Tear ‘em Up, Give ‘em Hell Wildcats” rang through one of the grandest and most historic of all basketball palaces — Kentucky’s Memorial Coliseum. In 1941, when Dr. H.L. Donovan became president of the University, one of his first recommendations was for a building “that will properly take care of our athletics, our health service, physical education and recreation.” From this beginning came the plan that culminated in the construction of 11,500-seat Memorial Coliseum, a then-unparalleled edifice costing $3,925,000 by the time it was completed in 1950. A great many people suggested that the gymnasium would be a “white elephant” that would never be filled by spectators of a sport considered by many Memorial Coliseum Year-by-Year at Memorial Coliseum Year Won Lost Pct. 1950-51 14 0 100.0 1951-52 12 0 100.0 1952-53# - - - 1953-54 14 0 100.0 1954-55 13 1 92.9 1955-56 11 2 90.9 1956-57* 14 2 87.5 1957-58* 14 1 93.3 1958-59 14 0 100.0 1959-60 10 3 76.9 1960-61 12 2 85.7 1961-62 14 2 87.5 1962-63 10 5 66.7 1963-64 13 1 92.9 1964-65 12 2 85.7 1965-66 13 0 100.0 1966-67 8 7 53.3 1967-68* 14 1 93.3 1968-69 12 1 92.3 1969-70 15 0 100.0 1970-71 12 1 92.3 1971-72 12 1 92.3 1972-73 11 2 84.6 1973-74 9 3 75.0 1974-75 12 0 100.0 1975-76 11 1 91.7 Totals 306 38 89.0 #UK was suspended from play by the NCAA *Record includes two NCAA Tournament games Memorial Coliseum was built in 1950 and stands as a tribute to those Kentuckians who lost their lives in WWII and the Korean War. as little more than a winter pastime. But the hardwood game blitzed the nation and Kentucky’s teams forged to the national forefront in such a crowd-pleasing manner that the “huge” hall was the site of a sellout each time Rupp’s teams took to the floor. The Wildcats got off to a fine start in the Coliseum, winning every game played in the building for the first three seasons. When Georgia Tech upset Kentucky 59-58 on Jan. 8, 1955, it marked the first time the Wildcats had lost on their home court since the days of Alumni Gym, dating back more than 12 years to Jan. 2, 1943. The loss ended a streak of 129 consecutive wins at home for Kentucky, an NCAA record that still stands today. Veteran UK announcer Cawood Ledford remembered the Yellow Jackets’ win at the Coliseum, the first time many Wildcat fans had ever witnessed a UK loss. “When the game was over, nobody moved,” the late Ledford once said. “Everyone sat in absolute stunned silence. I would say it was a good five minutes before anyone made a move to get up. But Kentucky sure didn’t lose very many times there.” Indeed the Cats did not. In 26 years, Kentucky came away a loser only 38 times in 344 games. From the early 1960s on, the sale of UK basketball season tickets was closed to the public with season ticket holders taking all the allotment other than student seating. While Rupp Arena affords UK one of the largest, built-for-basketball facilities in the country with 23,000 seats, old-timers will tell you that the new building doesn’t match the atmosphere of Memorial Coliseum. The character of great tradition permeates the air with near spiritual force, even today, as the building serves as the Wildcats’ primary practice facility and home court for UK’s women’s basketball games. The huge building, which serves as a memorial to the nearly 10,000 Kentuckians who lost their lives in World War II and the Korean War, covers an entire city block and contains as much space as a seven-story office building. Situated along the Avenue of Champions, the Coliseum still houses the UK Athletics Association offices and is the home to many Wildcat athletics teams. During the 1989-90 school year, the Athletics Association completed a $1 million renovation of Memorial Coliseum that included a spacious new weight room, locker room and offices for the UK basketball coaches, as well as administrative office space. The Coliseum currently seats 8,700 spectators. 218• 2004-05 Kentucky Basketball
Page 1 and 2: Tradition Capacity: 23,000 (1976-Pr
Page 3 and 4: Tradition Year-by-Year at Rupp Aren
Page 5: Tradition Rupp Arena Game Attendanc
Page 9 and 10: Tradition Kentucky Results In Louis
Page 11 and 12: Tradition A wild celebration erupte
Page 13: Tradition The Kentucky defense held

212-Rupp Arena.qxp - University of Kentucky Athletics

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