1938–39 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team
The 1938–39 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois.
Regular season
The 1938-39 season was year number three for head coach Doug Mills. Overall the team regrouped from a miserable eighth place finish in the Big Ten a year earlier by winning 9 of their 10 home games only losing to conference rival Indiana. Unfortunately for the Fighting Illini they finished with a 5-5 record on the road to finish in third place overall in conference action. Mills' Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team featured only 5 returning letterman. Along with team captain Tom Nisbit, the Illini also featured a starting lineup of Lewis Dehner at the center position, John Drish, Joe Frank and William Hapac at forward and George Wardley, and Colin Handlon at guard.[1]
Team
No. |
Player |
Position |
Class |
Hometown |
3 |
Colin Handlon |
Guard |
Junior |
Connersville, Indiana |
4 |
Henry Sachs |
Guard |
Freshman |
Chicago, Illinois |
6 |
Robert O'Neill |
Center |
Sophomore |
Pitman, New Jersey |
8 |
Lewis Dehner |
Center |
Senior |
Lincoln, Illinois |
9 |
Edsel Hart |
Forward |
Sophomore |
|
10 |
James Phillips |
Guard |
Sophomore |
Oak Park, Illinois |
11 |
Darold Staley |
Guard |
Sophomore |
|
12 |
Robert Richmond |
Guard |
Sophomore |
|
15 |
George Wardley |
Guard |
Senior |
Gary, Indiana |
17 |
Joe Frank |
Forward |
Junior |
Urbana, Illinois |
18 |
Tom Nisbet (captain) |
Guard |
Senior |
Chicago, Illinois |
19 |
William Hapac |
Forward |
Junior |
Cicero, Illinois |
20 |
Harold Shapiro |
Guard |
Sophomore |
Chicago, Illinois |
21 |
John Drish |
Forward |
Sophomore |
Evanston, Illinois |
26 |
Ivan Johnson |
Forward |
Sophomore |
|
27 |
Howard Cronk |
Forward |
Sophomore |
Anderson, Indiana |
28 |
Norman Cusick |
Forward |
Sophomore |
|
- Head Coach: Douglas Mills (3rd year at Illinois)
[2]
Schedule
Date | Opponent | Score | Result | Location | Attendance |
December 10, 1938 | Washington (St. Louis) | 49–31 | Win | Champaign, IL | 5,000 |
December 17, 1938 | North Dakota | 61–33 | Win | Champaign, IL | 4,000 |
December 21, 1938 | Connecticut State | 49–33 | Win | Champaign, IL | 4,763 |
December 27, 1938 | Manhattan | 60–41 | Win | New York, NY | 17,000 |
December 29, 1938 | Villanova | 28–22 | Win | Philadelphia, PA | 9,000 |
January 3, 1939 | Cornell | 35-34 | Win | Champaign, IL | 8,500 |
January 7, 1939 | Michigan | 30–20 | Win | Champaign, IL | 6,553 |
January 9, 1939 | Indiana | 28–29 | Loss | Champaign, IL | 6,706 |
January 14, 1939 | University of Chicago | 43–33 | Win | Chicago, IL | 3,500 |
January 16, 1939 | Ohio State | 45–31 | Win | Champaign, IL | 6,846 |
January 21, 1939 | Wisconsin | 37-34 | Win | Madison, WI | 11,200 |
January 23, 1939 | Minnesota | 33–35 | Loss | Minneapolis, MN | 16,500 |
February 3, 1939 | Notre Dame | 24–38 | Loss | Notre Dame, IN | 5,500 |
February 6, 1939 | Iowa | 34–26 | Win | Champaign, IL | 6,000 |
February 11, 1939 | Purdue | 30–34 | Loss | West Lafayette, IN | 5,000 |
February 13, 1939 | Michigan | 35–28 | Win | Ann Arbor, MI | 4,000 |
February 20, 1939 | Purdue | 35–28 | Win | Champaign, IL | 6,900 |
February 25, 1939 | Northwestern | 34–36 | Loss | Evanston, IL | 5,000 |
February 27, 1939 | University of Chicago | 49–26 | Win | Champaign, IL | 6,500 |
Bold Italic connotes conference game
Awards and honors
References
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| Helms and NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics |
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