1954–55 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team explained

Mode:Basketball
Year:1954–55
Team:Illinois Fighting Illini
Conference:Big Ten Conference
Short Conf:Big Ten
Coachrank:16
Aprank:18
Record:17–5
Conf Record:10-4
Hc Year:8th
Ac1 Year:18th
Captain:Morris Sterneck

The 1954–55 Illinois Fighting Illini men’s basketball team represented the University of Illinois.

Regular season

Head coach Harry Combes, in his eighth year at Illinois, directed a youthful team with only three returning seniors, none of which were regular players. Combes' team, once again, was primarily made of sophomores and juniors recruited from the state of Illinois.

The 1954-55 team had some talented juniors including the return of twin brothers, Paul and Phil Judson from Hebron, Illinois, Bruce Brothers and Bill Ridley. It also added sophomores George Bon Salle, Bill Altenberger, Hiles Stout, and future Illini head coach, Harv Schmidt. Exactly like the previous season, the Illini finished with a conference record of 10 wins and 4 losses, finishing in a 2nd place tie in the Big Ten. The Illini lost 5 total games with three of the five losses coming at the hands of ranked opponents. The starting lineup included George Bon Salle at the center position, Bill Ridley and Bill Altenberger at guard and Bruce Brothers and Paul Judson at the forward slots.[1]

Roster

Schedule

Source[2] [3] |-!colspan=12 style="background:#DF4E38; color:white;"| Non-Conference regular season

|-!colspan=9 style="background:#DF4E38; color:#FFFFFF;"|Big Ten regular season

|-

Player stats

PlayerGames PlayedField GoalsFree ThrowsPoints
Paul Judson2213985363
Bill Ridley 2212388334
George BonSalle 209867263
Bruce Brothers229355241
Bill Altenberger 229125207
Hiles Stout 164044124
Harv Schmidt 213628100
Phil Judson22352292
Jim Dutcher 13202060
Morris Sterneck 12419
Elmer Plew 12339
James Burks 7226
Dick Rapp 2000
William Bosnak 2000
[4]

Awards and honors

Team players drafted into the NBA

[6]

Rankings

See main article: 1954–55 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings.

Notes and References

  1. Fighting Illini Basketball: A Hardwood History By News-Gazette, Sports Publishing LLC
  2. https://fightingillini.com/sports/mens-basketball/schedule/1954-55 University of Illinois Fighting Illini Statistics Summary for 1954-55
  3. https://fightingillini.com/sports/mens-basketball/schedule/1954-55 Schedule
  4. Web site: Season Stats . 2014-03-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140319192705/http://www.fightingillini.com/sports/m-baskbl/records/year-1954.html . 2014-03-19 . dead .
  5. Web site: List of MVPs . 2013-01-18 . 2014-10-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141030004049/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ill/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/05_mbb_guide_06.pdf . dead .
  6. http://www.databasebasketball.com/draft/draftyear.htm?yr=1955&lg=N 1955 NBA Draft