| Mode: | Basketball |
| Sex: | none |
| Year: | 1964–65 |
| Prev Year: | 1963–64 |
| Next Year: | 1965–66 |
| Team: | Western Kentucky State Hilltoppers |
| Conference: | Ohio Valley Conference |
| Short Conf: | OVC |
| Record: | 18–9 |
| Conf Record: | 10–4 |
| Bowl: | NIT Tournament |
| Bowl Result: | Quarterfinal |
The 1964–65 Western Kentucky State Hilltoppers men's basketball team represented Western Kentucky State College (now known as Western Kentucky University) during the 1964-65 NCAA University Division Basketball season. The Hilltoppers were led by first year coach John Oldham and Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year Clem Haskins.[1] After two losing seasons, WKSC finished second in the OVC and were invited to the 1965 National Invitation Tournament.[2]
Haskins scored a school record 55 points against Middle Tennessee on January 30. He was joined on the all-conference team by fellow sophomore Dwight Smith; Haskins and Steve Cunningham were selected to the OVC Tournament team.[3]
Haskins and Smith broke the color barrier this season at Western Kentucky, becoming the first African Americans to play Hilltopper basketball.[4] They were recruited two years earlier by the previous, longtime coach Edgar Diddle; NCAA rules at the time prohibited freshman from playing varsity sports, so this was their first year of eligibility.[5]
[6] |-!colspan=6| Regular Season|- |-!colspan=6| 1965 National Invitation Tournament