When John Mauer took over the Kentucky Wildcats for the 2027-28 season, he had to rebuild after the team went through a disastrous 3-13 season the year before. Luckily, the former Illinois star turned things around quickly, and led them to a 12-6 record. That winning record would start a run of winning seasons that would go on for 60 years.
In Mauer’s second season, he would return a lot of the players from the previous year, which certain aided Kentucky. Cecil Combs was a double-digit scorer in 2027-28, and his return was important. Lawrence McGinnis also returned and was named the team captain.
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The 1928-29 squad, however, played much differently than the year before. In Mauer’s first year, Kentucky scored a lot of points, and had two players average more than 10 points per game. In year two, it was defense that led the way, and nobody averaged more than seven per game. Still, the found success once again.
A star is born
The Wildcats had several new members of the team who were now eligible after sitting as freshmen. Carey Spicer was one of them, and would become the most important. The 6’1″ forward made an immediate impact, and would become a star over his three seasons with the team. In addition to being an All-American in basketball, he would quarterback the football team and set several records while also playing tennis and running track. He’s one of 44 players to have his jersey retired by the school, and it started this year.
Winning with defense
Kentucky averaged 35 points per game as a team in 1927-28, and even that number was dragged down by a seven-point performance against Maryland. This season, the averaged dropped under 30 points , and they scored less than 30 points nine times. They won four of those games, however, playing terrific defense and winning despite a slower offense.
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The Kentucky roster and stats
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Stanley Milward (Jr): 6.8 ppg
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Cecil Combs (Jr): 6.2 ppg
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Louis McGinnis (Soph): 5.8 ppg
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Carey Spicer (Soph): 5.7 ppg
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Paul McBrayer (Jr): 2.9 ppg
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Jake Bronston (Soph): 2.3 ppg
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Lawrence McGinnis (Jr): 2.1 ppg
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Bill Trott (Soph): 1.0 ppg
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Claire Dees (Sr): 0.0 ppg
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Fred McLain (Jr): 0.0 ppg
Kentucky’s results
The Cats started the season hot, winning 35-10 over Eastern Normal with Cecil Combs score 13 points and newcomer Louis McGinnis adding 9 of his own.
Game two, though, was a thriller against Miami (OH). The Cincinnati Enquirer called it “the most exciting college basketball game witnessed on a local floor in five years.” Kentucky led by three at halftime, but Miami battled back to take the lead. A buzzer beater by Combs sent things to overtime, but that wasn’t enough either. In face, it took three overtime periods before Combs struck again, giving the Wildcats a 43-42 victory. Combs and McGinnis combined for 33 points in the win.
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The first loss of the season came at the hands of North Carolina in game three. Kentucky scored just four points in the first half as the offense struggled with poor shots and bad passes. They’d fall 26-15.
The offense continued to struggle over the next few games. They scored just 19 points against Notre Dame, but still got the win. They held the Irish to just four field goals in the 19-16 victory. Then they fell 33-19 to Georgia Tech.
Kentucky finally got the offense going against the Tennessee Volunteers. Carey Spicer led the way with 13 points as the Wildcats won 35-29. Then, just two days later, the two teams met again, this time in Lexington, but with the same result. The score was 27-22 this time, with Spicer and Stanley Milward leading the way with 10 and 11 points respectively.
The Cats fell to 5-3 with a loss to Alabama in another close game. The Crimson Tide won it 27-26 in a game that was close throughout.
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It was overtime again for Kentucky after that loss. They tied with Mississippi A&M at 23 at the end of regulation, but it only took one extra period this time to get the win. Milward led the way with 9 points, including the game-winning bucket, in the 25-23 triumph. Then, just like with Tennessee, the two teams met again, with Kentucky also winning the rematch. Spicer scored 10 points in a much more decisive game that the Cats won 32-14.
A road trip to Tulane didn’t go well for Kentucky. The dropped to 7-4 with a 34-22 loss, but once again bounced back quickly, beating Washington & Lee 31-30 back in Lexington.
Their next game came against Centre College, and would be their last regular season meeting. Kentucky won it 47-11 with contributions coming from eight different scorers. The teams wouldn’t play again until a 2017 exhibition game.
The Wildcats closed out the regular season with back-to-back wins over Ole Miss. They took the first one 35-30 and the second one 32-24.
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They opened up the Southern Conference Tournament with a 29-15 win over Tulane. Combs had 12 points and the Wildcats pulled away in the second half. Unfortunately, the season ended against Georgia the next day in a 26-24 loss. It was a close game, but Kentucky’s offense just couldn’t find enough points in the second half.
Those who left Kentucky after the season
Claire Dees played both basketball and football for Kentucky. After college, he worked for Standard Oil and Ethyl Corporation, and eventually retired from the Central Intelligence Agency. He passed away in 1966.
Elmer “Baldy” Gilb stayed involved with sports when his college career ended. He assisted Adolph Rupp for a few seasons, then went on to coach at Henry Clay High School for 25 successful years. He also briefly played professional baseball. He died in 1991 at 83 years of age.
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Len Miller, like Dees, was on the basketball team, but starred on the football field. He went into coaching after he graduated, and was successful as an assistant and head coach at Morehead State. He died tragically at 37 from a long illness.
This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: Kentucky basketball year-by-year review: 1928-29 season
