1940–41 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 Basketball 1940–41 Illinois Fighting Illini 1940–41_Illinois_Fighting_Illini_men's_basketball_team.jpg 300px Big Ten Conference Big Ten 13–7 7-5 Douglas Mills Howie Braun Wally Roettger 5th 4th 6th John Drish Bob Richmond Huff Hall The 1940–41 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois. Regular season A new decade had begun for the Fighting Illini, a decade which brought much success to Illinois basketball. Head Coach Doug Mills led the Illini to consecutive Big Ten titles in 1942 and 1943. The Illini would add another league championship under Harry Combes in 1949. The Illini were the 13th-winningest Division I team in the nation in the 1940s. Illinois’ 150–57 record and .725 winning percentage was the best in the Big Ten. In 1941, Mills added to his coaching duties when he was named the school's athletic director as well as continuing on as the head coach. Mills entered his fifth season with the Illini and, just as his teams had done the previous 4 seasons, had a nearly perfect record on the home court finishing with an 8–2 record. Unfortunately for the Illini they finished with a 5–5 record on the road to finish in a third place tie overall in conference action. Mills' team featured 8 returning letterman and had a starting lineup including team captain John Drish and Harold Shapiro at forward, Art Mathisen at the center position, and Victor Wukovits and Robert Richmond as guards. The team also featured future major league baseball player Walter EversFighting Illini Basketball: A Hardwood History By News-Gazette, Sports Publishing LLC 1-58261-356-7 Roster 1940 Illinois Fighting Illini y Henry Sachs 4 G JR Chicago, Illinois n Walter Evers 5 F JR Collinsville, Illinois y Robert O'Neill 6 C SR Pitman, New Jersey n Robert Richmond 12 G SR Johnston City, Illinois n Victor Wukovits 13 C JR Mishawaka, Indiana n Raymond Bergeson 14 G SO Bridgeton, New Jersey n Ralph Hooker 15 F SO Sidell, Illinois n William Hocking 16 G JR Evanston, Illinois n Richard Albaugh 17 F SO Darien, Illinois n R. Keith Brown 18 G FR Pekin, Illinois n Arthur Mathisen 19 C SO Dwight, Illinois y Art Mathisen Harold Shapiro 20 G SR Chicago, Illinois n John Drish 21 F SR Evanston, Illinois y C Dick Driggs 22 G SO Granger, Indiana n Alton Shirley 23 F FR Edmond, Oklahoma n Kenneth Brown 26 G SO Catlin, Illinois n J. Wayne Staley 27 G SO Springfield, Illinois n Douglas Mills (University of Illinois) (5th year) Wally Roettger (University of Illinois) (6th year) Howie Braun (University of Illinois) (4th year) https://fightingillini.com/sports/2015/7/18/mbb_alltimerosters_1925_1949.aspx?#1941 Schedule yes |- !colspan=12 style="background:#DF4E38; color:white;"| Non-Conference regular season 12/6/1940 yes 1940 Georgia Bulldogs Georgia Huff Hall Champaign, IL 38–34 4,822 1–0 |- align="center" bgcolor="" 12/20/1940 yes Pittsburgh Huff Hall Champaign, IL 41–43 4,926 1–1 12/23/1940 yes yes 1940 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Notre Dame Notre Dame Fieldhouse Notre Dame, IN 41–39 2,000 2–1 12/26/1940 yes yes 1940 Manhattan Jaspers Manhattan Madison Square Garden New York, NY 56–40 12,237 3–1 12/28/1940 yes yes 1940 Temple Owls Temple Municipal Auditorium Philadelphia, PA 41–42 7,247 3–2 12/31/1940 yes yes 1940 Marquette Golden Eagles Marquette Marquette Gymnasium Milwaukee, WI 40–32 5,800 4–2 1/2/1941 yes 1940 Kansas State Wildcats Kansas State Huff Hall Champaign, IL 45-29 5,829 5–2 |- !colspan=9 style="background:#DF4E38; color:#FFFFFF;"|Big Ten regular season 1/6/1941 1940 Purdue Boilermakers Purdue Huff Hall Champaign, IL 49–34 7,183 6–2 1–0 1/11/1941 Indiana Huff Hall Champaign, IL Rivalry 38–48 6,946 6–3 1–1 1/13/1941 Michigan Huff Hall Champaign, IL 47–41 5,619 7–3 2–1 1/18/1941 yes 1940 Northwestern Wildcats Northwestern Patten Gymnasium Evanston, IL Rivalry 42–41 2,400 8–3 3–1 1/29/1941 yes 1940 Mexico men's national basketball team Mexico Huff Hall Champaign, IL 53–30 3,910 9-3 2/3/1941 yes Purdue Lambert Fieldhouse West Lafayette, IN 29–46 8,500 9–4 3–2 2/8/1941 1940 Minnesota Golden Gophers Minnesota Huff Hall Champaign, IL 38–50 10,500 9–5 3–3 2/10/1941 yes 1940 Chicago Maroons University of Chicago Henry Crown Field House Chicago, IL 55–29 3,500 10–5 4–3 2/15/1941 yes Wisconsin Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 30-46 13,300 10–6 4–4 2/17/1941 1940 Iowa Hawkeyes Iowa Huff Hall Champaign, IL Rivalry 56–53 4,500 11–6 5–4 2/22/1941 yes Michigan Yost Fieldhouse Ann Arbor, MI 31–47 6,250 11–7 5–5 2/24/1941 1940 Ohio State Buckeyes Ohio State Huff Hall Champaign, IL 53–36 4,480 12–7 6–5 3/1/1941 University of Chicago Huff Hall Champaign, IL 52–33 4,518 13–7 7–5 Central Time SourceUniversity of Illinois Fighting Illini Statistics Summary for 1939–40 pg.79, FightingIllini.com Player stats Player Games played Field goals Free throws PointsArthur Mathisen206548178Robert Richmond 204747141Walter Evers 114927125John Drish 20391694Victor Wukovits 20253080Harold Shapiro 1832973David Dillon 918541Henry Sachs 1016537Alton Shirley 1611628William Hocking1710727Robert O'Neill145515Stanley Wayne 77014Dick Driggs 83612Keith Brown 7124Ralph Hooker 3102Richard Albaugh 9102Kenneth Brown 4022 http://www.fightingillini.com/sports/m-baskbl/records/year-1940.html Season Stats 2014-04-17 https://web.archive.org/web/20140419044158/http://www.fightingillini.com/sports/m-baskbl/records/year-1940.html 2014-04-19 dead Awards and honors Bob Richmond Team Most Valuable Player http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ill/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/05_mbb_guide_06.pdf List of MVPs 2013-01-15 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 References Illinois Fighting Illini Category:Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball seasons Category:1940 in sports in Illinois Category:1941 in sports in Illinois