1958–59 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 Basketball 1958–59 Illinois Fighting Illini 1958–59_Illinois_Fighting_Illini_men's_basketball_team.jpg 300px Big Ten Conference Big Ten 12–10 7-7 Harry Combes Howie Braun Jim Wright 12th 22nd 1st Roger Taylor Roger Taylor Huff Hall The 1958–59 Illinois Fighting Illini men’s basketball team represented the University of Illinois. Regular season University of Illinois' head coach, Harry Combes and his Fighting Illini basketball team once again led the Big Ten in wins for a decade with a 165-64 record in the 1950s. The Illini’s winning percentage, .721, ranked 11th nationally. Additionally, the Associated Press began its basketball poll in 1949 with United Press International adding its poll in 1951 and from 1951-56 the Illini finished the season ranked in the Top 20 nationally every year. Illinois’ highest final ranking in the 1950s was second in both polls in 1952. The 1958-59 team utilized several returning lettermen including the leading scorer, team "captain" and team "MVP" Roger Taylor. It also saw the return of Mannie Jackson, Govoner Vaughn, Bruce Bunkenberg, Al Gosnell, Lou Landt and Ed Perry. The Illini finished the season with a conference record of 7 wins and 7 losses, finishing tied for 5th place in the Big Ten. They would finish with an overall record of 12 wins and 10 losses. During the season, the Illini would play Kentucky, the No. 1 ranked team in the nation, at a Freedom Hall in Louisville. The outcome of this game would be a 75-76 loss. The starting lineup included John Wessels at the center position, Roger Taylor and Mannie Jackson at guard and Govoner Vaughn, Ed Perry and Al Gosnell at the forward slots.Fighting Illini Basketball: A Hardwood History By News-Gazette, Sports Publishing LLC 1-58261-356-7 Roster 1958 Illinois Fighting Illini y yes John Wessels 10 C 6 7 210 SO Rockford, Illinois Rockford West High School y John Wessels (basketball) Roger Taylor 11 G 6 0 170 SR Park Forest, Illinois Rich High School n C Lee Frandsen 12 G 6 3 155 JR Davenport, Iowa Davenport Central High School n Jim Dorris 14 G 6 1 185 JR Centralia, Illinois Centralia High School n Bob Schmidt 15 F 6 5 180 JR Kankakee, Illinois Kankakee High School n Bruce Bunkenburg 20 F 6 4 190 JR Chicago, Illinois Roosevelt High School n Ed Perry 22 F 6 5 195 JR Salem, Illinois Salem High School n Ken Charlcraft 24 F 6 3 192 SO Maroa, Illinois Maroa-Forsyth High School n John Homeier 25 C 6 3 185 JR Springfield, Illinois Feitshans High School n Mannie Jackson 30 G 6 3 175 JR Edwardsville, Illinois Edwardsville High School y Lou Landt 32 G 6 3 180 JR Berwyn, Illinois Roosevelt High School n Al Gosnell 33 F 6 3 190 JR Lawrenceville, Illinois Lawrenceville High School n Roger DeVries 34 F 6 3 175 SO Forreston, Illinois Forreston High School n Govoner Vaughn 35 F 6 3 185 JR Edwardsville, Illinois Edwardsville High School y Tom Adams 40 F 6 5 185 JR Washington, Illinois Washington Community High School n John Easterbrook 41 G 5 8 150 SO Champaign, Illinois Champaign Central High School n Phil Flanigan 42 G 5 8 140 SR Tuscola, Illinois Tuscola High School n Bill Larson 44 G 6 1 170 SR Rochelle, Illinois Rochelle Township High School n Bill Mohlenbrock 51 G 6 3 178 SO Murphysboro, Illinois Murphysboro High School n Vern Altemeyer 52 C 6 8 210 SO Scottsburg, Indiana Scottsburg Senior High School n Harry Combes (University of Illinois) (12th year) Howie Braun (University of Illinois) (22nd year) Jim Wright (University of Illinois) (1st year) https://fightingillini.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/1958-59 Schedule SourceUniversity of Illinois Fighting Illini Statistics Summary for 1958-59, FightingIllini.com yes yesSchedule |- !colspan=12 style="background:#DF4E38; color:white;"| Non-Conference regular season 12/1/1958 yes 1958 Butler Bulldogs Butler Huff Hall Champaign, IL 103–79 6,057 1-0 12/6/1958 yes yes 1958 Marquette Golden Eagles Marquette Marquette Gymnasium Milwaukee, WI 53–69 9,280 1-1 12/13/1958 yes 1958 Pacific Tigers College of Pacific Huff Hall Champaign, IL 85–67 6,257 2-1 12/15/1958 yes Iowa State Huff Hall Champaign, IL 68–46 6,328 3-1 12/20/1958 yes 1958 NYU Violets New York University Huff Hall Champaign, IL 83–78 3,401 4-1 12/23/1958 yes 1958 Stanford Cardinal Stanford Huff Hall Champaign, IL 71–62 3,203 5-1 12/30/1958 yes yes 1958 Kentucky Wildcats Kentucky 1 Freedom Hall Louisville, KY 75–76 18,274 5-2 |- !colspan=9 style="background:#DF4E38; color:#FFFFFF;"|Big Ten regular season 1/3/1959 1958 Ohio State Buckeyes Ohio State Huff Hall Champaign, IL 81–80 3,454 6-2 1-0 1/5/1959 yes Wisconsin Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI 77–51 3,618 7-2 2-0 1/10/1959 20 1958 Michigan State Spartans Michigan State 5 Huff Hall Champaign, IL 96–97 6,649 7-3 2-1 1/12/1959 20 1958 Iowa Hawkeyes Iowa Huff Hall Champaign, IL Rivalry 103–97 6,887 8-3 3-1 1/24/1959 yes yes 1958 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Notre Dame Chicago Stadium Chicago, IL 75–85 - 8-4 1/26/1959 yes 1958 Minnesota Golden Gophers Minnesota Williams Arena Minneapolis, MN 70–81 7,965 8-5 3-2 1/31/1959 18 yes 1958 Purdue Boilermakers Purdue Lambert Fieldhouse West Lafayette, IN 81–102 10,000 8-6 3-3 2/2/1959 18 Michigan Huff Hall Champaign, IL 85–87 6,901 8-7 3-4 2/7/1959 yes 1958 Northwestern Wildcats Northwestern McGaw Memorial Hall Evanston, IL Rivalry 79–88 9,045 8-8 3-5 2/9/1959 yes Indiana The Fieldhouse Bloomington, IN Rivalry 89–83 9,500 9-8 4-5 2/16/1959 Wisconsin Huff Hall Champaign, IL 93–54 6,067 10-8 5-5 2/21/1959 Indiana 19 Huff Hall Champaign, IL Rivalry 100–98 6,712 11-8 6-5 2/28/1959 yes Iowa Iowa Field House Iowa City, IA Rivalry 72–70 15,125 12-8 7-5 3/2/1959 yes Michigan Yost Field House Ann Arbor, MI 95-101 4,500 12-9 6-7 3/7/1959 Northwestern Huff Hall Champaign, IL Rivalry 81–84 6,376 12-10 7-7 |- Central Time Player stats Player Games played Field goals Free throws Rebounds PointsRoger Taylor 211586068376John Wessels2212675205327Mannie Jackson 221372589299Govoner Vaughn 2111043170263Al Gosnell225949108167Ed Perry 22462293114Vern Altemeyer2134258093Lou Landt 1936113483Bruce Bunkenburg 1317124146Lee Frandsen 151221426John Easterbrook 1245313Tom Adams 62024Jim Dorris 51264Bob Schmidt 30020Bill Mohlenbrock 40000John Homeier 20010 Season Stats https://web.archive.org/web/20131102125845/http://www.fightingillini.com/sports/m-baskbl/records/year-1958.html 2013-11-02 Awards and honors Roger Taylor Converse Honorable Mention All-American Team Most Valuable Player http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/ill/sports/m-baskbl/auto_pdf/05_mbb_guide_06.pdf List of MVPs 2013-01-28 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 Team players drafted into the NBA Player NBA club Round PickRoger TaylorSyracuse Nationals551959 NBA Draft Rankings 1958–59 NCAA University Division men's basketball rankings References Illinois Fighting Illini Category:Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball seasons Category:1958 in sports in Illinois Category:1959 in sports in Illinois