1934–35 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team

American college basketball season March 2026 August 2023 Basketball 1934–35 Illinois Fighting Illini File:1934-35_Illinois_Fighting_Illini_men's_basketball_team.jpg 300px Big Ten Conference Big Ten 15–5 9–3 J. Craig Ruby 13th Frank Froschauer Huff Hall Big Ten Conference champion The 1934–35 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois. Regular season The 1934–35 season brought the fourth conference title at the University of Illinois as well as the second title in Craig Ruby's tenure. Ruby had previously won a title in his second season, 1923–24. A new star on the playing floor emerged during the 1934–35 season with the addition of Harry Combes to the roster. Combes, a three-year letterwinner, starred for the Illini from 1935 to 1937 and later returned to his alma mater as head coach of the Illini in 1948. Combes helped lead Illinois to both its Big Ten titles in the 1930s. Along with future head coach Combes the Illini only returned 6 lettermen from a team that had finished in fourth place in the Big Ten the year before. Even though the Fighting Illini lost twice to Indiana, they improved in conference play by finishing with a record of 9 wins and 3 losses. The team finished the season with an overall record of 15 wins 5 losses with one of the losses coming as the result of playing two games on December 10, 1934. The starting lineup included captain Frank Froschauer and Roy Guttschow at forward, Harry Combes, Jack Benyon and Wilbur Henry at guard, with Lewis Dehner at the center position.Fighting Illini Basketball: A Hardwood History By News-Gazette, Sports Publishing LLC 1-58261-356-7 Roster thumb|"1934–35 Fighting Illini men's basketball team" 1934 Illinois Fighting Illini y Jack Beynon 3 G SR Rockford, Illinois n Roy Guttschow 4 F SR Bloomington, Illinois n Grant Mickelson 5 G SO n Wilbur Henry 6 G SO North Hollywood, California n Lewis Dehner 7 C SO Lincoln, Illinois y Frank Froschauer 8 F SR Harvey, Illinois n C Harold Swanson 10 C SO Chicago Heights, Illinois n Coke Mills 11 F JR Galesburg, Illinois n Harry Combes 12 G SO Champaign, Illinois y Lester Lindberg 13 G JR Lockport, Illinois y Robert Riegel 14 C SO Tolono, Illinois n Byron Blout 15 F SO Salinas, California n Howard Braun 16 G JR Champaign, Illinois y Harold Benham 18 F JR Downers Grove, Illinois n Paul W. Gibbs 19 G JR Los Angeles, California n James Vopicka 24 G SO Berwyn, Illinois n Martin Markworth 29 F JR Cleveland, Ohio n Craig Ruby (University of Missouri) (13th year) https://fightingillini.com/sports/2015/7/18/mbb_alltimerosters_1925_1949.aspx?#1935 Schedule yes |- !colspan=12 style="background:#DF4E38; color:white;"| Non-Conference regular season 12/10/1934 yes 1934 DePaul Blue Demons DePaul Huff Hall Champaign, IL 26–29 6,000 0–1 |- align="center" bgcolor="" 12/10/1934 yes 1934 Bradley Braves Bradley Huff Hall Champaign, IL 55–25 6,000 1–1 12/14/1934 yes 1934 Wabash Little Giants Wabash College Huff Hall Champaign, IL 30–27 6,000 2–1 12/21/1934 yes yes 1934 Washington University Bears Washington (St. Louis) Francis Gymnasium St. Louis, MO 35–18 3,000 3–1 12/22/1934 yes yes 1934 Saint Louis Billikens St. Louis Kiel Auditorium St. Louis, MO 33–22 4,000 4–1 12/29/1934 yes yes 1934 Butler Bulldogs Butler Hinkle Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN 24–39 5,000 4–2 1/1/1935 yes yes Wabash College Chadwick Court Crawfordsville, IN 35–28 – 5–2 |- !colspan=9 style="background:#DF4E38; color:#FFFFFF;"|Big Ten regular season 1/5/1935 Indiana Huff Hall Champaign, IL Rivalry 21–36 5,000 5–3 0–1 1/7/1935 1934 Purdue Boilermakers Purdue Huff Hall Champaign, IL 37–36 8,000 6–3 1–1 1/12/1935 yes 1934 Ohio State Buckeyes Ohio State Ohio Expo Center Coliseum Columbus, OH 44–23 5,500 7–3 2–1 1/14/1935 yes Indiana IU Fieldhouse Bloomington, IN Rivalry 29–42 5,000 7–4 2–2 1/19/1935 Michigan Huff Hall Champaign, IL 34–22 7,000 8–4 3–2 2/5/1935 yes 1934 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Notre Dame Huff Hall Champaign, IL 27–26 6,000 9–4 2/9/1935 yes 1934 Chicago Maroons University of Chicago Henry Crown Field House Chicago, IL 43–36 2,500 10–4 4–2 2/16/1935 yes Purdue Jefferson High School West Lafayette, IN 27–35 5,000 10–5 4–3 2/18/1935 Ohio State Huff Hall Champaign, IL 43–36 6,000 11–5 5–3 2/23/1935 yes 1934 Minnesota Golden Gophers Minnesota Williams Arena Minneapolis, MN 38–34 7,500 12–5 6–3 2/25/1935 University of Chicago Huff Hall Champaign, IL 39–29 6,000 13–5 7–3 3/2/1935 Minnesota Huff Hall Champaign, IL 38–34 6,000 14–5 8–3 1/19/1935 yes Michigan Yost Field House Ann Arbor, MI 36–22 – 15–5 9–3 Central Time SourceUniversity of Illinois Fighting Illini Statistics Summary for 1934–35 pg.79, FightingIllini.com References Illinois Fighting Illini Category:Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball seasons Category:1934 in sports in Illinois Category:1935 in sports in Illinois