Johnny Cox's Hazard Heroics
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Cox in action for the Hazard Bulldogs.[/caption]
This Spring I was lucky enough to enroll in an Appalachian Geography class at UK. Exploring the cultural past of our ancestors charged me to look further into the impact of basketball over the last 100+ years. Usually KSR posts are limited to facts found on the internet, but this summer I will be taking that one step further. With the help of William T. Young Library's archives and the Mountains' Finest Oscar Combs, I will re-tell some of the greatest stories from the past that are often left out of the equation for those that were not around to see it firsthand. 1928: The Barefoot Boys of Carr Creek and the Undefeated Ashland Tomcats
When visiting the legendary Rupp Arena, you'll notice rafters filled with retired jerseys that mostly come from well before my time. Even though I know most of the best Cats ever to put on a uniform, Johnny' Cox's #24 jersey has never screamed to me "greatness". The humbled mountain man from Neon, KY probably doesn't mind it one bit. 55 years removed from winning the National Championship as a member of Adolph Rupp's 'Fiddlin' Five', the first team All-American's 1,461 points and 1,004 rebounds in his three years of varsity for the Cats aren't what most people from the mountains will recall when you say the name Johnny Cox. Later this summer, Cox will be inducted into the Second Class of the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame, receiving recognition for his greatest triumph as a Hazard Bulldog.
As stated by Oscar Combs in my previous article, there wasn't much to do in the mountains OTHER than play basketball. The same applied to Mr. Cox in the tiny coal town of Neon, telling WMYT, ""That's where I first started playing. I don't know how old I was. I wasn't real old. I just barely can remember it. I picked the ball up right then." Cox was a bruising mountain man, standing at 6'4 it was nearly impossible to defend his steller hook shot. Cox's talents were recognized early, leading the region's best powerhouse Hazard to recruit him for his services for his final two years of high school. After excelling as a Junior, Cox was considered as one of the state's top players entering his Senior year, just behind 'King' Kelly Coleman.
Entering the 1955 State Tournament, Hazard was seen as a dark horse after dropping 8 games during the regular season and needing 2 overtimes to reach the Sweet Sixteen. It did not deter the experienced Bulldog team, with role players contributing more than normal, easing the load of Johnny's back. However don't think Cox wasn't the superstar of the tournament: entering the Finals against the Adair County Indians, Cox was only 8 points from breaking Linville Puckett's record for most points in a single Sweet Sixteen, with 102 for Clark County in 1951. The Bulldogs started strong, taking a 49-36 lead halfway through the 3rd quarter. However the Indians weren't ready to fall to the mountain superstar just yet, mounting a run that cut the lead to 52-50 by the start of the 4th quarter. That run was all of the gas left in the tank for the Indians, with Cox and Co. calmly taking control for the remainder of the game. With an all-day holiday declared in Hazard, the majority of the 13,000 in attendance stormed the court celebrating the 74-66 victory. Cox was named Mr. Basketball after his record setting 32 point performance in the Final. Even though 'King' Kelly Coleman demolished his 127 point Sweet Sixteen record the following year, his 32 point performance is still a Top 10 scoring high in Sweet Sixteen history.
Cox immediately became a superstar around the state, but don't think any of that attention got Johnny's head, remember where he is from, "I was just a kid. I really didn't know much about it. I never really did pay much attention to it. I know people got all excited over it; the community did, and the fans. They got more excited over it than the players did." That attention paid dividends in the long run, earning him a scholarship to play for Adolph Rupp at the University of Kentucky. An instant hit, Cox averaged 19.4 points and 11.1 rebounds as a sophomore (back when Freshman could not play varsity). That could only be outdone the following year when his 24 point performance- with 16 coming in the last 15 minutes- helped UK defeat Seattle 84-72 for the National Championship. After another great Senior year, Cox went on to play a few years of pro ball for the Chicago Zephyrs (don't ask me what a Zephyr is). Here's a nice piece of trivia: Cox is one of 2 UK player's to ever be drafted twice, when players could return for their Senior year after being drafted.
The next time you look into the rafters and see the #24 jersey, remember the amazing story behind it. As Drake would put it, "Started from the bottom, now we here." High above the Rupp Arena floor isn't a bad place to be.
Cox's induction into the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame will take place later on this summer, along with fellow UK greats Larry Conley and Mike Casey. @RoushKSR
Cox in action for the Hazard Bulldogs.[/caption]
This Spring I was lucky enough to enroll in an Appalachian Geography class at UK. Exploring the cultural past of our ancestors charged me to look further into the impact of basketball over the last 100+ years. Usually KSR posts are limited to facts found on the internet, but this summer I will be taking that one step further. With the help of William T. Young Library's archives and the Mountains' Finest Oscar Combs, I will re-tell some of the greatest stories from the past that are often left out of the equation for those that were not around to see it firsthand. 1928: The Barefoot Boys of Carr Creek and the Undefeated Ashland Tomcats
When visiting the legendary Rupp Arena, you'll notice rafters filled with retired jerseys that mostly come from well before my time. Even though I know most of the best Cats ever to put on a uniform, Johnny' Cox's #24 jersey has never screamed to me "greatness". The humbled mountain man from Neon, KY probably doesn't mind it one bit. 55 years removed from winning the National Championship as a member of Adolph Rupp's 'Fiddlin' Five', the first team All-American's 1,461 points and 1,004 rebounds in his three years of varsity for the Cats aren't what most people from the mountains will recall when you say the name Johnny Cox. Later this summer, Cox will be inducted into the Second Class of the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame, receiving recognition for his greatest triumph as a Hazard Bulldog.
As stated by Oscar Combs in my previous article, there wasn't much to do in the mountains OTHER than play basketball. The same applied to Mr. Cox in the tiny coal town of Neon, telling WMYT, ""That's where I first started playing. I don't know how old I was. I wasn't real old. I just barely can remember it. I picked the ball up right then." Cox was a bruising mountain man, standing at 6'4 it was nearly impossible to defend his steller hook shot. Cox's talents were recognized early, leading the region's best powerhouse Hazard to recruit him for his services for his final two years of high school. After excelling as a Junior, Cox was considered as one of the state's top players entering his Senior year, just behind 'King' Kelly Coleman.
Entering the 1955 State Tournament, Hazard was seen as a dark horse after dropping 8 games during the regular season and needing 2 overtimes to reach the Sweet Sixteen. It did not deter the experienced Bulldog team, with role players contributing more than normal, easing the load of Johnny's back. However don't think Cox wasn't the superstar of the tournament: entering the Finals against the Adair County Indians, Cox was only 8 points from breaking Linville Puckett's record for most points in a single Sweet Sixteen, with 102 for Clark County in 1951. The Bulldogs started strong, taking a 49-36 lead halfway through the 3rd quarter. However the Indians weren't ready to fall to the mountain superstar just yet, mounting a run that cut the lead to 52-50 by the start of the 4th quarter. That run was all of the gas left in the tank for the Indians, with Cox and Co. calmly taking control for the remainder of the game. With an all-day holiday declared in Hazard, the majority of the 13,000 in attendance stormed the court celebrating the 74-66 victory. Cox was named Mr. Basketball after his record setting 32 point performance in the Final. Even though 'King' Kelly Coleman demolished his 127 point Sweet Sixteen record the following year, his 32 point performance is still a Top 10 scoring high in Sweet Sixteen history.
Cox immediately became a superstar around the state, but don't think any of that attention got Johnny's head, remember where he is from, "I was just a kid. I really didn't know much about it. I never really did pay much attention to it. I know people got all excited over it; the community did, and the fans. They got more excited over it than the players did." That attention paid dividends in the long run, earning him a scholarship to play for Adolph Rupp at the University of Kentucky. An instant hit, Cox averaged 19.4 points and 11.1 rebounds as a sophomore (back when Freshman could not play varsity). That could only be outdone the following year when his 24 point performance- with 16 coming in the last 15 minutes- helped UK defeat Seattle 84-72 for the National Championship. After another great Senior year, Cox went on to play a few years of pro ball for the Chicago Zephyrs (don't ask me what a Zephyr is). Here's a nice piece of trivia: Cox is one of 2 UK player's to ever be drafted twice, when players could return for their Senior year after being drafted.
The next time you look into the rafters and see the #24 jersey, remember the amazing story behind it. As Drake would put it, "Started from the bottom, now we here." High above the Rupp Arena floor isn't a bad place to be.
Cox's induction into the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame will take place later on this summer, along with fellow UK greats Larry Conley and Mike Casey. @RoushKSR
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