Franklin Delano Selvy (born November 9, 1932) is an American former
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
(NBA) player who is best known for holding the record for the most points (100) in a Division I college basketball game. Born in
Corbin, Kentucky
Corbin is a home rule in the United States, home rule-class list of Kentucky cities, city in Whitley County, Kentucky, Whitley, Knox County, Kentucky, Knox and Laurel County, Kentucky, Laurel counties in the southeastern portion of the U.S. stat ...
, Selvy was an All-State basketball player at Corbin High School and was a teammate of College Football Hall of Fame inductee
Roy Kidd
Roy Kidd (born December 4, 1931) is a former collegiate football league player and coach. He served as the head coach at Eastern Kentucky University from 1964 to 2002, compiling a record of 314–124–8. Kidd's Eastern Kentucky Colonels won N ...
. Selvy was the No. 1 overall pick in the
1954 NBA draft and was a two-time
NBA All-Star
The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of al ...
, playing nine seasons.
Early life
Selvy attended Corbin High School and was raised in
Corbin, Kentucky
Corbin is a home rule in the United States, home rule-class list of Kentucky cities, city in Whitley County, Kentucky, Whitley, Knox County, Kentucky, Knox and Laurel County, Kentucky, Laurel counties in the southeastern portion of the U.S. stat ...
. He played basketball for Coach Harry Taylor, as did older brother Curt and younger brother Edd.
College career
After a storied career at Corbin High School, Selvy attended
Furman University
Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became ...
, where he was two time
Southern Conference
The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly ...
Player of the Year. Selvy, chose Furman after Kentucky's
Adolph Rupp
Adolph Frederick Rupp (September 2, 1901 – December 10, 1977) was an American college basketball coach. He is ranked seventh in total victories by a men's NCAA Division I college coach, winning 876 games in 41 years of coaching at the Univ ...
and Western Kentucky's
E.A. Diddle refused him a scholarships, due to his then 6'0" height and small frame.
After Selvy grew three inches and was named MVP in the Kentucky East-West all-star game, Kentucky offered a scholarship, but Selvy had committed himself to play at Furman, "I liked Coach Alley," Selvy said. "He came up and talked to my mother. Plus there were two or three guys from Corbin High who came along with me."
In 1951-1952, Selvy averaged 24.6 points per game as Furman finished 18-6 under Coach Lyles Alley. In 1952-1953, Selvy averaged 29.5 points as Furman finished 21-6.
As a senior in 1953-1954, as Furman finished 20-9, Selvy averaged 41.7 points per game, scoring 1,209 total points to
lead the NCAA in scoring for the second season in a row.
Overall, in 78 career games, Selvy averaged 32.5 points at Furman.
100-point college game
Selvy is best remembered for scoring 100 points in a college game for
Furman University
Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became ...
against
Newberry College
Newberry College is a private Lutheran college in Newberry, South Carolina. It has 1,250 students.
Accreditation
Newberry College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) to award ...
on February 13, 1954, the only
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
Division I player ever to do so. (
Jack Taylor of
Division III
In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below.
Association football
*Belgian Thir ...
Grinnell College
Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College.
Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-st ...
holds the NCAA all-time record for points scored at 138.) Selvy's 100-point game was played towards the end of his final collegiate season on a night that Furman coach Lyles Alley had designated the game "Frank Selvy Night." The special night was planned to garner recognition for Selvy, who was already certain to finish the season leading the nation in scoring and earn first-team
All-America
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...
n honors, two accomplishments he had attained the year before. The game was the first to be broadcast live on television in South Carolina (where Furman is located and where the game was being played) and a large contingent from Selvy's hometown, including his family, had made the six-hour trek just for the occasion. It was actually the first college game his mother saw him play. The instructions from Coach Alley were simply to get the ball to Selvy so he can score as much as possible. Selvy obliged, hitting 41 of 66
field goal
A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...
s and 18 of 22
free throw
In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points by shooting from behind the free-throw line (informally known as the foul line or the charity stripe), a line situated at the end of the Key (basketball), restricted ...
s, his last two points coming on a desperate heave near midcourt at the buzzer. (The game was played well before the introduction of the
three-point line; Selvy later estimated that eight or nine of his shots that day would have been three-pointers today.
NBA career
Selvy was drafted
first overall by the
Baltimore Bullets in the
1954 NBA draft. He went on to play nine seasons in the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
during the late 1950s and early 1960s, interrupted by a stint in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
. As a professional, Selvy is mostly known for his time with the
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...
, teaming with
Jerry West
Jerome Alan West (born May 28, 1938) is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch", for his ability ...
and
Elgin Baylor
Elgin Gay Baylor ( ; September 16, 1934 – March 22, 2021) was an American professional basketball player, coach, and executive. He played 14 seasons as a forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lake ...
. He was twice an NBA
All-Star.
Drafted No. 1 overall by the Bullets, Selvy quickly moved to the
Milwaukee Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...
on November 28, 1954, as the Baltimore franchise was folded. Selvy was drafted by Milwaukee in the dispersal draft of Baltimore players. Selvy averaged 19.0 points as a rookie as the Hawks finished 29-46 under
Red Holzman
William "Red" Holzman (August 10, 1920 – November 13, 1998) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is best known as the head coach of the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1967 to ...
.
The Hawks moved to
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
in 1955-1956 and Selvy averaged 11.0 points, as future
Naismith Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pre ...
inductee
Bob Pettit
Robert Lee Pettit Jr. (born December 12, 1932) is an American former professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks (1954–1965). In 1956, he became the first recipient of the NBA's Mo ...
became the centerpiece of the 33-39 Hawks. Selvy then missed the 1956-1957 season to military service. with the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
.
In 1957-1958, Selvy played a reserve role as the
St. Louis Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...
captured the 1958 NBA Championship, defeating the
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...
in six games. Selvy missed a ring, as he was traded on February 16, 1958, by the Hawks to the
Minneapolis Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers franchise has a long and storied history, predating the formation of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Founded in 1947, the Lakers are one of the NBA's most famous and successful franchises. As of summer 2012, th ...
for
Dick Boushka
Richard James Boushka (July 29, 1934 – February 19, 2019) was an American basketball player who competed in the 1956 Summer Olympics. Born in Springfield, Illinois, Boushka played collegiately at Saint Louis University.
In addition to h ...
and
Terry Rand.
Selvy then played for the
New York Knicks
The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...
in 1958-1959, averaging 9.8 points per game for the 40-32 Knicks.
In 1959-1960, Selvy was waived by the Knicks On October 25, 1959, and quickly picked up on October 28, 1959, by the
Syracuse Nationals
The Philadelphia 76ers are an American basketball team currently playing in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 76ers are third in NBA history in wins and playoff appearances.
1946– ...
.
Then, On December 15, 1959, Selvy was sold by Syracuse to the Minneapolis Lakers. Subsequently, Selvy remained with the Lakers for last five seasons of his career. He averaged 10.7 points for the Lakers in their last season in Minneapolis. In 1960-1961, Selvy averaged 10.8 in the first season in Los Angeles, playing alongside
Elgin Baylor
Elgin Gay Baylor ( ; September 16, 1934 – March 22, 2021) was an American professional basketball player, coach, and executive. He played 14 seasons as a forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lake ...
and
Jerry West
Jerome Alan West (born May 28, 1938) is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch", for his ability ...
, as the team advanced to the Western Conference Finals.
In 1961-1962, the Lakers finished 54-26 as Selvy averaged 14.7 points and the Lakers advanced to the
1962 NBA Finals, losing to the
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...
in seven games. Selvy averaged 12.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists in the Finals.
The Lakers advanced to the
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...
again in 1962-1963, with Selvy averaging 10.3 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
The Lakers again lost to the Celtics in six games in the Finals, with Selvy averaging 7.5 points in the series.
Selvy averaged 10.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.8 assists in his nine-season NBA Career and played in the 1955 & 1962 NBA All-Star Games.
1962 NBA Finals, Game 7
Selvy's best known game in the NBA is probably Game 7 of the
1962 NBA Finals in which he almost defeated the Celtics. Selvy's Lakers faced a four-point deficit at the hands of
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...
in the final minute of the game's fourth quarter. Selvy proceeded to secure two crucial rebounds and score two baskets in 20 seconds to tie the game at 100. With 5 seconds left, Selvy inbounded the pass at midcourt to
Rodney "Hot Rod" Hundley, who dribbled to the top of the key. He pump-faked a pass to Jerry West, who was covered, then passed back to an open Selvy in the left corner. “I had one thought in my mind when the ball came to me: ‘Do I take the shot?’ I was wide open,” Hundley recalled. “I thought, ‘If I make it, I’ll be the mayor of L.A. But if I miss, they’ll be riding me out of town on a rail.’ So I elected to pass it to Frank.”
However, Selvy lost his chance for the ultimate heroic moment as he missed a 12-foot jump shot right before the buzzer that would have secured the championship for the Lakers had it gone in. The miss sent the game to overtime, where the Celtics prevailed in this, the second of
seven NBA Finals match-ups between Boston and Los Angeles over the course of eleven seasons.
Regrettably for Selvy, his missed shot gained even larger significance as those years went by because the Lakers ultimately lost every one of those championship battles with the Celtics, thus magnifying the pain of Los Angeles having lost a golden opportunity, with Selvy's shot, to end that streak of futility before it had even begun. (The Lakers, while still playing in
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
, had lost to the Celtics in the NBA Finals in 1959, as well.)
The player who initially had the ball on that final play was
Rod "Hot Rod" Hundley. Selvy's miss, however, meant that Hundley's sacrifice had been for naught and that Hundley would never know if indeed he would have won the championship himself, had he taken the shot he had available. Because of this, Hundley would occasionally call Selvy and, when Selvy answered the phone, Hundley would simply say, "Nice shot!" and then hang up. For his part, Selvy has expressed some degree of irritation at Hundley's teasing.
''It was a fairly tough shot because I was almost on the baseline. But I would trade all my points for that last basket.''
:— Frank Selvy as quoted on NBA.com
Coaching career
After retiring from the NBA with multiple injuries, Selvy joined the Furman basketball staff as an assistant coach in 1964 under his former Coach Lyles Alley.
Selvy was hired to replace Alley as Head Coach at Furman beginning in the 1966–67 season. His Furman teams finished 9-15, 13-14, 9-17 and 13-13 in his four seasons. His brother, Charles Selvy, was a top player on his Furman teams. He was replaced as Head Coach by
Joe Williams in 1970. Overall, Selvy led Furman to a 44-59 mark.
Later, Selvy was employed for 25 years with the St. Joe Paper Company.
Honors
* Selvy was the 1954 United Press National Player of the Year
* Consensus first-team
All-American (1954)
* Consensus second-team All-American (
1953
Events
January
* January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma.
* January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a Estonian government-in-exile, government-in-exile in Oslo.
* January 14
** Marshal Josip Broz Tito i ...
)
* 2 ×
NCAA Division I scoring leader (1953, 1954)
* 2 ×
SoCon Player of the Year (1953, 1954)
* Selvy was a 1955 & 1962 NBA All-Star.
* In 2009, Selvy was a charter member inducted into the Southern Conference Hall of Fame.
* Selvy was a charter member of the Furman Athletic Hall of Fame (1981).
* Selvy's jersey number 28 is retired at Furman.
* Selvy is listed on the "
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...
Eligible Candidates" for the Class of 2019.
* A street in Corbin, Kentucky is named "Frank Selvy Way".
* The Video Boards in Timmons Arena at
Furman University
Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became ...
have "Frank Selvy" adorned on them.
See also
*
History of the Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers franchise has a long and storied history, predating the formation of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Founded in 1947, the Lakers are one of the NBA's most famous and successful franchises. As of summer 2012, t ...
*
*
*
List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season scoring leaders
__NOTOC__
In basketball, points are the sum of the score accumulated through free throw or field goal. The National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I scoring title is awarded to the player with the highest points per game (ppg) a ...
References
External links
*
The State – The Night He Scored 100*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Selvy, Frank
1932 births
Living people
All-American college men's basketball players
American men's basketball players
Baltimore Bullets (1944–1954) draft picks
Basketball coaches from Kentucky
Basketball players from Kentucky
Furman Paladins men's basketball coaches
Furman Paladins men's basketball players
Los Angeles Lakers players
Milwaukee Hawks players
Minneapolis Lakers players
National Basketball Association All-Stars
New York Knicks players
People from Corbin, Kentucky
Shooting guards
Small forwards
St. Louis Hawks players
Syracuse Nationals players