# 1965–66 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

The 1965–66 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team represented the University of Kentucky in NCAA competition in the 1965–66 season. Coached by Adolph Rupp, the team had no player taller than 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)—unusually small even for that era—and became known as "Rupp's Runts". The Wildcats were members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and played their home games at Memorial Coliseum, their home until Rupp Arena opened in 1976.
Led on the floor by future Hall of Fame coach Pat Riley and Louie Dampier, the Cats reached the top ranking in all major polls entering the NCAA tournament; their only regular-season loss was at Tennessee. They ultimately lost in the final 72–65 to Texas Western (now UTEP), a team that was inducted in its entirety to the Hall of Fame. The game is mostly remembered for its sociological subtext—the Miners were the first major college team to start five black players in an NCAA Final (having done so for virtually all of the 1965–66 season), while the Wildcats were all-white (until 1969).

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular Season ||||||
| December 1, 1965* | | Hardin-Simmons | W 83–55 | 1–0 | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| December 4, 1965* | | Virginia | W 99–73 | 2–0 | University Hall Charlottesville, VA |
| December 8, 1965* | | Illinois | W 86–68 | 3–0 | Assembly Hall Champaign, IL |
| December 11, 1965* | | Northwestern | W 86–75 | 4–0 | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| December 17, 1965* | | Air Force | W 78–58 | 5–0 | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| December 18, 1965* | | Indiana | W 91–56 | 6–0 | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| December 22, 1965* | No. 10 | Texas Tech | W 89–73 | 7–0 | Lubbock Municipal Coliseum Lubbock, TX |
| December 29, 1965* | No. 5 | Notre Dame | W 103–69 | 8–0 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| January 3, 1966* | No. 2 | Saint Louis | W 80–70 | 9–0 | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| January 8, 1966 | No. 2 | Florida Rivalry | W 78–64 | 10–0 (1–0) | Florida Gymnasium Gainesville, FL |
| January 10, 1966 | No. 2 | Georgia | W 69–65 $^{2OT}$ | 11–0 (2–0) | Stegeman Coliseum Athens, GA |
| January 15, 1966 | No. 2 | No. 3 Vanderbilt | W 96–83 | 12–0 (3–0) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| January 24, 1966 | No. 2 | LSU | W 111–85 | 13–0 (4–0) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| January 29, 1966 | No. 2 | Auburn | W 115–78 | 14–0 (5–0) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| January 31, 1966 | No. 2 | Alabama | W 82–62 | 15–0 (6–0) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| February 2, 1966 | No. 2 | No. 3 Vanderbilt | W 105–90 | 16–0 (7–0) | Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, TN |
| February 5, 1966 | No. 2 | Georgia | W 74–50 | 17–0 (8–0) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| February 7, 1966 | No. 1 | Florida Rivalry | W 85–75 | 18–0 (9–0) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| February 12, 1966 | No. 1 | Auburn | W 77–64 | 19–0 (10–0) | Auburn Sports Arena Auburn, AL |
| February 14, 1966 | No. 1 | Alabama | W 90–67 | 20–0 (11–0) | Foster Auditorium Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 19, 1966 | No. 1 | Mississippi State | W 73–69 | 21–0 (12–0) | McCarthy Gymnasium Starkville, MS |
| February 21, 1966 | No. 1 | Ole Miss | W 108–65 | 22–0 (13–0) | Gymnasium Oxford, MS |
| February 26, 1966 | No. 1 | Tennessee Rivalry | W 78–64 | 23–0 (14–0) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| March 5, 1966 | No. 1 | Tennessee Rivalry | L 62–69 | 23–1 (14–1) | Armory-Fieldhouse Knoxville, TN |
| March 7, 1966 | No. 1 | Tulane | W 103–74 | 24–1 (15–1) | Memorial Coliseum Lexington, KY |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| March 11, 1966* | No. 1 | vs. Dayton Regional semifinal | W 86–79 | 25–1 | Iowa Field House Iowa City, IA |
| March 12, 1966* | No. 1 | vs. No. 9 Michigan Elite Eight | W 81–80 | 26–1 | Iowa Field House Iowa City, Iowa |
| March 18, 1966* | No. 1 | vs. No. 2 Duke National semifinal | W 83–79 | 27–1 | Cole Field House College Park, MD |
| March 19, 1966* | No. 1 | vs. No. 3 Texas Western National Championship | L 65–72 | 27–2 | Cole Field House College Park, MD |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern time. ||||||

## Awards and honors

1966 SEC co-Player of the Year: Pat Riley 1966 Consensus All-American: Louie Dampier (Second Team) 1966 All-SEC: Pat Riley, Louie Dampier (First Team); Thad Jaracz (Second Team)

## Team players in the 1966 NBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 3 | 24 | Tommy Kron | St. Louis Hawks |