1930–31 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team
The 1930–31 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois.
Regular season
The 1930-31 season was head coach Craig Ruby's 9th at the University of Illinois, establishing the first time in the history of Illinois basketball that a head coach remained longer than 8 years. Ruby had 10 returning lettermen from a team that had finished in a fifth place tie in the Big Ten the year before. Even though they did not lose any non-conference games, the Fighting Illini showed no improvement in conference play by finishing with a record of 7 wins and 5 losses, however; the team improved to an overall record of 12 wins 5 losses. The starting lineup included captain Charles Harper, George Fencl and Elbert Kamp at forward, Elbridge May at center with Boyd Owen and Robert Kamp at the guard spots.[1]
Team
| No. |
Player |
Position |
Height |
Weight |
Class |
Hometown |
| 3 |
Charles Harper (captain) |
Forward |
5'11" |
163 |
Senior |
Chandlerville, Illinois |
| 4 |
Robert Kamp |
Guard |
5'10" |
150 |
Junior |
Mt. Carmel, Illinois |
| 5 |
Elbert Kamp |
Forward |
5'11" |
150 |
Junior |
Mt. Carmel, Illinois |
| 6 |
Elbridge Horace May |
Center |
6'4" |
180 |
Senior |
Chicago, Illinois |
| 8 |
Boyd Owen |
Guard |
6'2" |
179 |
Sophomore |
South Bend, Indiana |
| 9 |
Herbert R. Hill |
Forward |
5'8" |
145 |
Senior |
Elgin, Illinois |
| 10 |
Caslon Bennett |
Center |
6'3" |
185 |
Sophomore |
Marshall, Illinois |
| 11 |
Vernon Moore |
Center |
6'1" |
165 |
Sophomore |
Martinsville, Illinois |
| 12 |
Robert Y. Bartholomew |
Forward |
5'11" |
155 |
Junior |
Peoria, Illinois |
| 14 |
William Hagerman |
Center |
6'1" |
154 |
Sophomore |
Champaign, Illinois |
| 15 |
William Theobald |
Guard |
5'11" |
155 |
Sophomore |
Du Quoin, Illinois |
| 17 |
Paul Chervinko |
Forward |
5'7" |
155 |
Sophomore |
Witt, Illinois |
| 18 |
Norval Hodges |
Guard |
6'2" |
176 |
Sophomore |
Flora, Illinois |
| 19 |
Harold Thornburg |
Center |
6'1" |
172 |
Senior |
Watseka, Illinois |
| 20 |
Charles Canfield |
Guard |
5'11" |
165 |
Sophomore |
Maywood, Illinois |
| 21 |
George S. Fencl |
Guard |
5'8" |
159 |
Junior |
Cicero, Illinois |
| 22 |
David Smith |
Guard |
5'10" |
157 |
Sophomore |
Chicago, Illinois |
| 23 |
William Fuzak |
Forward |
6'0" |
160 |
Senior |
Urbana, Illinois |
| 24 |
Charles Goldstein |
Forward |
5'10" |
160 |
Sophomore |
Chicago, Illinois |
| 25 |
Marvin L. Hadam |
Forward |
5'9" |
150 |
Senior |
Chicago, Illinois |
| 26 |
Homer Adams |
Guard |
5'11" |
150 |
Junior |
Pontiac, Illinois |
| 27 |
John Hadley |
Guard |
6'0" |
160 |
Sophomore |
Frankfort, Indiana |
| 28 |
Ralph W. Downing |
Guard |
5'10" |
150 |
Junior |
Mount Pulaski, Illinois |
| 29 |
Henry Howard |
Guard |
6'0" |
170 |
Sophomore |
Sheffield, Illinois |
| 30 |
Maurice Weintraub |
Forward |
5'6" |
148 |
Sophomore |
Chicago, Illinois |
| 31 |
H.B. Scharback |
Forward |
5'10" |
163 |
Junior |
Hobart, Indiana |
| 32 |
Thomas Plunk |
Forward |
5'8" |
160 |
Sophomore |
Mansfield, Illinois |
[2]
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Score | Result | Location | Attendance |
| December 8, 1930 | DePauw | 27–15 | Win | Champaign, IL | 3,625 |
| December 13, 1930 | Carleton College | 23–11 | Win | Champaign, IL | 4,879 |
| December 19, 1930 | Miami | 40–17 | Win | Champaign, IL | 1,500 |
| December 22, 1930 | Wabash | 28–13 | Win | Champaign, IL | 2,473 |
| January 1, 1931 | Bradley | 28–17 | Win | Peoria, IL | 3,000 |
| January 5, 1931 | Wisconsin | 9–12 | Loss | Champaign, IL | 6,696 |
| January 10, 1931 | Purdue | 15–30 | Loss | West Lafayette, IN | - |
| January 12, 1931 | Northwestern | 27–29 | Loss | Champaign, IL | 7,092 |
| January 17, 1931 | Indiana | 34–35 | Loss | Champaign, IL | 6,807 |
| January 24, 1931 | Wisconsin | 20–30 | Loss | Madison, WI | - |
| February 10, 1931 | Purdue | 26–22 | Win | Champaign | 6,873 |
| February 14, 1931 | Iowa | 26–23 | Win | Iowa City, IA | 3,600 |
| February 16, 1931 | Northwestern | 35–28 | Win | Evanston, IL | 5,000 |
| February 21, 1931 | University of Chicago | 45–22 | Win | Champaign, IL | 6,228 |
| February 23, 1931 | Indiana | 39–25 | Win | Bloomington, IN | 4,200 |
| February 28, 1931 | Iowa | 31–13 | Win | Champaign, IL | 6,267 |
| March 2, 1931 | University of Chicago | 36–30 | Win | Chicago, IL | 1,900 |
Bold Italic connotes conference game
References
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| | Seasons | |
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| Helms and Premo-Porretta national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics |
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