Kentucky Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of 1984 Final Four Team

This weekend the University of Kentucky is honoring some of the greatest to ever suit up for the Wildcats. During halftime of Saturday night’s contest against Georgia, the Rupp Arena crowd will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1984 Kentucky basketball team. Free posters commemorating the outstanding team will be available prior to tip-off between sections 42-44.

The last of three Final Four teams coached by Joe B. Hall, even though they did not win the title, some might argue that this team was the best he ever fielded.

The interior was anchored by the seven-foot Twin Towers, Sam Bowie and Melvin Turpin. The latter was a Lexington native who led the team in scoring with 15.2 points per game. After suffering multiple maladies, the finally healthy Bowie nearly averaged a double-double, 10.5 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. They received scoring assistance outside from sensational sophomore Kenny ‘Sky’ Walker, who finished his career ranked second on Kentucky’s all-time scoring list.

The Wildcats won the SEC and finished the year with a 29-5 record. Many of our readers probably weren’t around to marvel at their achievements. Take a closer look and you’ll see this team was a dominant force in college basketball.

Revenge vs. Louisville

The previous season ended on a sour note. Tabbed as “The Dream Game,” Kentucky and Louisville finally met on the hardwood in the Mideast Regional Finals. The Cats were underdogs but took UofL down to the wire. Jim Masters’ jumper with one second sent the game to overtime. From there, it was all Louisville everything and the Cards advanced to the Final Four.

For years Denny Crum and Louisville fans claimed the Cats were scared to play the Cards on the hardwood. Once they finally met, Louisville got the win. UofL had all of the mojo and bragging rights. That didn’t sit right with Joe B. Hall and Co.

The rivalry game was added to the annual calendar, starting with the 1983-84 season-opener. The Cats dog-walked the Cards for 40 minutes.

Master scored 19 points, Turpin tallied 16 and Walker chipped in 13 in an ass-kicking of epic proportions. Only one Cardinal reached double figures in scoring as Kentucky ran away with a 65-44 victory, setting the tone for what was to come.

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So Many Impressive Kentucky Wins

The season-opening win over a Final Four team was just an appetizer. The following week the top-ranked Wildcats made Bobby Knight so mad that he kicked a chair. He was T’d up in the Hoosiers’ 59-54 loss to the Wildcats. Then Kentucky hit the road to Phog Allen Fieldhouse where Turpin and Master combined to score 48 points in a casual 22-point win over the Jayhawks.

Later in the season, Kentucky put a hurting on a Top 25 Purdue team with a 19-point win at Freedom Hall. On the road in conference play, Melvin Turpin dominated a Top 10 LSU team. He made 15-of-17 shots to score 35 points in a 96-80 victory.

Cincinnati Tries Stall Ball

Kentucky’s success in 1984 was during a different era in college basketball. Viewers did not see a scoreboard constantly at the bottom of their television screen. There was not a three-point line or a shot clock. That meant some games looked nothing like the sport we know today.

Preparing to be overwhelmed by the Wildcats, Cincinnati tried to pull off an upset with an unusual tactic. They played stall ball. The Bearcats held Kentucky to only 24 points… yet still lost by 13. Yes, the final score was 24-11. That’s a game of basketball not football.

Kentucky Takes Down Akeem and Barkley

To prove Kentucky was the real deal, the Cats did a dance with the other top dogs in college basketball, Houston’s Phi Slamma Jamma. A year after they were upset by Jim Valvano’s NC State team in the title, it was Championship or bust for the Cougs. What ensued was one of the greatest big men battles in Rupp Arena history.

Sam Bowie grabbed 18 rebounds, while Turpin tallied 19 points and 11 boards. They did not completely bottle up Akeem the Dream. Olajuwon had 14 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocked shots. He was not happy after Houston fell 74-67.

“I would like to play these guys again on a neutral floor,” complained Olajuwon, who fouled out with six minutes to play. “Everything I do, they [the officials] call me for everything. I should be used to it by now, but the Kentucky players, they just jumped into me and the refs called me for the fouls.”

Another future NBA superstar challenged this Kentucky basketball team. Chuck Person and Charles Barkley put it on Kentucky at Auburn. The Wildcats returned the favor and won at Rupp. The rubber match in the SEC Championship Game was a defensive slugfest that ended in thrilling fashion. Kenny Walker sunk a game-winning bucket with seconds on the clock to secure a 51-49 win, leaving Barkley in tears sitting on the Memorial Gymnasium floor.

An Unfortunate Ending in the Kingdome

The conclusion of the 2010 Kentucky basketball season was horrific in more ways than one. John Calipari’s first Kentucky basketball team shot 4-of-32 from three-point land in a shocking loss to West Virginia in the Elite Eight. The loss brought back memories from the final game of the 1984 season.

Kentucky was on fire en route to the Kingdome, taking down Louisville and Illinois at Rupp. They look prepared to provide Olajuwon with the rematch he wanted on a neutral court in the National Championship. Another big man stood in the way, Patrick Ewing. Kentucky had never lost a National Semifinal game before. Dreams of a championship were almost a reality. They turned into a nightmare in Seattle.

Ewing was not the problem. Kentucky’s seven-footers kept him in check, scoring only eight points. The problem was an offensive one. Kentucky couldn’t make. ashot. There was a lid on the rim. The Wildcats shot 24.5% from the field, sinking only 13-of-53 points. After leading at halftime, Kentucky did not score for the first 9 minutes and 56 seconds of the second half. They only sunk three second half shots, Georgetown won 53-40 and beat Houston two days later to take home a title.