[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 46 (Friday, April 1, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E604]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


       HONORING DAVEY ``WIZ'' WHITNEY LEGENDARY BASKETBALL COACH

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, April 1, 2011

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Coach 
Davey Whitney, National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Famer and the 
second winningest coach in HBCU College Basketball.
  Davey Whitney was born in Midway, Kentucky in 1930. While in high 
school, he excelled in basketball, but pursued his first love--
baseball--and hoped to play professionally. Whitney graduated from 
Kentucky State University earning more letters than any other athlete 
at the university.
  Coach Whitney, affectionately known as the ``Wiz,'' began his sports 
career as a shortstop with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro 
Baseball League from 1952 to 1954 replacing Ernie Banks, who went on to 
play for the Chicago Cubs. Whitney played on the 1954 All Star Team and 
with Satchel Paige. Subsequently, he was not offered a contract with 
the Chicago Cubs and shifted his focus to coaching basketball. Though 
he never wanted to be a coach or teach, Whitney stated, ``I guess I 
carried the same kind of determination in baseball over to coaching.''
  Whitney coached high school basketball in Kentucky during the 1960s 
and was named ``Coach of the Year'' in 1961, the same year his team won 
the National High School Tournament Championship. His team went on to 
capture three Kentucky State Tournament Championships. Coach Whitney's 
first collegiate job was at Texas Southern University from 1964 to 
1969. The ``Wiz'' would go on to spend more than 25 years coaching the 
Alcorn State University Braves and be named the Southwest Athletic 
Championships, SWAC, Coach of the Year nine times.
  Whitney coached at Alcorn State University from 1969/ 1988 and again 
from 1996/ 2002, bringing the Brave squad back to prominence. During 
his coaching career, Whitney's overall record as head coach was 550 
wins and 337 defeats; 495 of his career wins were as head coach of the 
Alcorn State Braves. Under the tutelage of Coach Whitney, the Braves 
were the first historically black institution to compete in the NCAA 
playoffs. The Braves dominated the SWAC with 12 SWAC regular season 
titles--a record four consecutive titles from 1978 to 1982; 
participated in 12 national postseason tournaments, won five NAIA 
District Titles and placed second and third in the national tournaments 
during the 1970s.
  In 2010, Legendary Coach Davey ``Wiz'' Whitney was among eight 
inducted into the 2010 National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
  Again, I ask that my colleagues join me in saluting the stellar 
coaching career of legendary Coach Davey ``Wiz'' Whitney.

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