| 1947–48 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball | |
|---|---|
![]()  | |
NCAA tournament National champions  SEC regular season and tournament champions  | |
| Conference | Southeast Conference | 
| Record | 36–3 (9–0 SEC) | 
| Head coach | |
| Assistant coach | Harry Lancaster | 
| Home arena | Alumni Gymnasium | 
The 1947–48 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team, also known as the Fabulous Five,[1] represented University of Kentucky. The head coach was Adolph Rupp. The team was a member of the Southeast Conference and played their home games at Alumni Gymnasium.
They won 36 of 39 games in their conference, earning them the 1948 NCAA basketball tournament championship.[2]
NCAA tournament
- East
- Kentucky 76, Columbia 53
 
 - Final Four
- Kentucky 60, Holy Cross 52
 
 - Championship
- Kentucky 58, Baylor 42
 
 
Awards and honors
Team players drafted into the NBA
| Player | NBA Club | 
|---|---|
| Joe Holland | Baltimore Bullets | 
| Ken Rollins | Fort Wayne Pistons | 
| Jack Parkinson | Washington Capitols | 
Fabulous Five
Though the Fabulous Five referred to the whole team during the 1947–1948 season, five players stood out in particular: Ralph Beard (guard), Alex Groza (center), Wallace "Wah Wah" Jones (forward), Cliff Barker (forward), and Kenny Rollins (guard).[2][1] Following the successful 1947–1948 season at UK, all five competed as a unit and won gold at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London.[2][5] [6] Rollins graduated but the other four returned for the 1948–1949 season, which they dominated. Coach Rupp then retired the jerseys of Barker, Beard, Groza, Jones, and Rollins.[7][1]
References
- 1 2 3 Mink, Ken (August 5, 2021). "Big Blue Blues: Dividing the Talent". SB Nation. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
 - 1 2 3 "The Fabulous Five". Walter's Wildcat World. n.d. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
 - ↑ "RotoWire Fantasy Football, Baseball, Basketball and More".
 - ↑ "1948 NBA Draft on". Databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on May 3, 2012. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
 - ↑ Layton, Miles (February 9, 2022). "Harlan High's Gymnasium Pays Tribute to School's Most Decorated Athlete". Harlan Enterprise. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
 - ↑ Taylor, Keith (June 29, 2021). "Two former Kentucky basketball players named to the U.S. Olympic Team". NKY Tribune. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
 - ↑ "Men's Basketball Retired Jerseys". UK Athletics. n.d. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
 
