Govoner Vaughn

Govoner Vaughn (born March 1, 1937)[2] was a former high school, college and professional basketball player during the 1950s & 60s. Vaughn led Edwardsville High School to a fourth-place finish in the I.H.S.A. 1954 high school playoffs, as well as a second-place finish in 1956 to defending champion, Rockford West. Vaughn played in eight career state playoff games over two seasons, and his 92 points were all scored during the 1956 tournament. He, along with his teammate, Mannie Jackson, were named first-team all-tournament.

Govoner Vaughn
CollegeIllinois
ConferenceBig Ten
SportBasketball
PositionForward
Jersey #35
Height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight185 lb (84 kg)
NationalityAmerican
Born (1937-03-01) March 1, 1937
Edwardsville, Illinois
High schoolEdwardsville High School
Awards
  • 2× All-American (1958, 1960)
  • 2× All-Big Ten (1959, 1960)
Honors
Championships

Vaughn went on to play for the University of Illinois for three years, 1957-1960, where he and his fellow high school teammate, Jackson, were the first African-American letter winners for the University of Illinois.[3] Vaughn scored 1,001 career points, the 46th highest total in Illini history. He also holds the second highest single season free-throw percentage at .865, making 83 of 96 during the 1959-60 season.

After graduating from Illinois in 1960, Vaughn joined the Harlem Globetrotters. During his time with the Globetrotters, he was named MVP of the 1961 World Series of Basketball. This event was a 20-game series against the nation's top college seniors.[4] Vaughn rejoined the Globetrotters in 2010 and served as the team's director of alumni relations after spending 24 years at Detroit Edison.

College career

1956-57 season

Vaughn played on the freshman squad, records for this season could not be added to his varsity totals.

1957-58 season

During Vaughn's sophomore season, he started all 22 games as the team's center. He finished the season with the second highest point total (327) averaging 14.9 points per game. Only Don Ohl scored more points at 431. Vaughn, however, finished with the highest field goal average at .426 and the second highest free-throw percentage at .773, making 51 of his 66 attempts.[5]

1958-59 season

Even with the graduation of leading scorer Don Ohl, the Fighting Illini experienced a surge in performance sparked by the play of junior center John Wessels and Edwardsville High School teammate Mannie Jackson along with senior guard Roger Taylor. These changes, however, limited Vaughn's production and reduced his point total to 263 for the season. Even with a reduced role, Vaughn finished the season with the fourth highest point total averaging 12.5 points per game.[6]

1959-60 season

Vaughn was the instrumental force in the 1959–60 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team. He started all 23 games during that season and dominated all offensive categories after an injury sidelined previous team-leader John Wessels. Vaughn was first on the Fighting Illini in scoring with 411 points (17.9 per game), first on the team in rebounding with 189 (8.2 per game) and first on the team in free-throw percentage at .865 (83 of 96); second on the all-time Illini record list. Vaughn was named team MVP as well as All-American for this season.[7]

Honors

Basketball
  • 1959 - Honorable Mention All-Big Ten
  • 1960 - 2nd Team All-Big Ten
  • 1960 - Team MVP[8]
  • 1973 - Inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame as a player.[9][10]
  • 2008 - Honored as one of the thirty-three honored jerseys which hang in the State Farm Center to show regard for being the most decorated basketball players in the University of Illinois' history.

Statistics

College
Season Games Points PPG Field Goals Attempts Avg Free Throws Attempts Avg Rebounds Avg Big Ten
Record		 Overall
Record
1957–58
22
327
14.9
138
324
.426
51
66
.773
-
-
5–9
11–11
1958–59
21
263
12.5
110
289
.381
43
67
.642
170
8.1
7–7
12–10
1959–60
23
411
17.9
164
357
.459
83
96
.865
187
8.1
8–6
16–7
Totals
66
1001
15.2
412
970
.425
177
229
.773
357
8.1
20–22
39–28

[11]

References
  1. "Three Illini Basketball Legends Join Honored Jerseys". University of Illinois Alumni Association. Retrieved January 30, 2014.
  2. https://fightingillini.com/news/2020/2/26/mens-basketball-govoner-vaughn-illinois-groundbreaking-star.aspx?path=mbball
  3. Tate, Loren; Gelfond, Jared (September 15, 2004). A Century of Orange and Blue: Celebrating 100 Years of Fighting Illini. Sports Publishing LLC. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
  4. http://www.apbr.org/wrldsers.html
  5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-03-19. Retrieved 2014-03-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-11-02. Retrieved 2014-03-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-06-25. Retrieved 2014-03-11.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. FightingIllini.com
  9. IBCA Hall of Fame
  10. BasketballMuseumOfIllinois.com
  11. Sports-Reference.com

Govoner Vaughn's Honored Jersey Ceremony on YouTube

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