1952-1953 LSU basketball star Bob Pettit. (photo courtesy of LSU Athletics)
LSU basketball legend Bob Pettit passed away at the age of 93 on Wednesday, his family announced on Thursday. The Baton Rouge native was one of the first great stars of LSU sports. His No. 50 was the first jersey to be retired across any sport, and he has a statue outside the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Longtime LSU basketball sports information director Kent Lowe said he was legendary on and off the court.
“Pettit may not be known to a lot of people other than the name to a lot of our fans, but believe me, he was quite a man, quite a basketball player,” Lowe said.
Pettit led the Southeastern Conference in scoring all three seasons at LSU and became just the second major-college player ever to average over 30 points per game in a season. He led LSU to its first Final Four in 1953, and Lowe said Pettit will never be forgotten.
“What Bob Pettit and his team did in that ’52, ’53, ’54 era at LSU was certainly legendary, one of the brightest spots in the history of the program,” Lowe said.
Pettit went on to a stellar, 11-year NBA career with the Hawks. He was the first-ever NBA MVP in 1956 and won the award again in 1959. He also helped the Hawks to an NBA title in 1958 and scored a then-record 50 points in game six to clinch the series against the Celtics. Lowe said the list of accolades goes on.
“He did break through for a title, 11-time All-Star, two-time MVP, four-time All-Star Game MVP, the first player to ever score 20,000 points,” Lowe said.
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