Lafayette legends among 2021 inductees to High School Basketball Hall of Fame
Dirk Minniefield and Bob Mulcahy, two Lafayette High School greats who went on to play for the University of Kentucky, were among the 2021 inductees announced this week by the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame.
Among those joining them include Doss and Kentucky basketball legend Derek Anderson and Rockcastle County’s 2011 Miss Basketball Sarah Beth Hammond, who continued her playing career at the University of Louisville.
The Hall, located in Elizabethtown, announced a number of events in the coming months, including separate induction ceremonies for its 2020 and 2021 honorees.
Postponed due to the pandemic, the 2020 class will be inducted May 15 at Elizabethtown State Theater with the 2021 ceremony taking place at the same venue on July 24.
The 2021 inductees are:
Dirk Minniefield (Lafayette 1979) — Helped lead Lafayette to a state championship and earned Mr. Basketball honors in 1979 before moving on to a standout career with Kentucky and an NBA career. Coach Jock Sutherland’s Generals went 36-1 their state title year as Minniefield earned All-America honors. He was a three-time all-state player.
Bob Mulcahy (Lafayette 1950) — Mulcahy helped lead Coach Ralph Carlisle’s Generals to the state title in 1950 and earned all-state honors his junior and senior seasons before moving on to play for Kentucky. He later became an outstanding high school football coach at Seneca, leading the school to state championships in 1963 and 1964.
Derek Anderson (Doss 1992) — A two-time all-state player, Anderson electrified fans with his athleticism and started for the Dragons for four seasons before becoming one of Coach Rick Pitino’s “Untouchables” on the 1996 national title-winning Kentucky Wildcats and enjoying a successful NBA career.
Sara Beth Hammond (Rockcastle County 2011) — A three-time all-state player, Hammond helped lead the Rockets to a 36-1 record and a state title in 2011, earning Miss Basketball honors. At Louisville, she played in 15 NCAA tournament games, the most in school history, and was part of their national runner-up finish in 2013.
Coach Tim Riley (Warren Central 1990-active) — Now with Owensboro Catholic, where he led the Aces to their first 3rd Region title in school history in 2019 and repeated the feat in 2020, Riley won 13 district titles, 10 regional crowns and the 2004 Sweet 16 state championship at Warren Central.
Coach Rodney Woods (Wayne County 1987-active) — Ranking fifth on the state’s all-time boys’ basketball wins list with more than 800 in his 37-year career, Woods has twice been named state coach of the year and averaged more than 20 wins per season with nine Sweet 16 appearances. He was also an all-state player at Lone Jack High School in 1971 and went on to play at Tennessee.
Coach Bill Brown (Southern 1976-1995) — Became state coach of the year after leading Southern to the 1987 Sweet 16 title and compiled an 87 percent win rate with 447 victories against 116 losses. His teams won 20 or more games for 13 consecutive seasons from 1981 to 1993 with 14 district titles and 10 region crowns.
Frank Selvy (Corbin 1950) — A 1950 all-state player who led the Redhounds to the Sweet 16 semifinals and a third-place finish, Selvy spurned late interest from Kentucky and went on to star for Furman where he had a 100-point game. He became a No. 1 draft pick of the Minneapolis Lakers and played alongside NBA legend Jerry West.
Pat Tallent (Maytown 1971) — An All-American and two-time all-state player, Tallent, also made the all-state tournament team as a sophomore for the Floyd County school. He went on to play for older brother Bob at George Washington and later in life distinguished himself as a golfer by winning the 2014 U.S. Senior Amateur Championship and the 2015 British Senior Amateur Championship.
Clarence Wilson (Horse Cave 1945) — Helped lead Horse Cave to a 65-1 record, two state titles and a runner-up finish in three seasons in the all-Black school Kentucky Athletic League. Became a longtime player with the Harlem Globetrotters after his career at Tennessee A&I.
Barney Thweatt (Brewers 1948) — Team captain for the last unbeaten Kentucky high school basketball state champion at 36-0. Thweatt went on to star for both Memphis and Murray State and became a standout high school coach at Oldham County and Paducah Tilghman.
Sarah Elliott Cannon (Jackson County 2004) — A 6-6 post player, Elliott led the Lady Generals to the 2020 Sweet 16 finals and had 2,731 points, 1,843 rebounds and 821 blocks over her career and went on to play for Kentucky where she averaged 11.3 points and 6 rebounds per game.
