Mike Phillips (basketball)

Michael Charles Phillips (March 24, 1956 – April 25, 2015) was an American professional basketball player. At a height of 6-foot-10-inch (2.08 m), he played at the center position. He played professionally for eleven years in Spain, including six years in Spain's top-tier level league, the Liga ACB.

Mike Phillips
Phillips at an autograph signing in 2013
Personal information
Born(1956-03-24)March 24, 1956
Akron, Ohio
DiedApril 25, 2015(2015-04-25) (aged 59)
Madisonville, Kentucky
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High schoolManchester (New Franklin, Ohio)
CollegeKentucky (1974–1978)
NBA draft1978 / Round: 3 / Pick: 45th overall
Selected by the New Jersey Nets
Playing career1979–1990
PositionCenter
Career history
1979–1980CB Mollet
1980–1982FC Barcelona
1982–1985Licor 43
1985–1987RCD Español
1987–1988Fórum Valladolid
1988–1989Cacaolat Granollers
1989–1990CB Juver Murcia
Career highlights and awards
  • NCAA champion (1978)
  • Second-team All-SEC (1976)
  • 2× Third-team All-SEC (1977, 1978)

High school

Phillips attended and played basketball at Manchester High School, in New Franklin, Ohio, from 1970 to 1974. He helped lead Manchester to the Ohio state AA basketball title in 1974 with a 26-0 record. His 2,573 career points rank 7th most in Ohio high school history.

College career

Phillips played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats, for coach Joe B. Hall. He helped Kentucky win a national championship in 1978. He teamed with 6-foot-11-inch (2.11 m) Rick Robey, to form a duo known as the Twin Towers.[1]

Phillips played four years for the Wildcats, earning All-SEC honors in his sophomore (second team), junior (second team) and senior years (third team).[2] In his senior season, Phillips averaged more than 10 points per game on the Wildcats' 1978 national championship team.[1] For his career, Phillips finished 25th on the school's career scoring list, with 1,367 points (11.4 per game), and he also grabbed 755 rebounds (6.3 per game).[1][2]

Professional career

Following graduation, Phillips was drafted by the New Jersey Nets, in the 1978 NBA Draft, but he never played in the NBA.[1] In 1979, he found his way to Spain, where he had a fruitful career. Phillips played six years in Spain's top-tier level league, the Liga ACB, and he won an ACB league championship in 1981, with FC Barcelona. For his ACB career, Phillips scored 4,423 points (23.2 per game) and grabbed 1,765 rebounds (9.2 per game) in his six seasons.[3]

Death

Phillips died after falling down a flight of stairs at his Madisonville, Kentucky, home, on April 25, 2015.[4] The 59-year-old Phillips was home alone, and the Hopkins County coroner's investigation found no evidence of criminality in the event.[4]

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References
  1. "Mike Phillips, Half of Kentucky's 'Twin Towers' of Basketball, Dies at 59". The New York Times. Associated Press. April 28, 2015. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015.
  2. 2010-11 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball media guide Archived April 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, accessed September 22, 2011
  3. 2009-10 Liga ACB Annual, accessed September 22, 2011
  4. "Coroner rules out foul play in Mike Phillips' death". Lexington Herald-Leader. April 27, 2015. Retrieved April 29, 2015.
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