Murray State University Athletics
Racer Great McPherson To Be Enshrined In Indiana Basketball HOF
3/21/2017 5:15:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Murray State Athletics Hall of Famer Herb McPherson will be inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, Wednesday, March 22, in a ceremony at Primo Banquet Hall in Indianapolis, Ind.
McPherson, who was enshrined into the Murray State Hall of Fame in 1989, is part of the 56th class of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF MCPHERSON'S BIG NIGHT AT THE INDIANA BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME
"It's a very humbling experience to be inducted into the Indiana hall," McPherson said. "The game of basketball has enabled me to be around a lot of outstanding people in my life and I'm grateful for that. And when you look at the others that are in the Indiana Hall of Fame, from John Wooden to Oscar Robinson, you know how special this is. I am very happy to represent my high school (Mississinewa) and Murray State University in receiving this honor."
McPherson is part of a class of 14 being inducted including Purdue great Glen Robinson and Indiana's Allen Henderson. Players are only eligible once they've been out of school for 25 years.
McPherson's career as a player and then high school coach started in Gas City, Indiana and continued at Murray State.
"When I visited Murray, my wife and I went down there and spent the weekend with Coach Cal Luther," McPherson recalled. "Coach Luther was a class individual and I liked him as a person and as a coach. Laurie and I are both MSU grads and we love the university. I fell in love with his philosophy of basketball because we were run-and-gun and shoot it up."
Indeed, McPherson's senior season in 1966-67, produced a team scoring average of 89.5 points per game without the benefit of the 3-point shot. It stood as the standard for single-season scoring at MSU until the 1993-94 squad topped it at 90.0.
"It was fun to play that way and that's the way Cal coached us," McPherson said. "The 1960's was a great time for OVC (Ohio Valley Conference) basketball. There was a high level of play back then and it was very competitive."
McPherson arrived at Murray State in 1963 during a period when freshmen had to sit out their first season.
"I was thrilled to get Herb to Murray State," Luther said. "He was about as good a scorer that I had ever seen and his shot was totally natural. It was hard to sit him because I knew he was going to be a great player. The one thing he had that you couldn't take away from him was that shot. He was just fantastic."
In 1966, McPherson set the Murray State single-game scoring record with 44 points against Middle Tennessee. At home in Racer Arena, McPherson's historic night included 17 field goals and 10 free throws in a 107-81 victory. His record is still second in MSU history and stood until 1995 when Marcus Brown scored 45 points against Washington (MO).
McPherson was a two-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection as a junior and senior in 1966-67. His 20.4 points scoring average as a senior was first all-time at MSU and is still seventh today. He finished his Racer career as the third-leading scorer in school history with 1,513 points. No Racer scored more points than McPherson did during the 1960s.
In 1967, he was just the seventh Racer to be taken in the NBA Draft when the San Diego Rockets selected him in the fifth round.
Coach Luther will be attending McPherson's big night in Indianapolis.
"I wouldn't miss this for anything," Luther said. "Just to think of the great players and coaches that have gone into that at Indiana hall, it's a real honor for Herb to be inducted by a state that just worships their basketball. So I am very happy for him."
McPherson was a legend in Indiana high school circles long before he came to Murray State to play for the Racers.
He was a standout at Mississinewa High School where he scored 1,736 points for the small school in Gas City. He also coached at his alma mater and then at North Posey and Marion high schools.
McPherson joins former Murray State star William Moore in the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Moore, who played for Coach Scott Edgar from 1993-95, was inducted in 2015. Other Murray State influences in the IBHOF include: Janice McCracken O'Brien (Murray State 1981, inducted in 2011) and Dick Kinder (Murray State 1956, inducted in 2012).
McPherson, who was enshrined into the Murray State Hall of Fame in 1989, is part of the 56th class of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF MCPHERSON'S BIG NIGHT AT THE INDIANA BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME
"It's a very humbling experience to be inducted into the Indiana hall," McPherson said. "The game of basketball has enabled me to be around a lot of outstanding people in my life and I'm grateful for that. And when you look at the others that are in the Indiana Hall of Fame, from John Wooden to Oscar Robinson, you know how special this is. I am very happy to represent my high school (Mississinewa) and Murray State University in receiving this honor."
McPherson is part of a class of 14 being inducted including Purdue great Glen Robinson and Indiana's Allen Henderson. Players are only eligible once they've been out of school for 25 years.
McPherson's career as a player and then high school coach started in Gas City, Indiana and continued at Murray State.
"When I visited Murray, my wife and I went down there and spent the weekend with Coach Cal Luther," McPherson recalled. "Coach Luther was a class individual and I liked him as a person and as a coach. Laurie and I are both MSU grads and we love the university. I fell in love with his philosophy of basketball because we were run-and-gun and shoot it up."
Indeed, McPherson's senior season in 1966-67, produced a team scoring average of 89.5 points per game without the benefit of the 3-point shot. It stood as the standard for single-season scoring at MSU until the 1993-94 squad topped it at 90.0.
"It was fun to play that way and that's the way Cal coached us," McPherson said. "The 1960's was a great time for OVC (Ohio Valley Conference) basketball. There was a high level of play back then and it was very competitive."
McPherson arrived at Murray State in 1963 during a period when freshmen had to sit out their first season.
"I was thrilled to get Herb to Murray State," Luther said. "He was about as good a scorer that I had ever seen and his shot was totally natural. It was hard to sit him because I knew he was going to be a great player. The one thing he had that you couldn't take away from him was that shot. He was just fantastic."
In 1966, McPherson set the Murray State single-game scoring record with 44 points against Middle Tennessee. At home in Racer Arena, McPherson's historic night included 17 field goals and 10 free throws in a 107-81 victory. His record is still second in MSU history and stood until 1995 when Marcus Brown scored 45 points against Washington (MO).
McPherson was a two-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection as a junior and senior in 1966-67. His 20.4 points scoring average as a senior was first all-time at MSU and is still seventh today. He finished his Racer career as the third-leading scorer in school history with 1,513 points. No Racer scored more points than McPherson did during the 1960s.
In 1967, he was just the seventh Racer to be taken in the NBA Draft when the San Diego Rockets selected him in the fifth round.
Coach Luther will be attending McPherson's big night in Indianapolis.
"I wouldn't miss this for anything," Luther said. "Just to think of the great players and coaches that have gone into that at Indiana hall, it's a real honor for Herb to be inducted by a state that just worships their basketball. So I am very happy for him."
McPherson was a legend in Indiana high school circles long before he came to Murray State to play for the Racers.
He was a standout at Mississinewa High School where he scored 1,736 points for the small school in Gas City. He also coached at his alma mater and then at North Posey and Marion high schools.
McPherson joins former Murray State star William Moore in the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Moore, who played for Coach Scott Edgar from 1993-95, was inducted in 2015. Other Murray State influences in the IBHOF include: Janice McCracken O'Brien (Murray State 1981, inducted in 2011) and Dick Kinder (Murray State 1956, inducted in 2012).
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