Jan. 31, 2006
The Wayne State Athletic Department has compiled a list of the top 30 men's basketball players in school history. The players and their credenials are listed below, along with the years they participated.
In order to narrow the field to the 10 best players of all time, WSU Athletics is looking for feedback from fans and alumni. If you would like to cast your vote for either a player below or one that is unlisted, please send your top 10 selections to Tom Gorman by February 13.
Michael Aaron: (1993-94)
- Earned 1993-94 GLIAC Player of the Year and All-GLIAC First Team honors
- Led the team in scoring (643), rebounds (228), and field goal percentage (.618)
- Holds the WSU single-season record for field goals made (256 in 1993-94)
Albert Ament: (1985-1989)
- 2001 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Set WSU single-season record for points (654 in 1988-89)
- Earned First-Team All-GLIAC honors in 1988-89
- Career averages place him 14th all-time in scoring (1065), third in field goal percentage (.563), 10th in free throw percentage (.771), and 10th in total rebounds (600)
Frederick P. Bens: (1934-1936)
- 1989 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Played center on the WSU squad that participated in the 1936 U.S. Olympic tryouts
Justin Chapman: (2001-2003)
- 2001-02 All-GLIAC First Team
- 2002-03 GLIAC All-Defense Team
- Had his number 24 retired on Dec. 6, 2003
- Justin Chapman Memorial Scholarship Fund was created in 2003
George Duncan: (1954-1960)
- 1981 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Set WSU single-game records with 50 points and 21 field goals in 1960
- Helped the 1955-56 team to an 18-3 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance
- Team co-captain in 1959-60
- Earned team MVP honors in 1960
- Ranks eighth on WSU's career list for points scored (1243), tenth in scoring average (15.5), seventh in field goals made (467), and fifth in free throws made (309)
Darrell Evans: (2003-2005)
- Named to GLIAC All-Defensive Team in 2003-04 and 2004-05
- Set a WSU single-season record and led Division II in assists with 232 in 2004-05
- Set a single-game record with 15 assists on Feb 17, 2005 against Ashland
Otis Evans: (1988-1992)
- 2004 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- WSU all-time leader in career field goal percentage (.677), 10th in scoring (1130), and sixth in rebounds (684)
- WSU's single-season leader in field goal percentage with .700 (168 of 240)
Tony Goins: (1995-1998)
- All-time career scoring leader with 1852 points
- Holds WSU all-time records for career field goals attempted (1499) and made (687), three-point field goals (177) and three-point field goal percentage (.404)
- Holds the WSU single-season record for three-point field goal percentage (.405)
- Three-time All-GLIAC selection (Second Team in 1996-97, First Team in 1997-98 and 1998-99)
- 1998-99 GLIAC Player of the Year
Robert Gunn: (1925-1928)
- 1985 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee.
- First WSU player to break the 750-point barrier (756 for career)
- Led the nation in scoring in 1927-28 (267 points)
Morris Hall: (2002-2005)
- 2004-05 All-GLIAC First Team and All-Great Lakes Region Second Team
- Averaged 17.3 points/game as a senior
- 2003-04 All-GLIAC Second Team
Derek Hardy: (1990-93)
- 1991-92 All-GLIAC Honorable Mention
- Ranks sixth all-time in career scoring (1311)
- Is in the top 10 in field goals made (fifth - 484), field goals attempted (seventh - 1086), and free throws attempted (375)
Gary Hawthorne: (1978-1980)
- All-GLIAC First Team selection in 1978-79 and 1979-80
- Ranks 12th on the all-time career scoring average list (15.1)
- Holds the WSU single-season record for consecutive field goals made (16)
- Led the team in scoring in 1978-79 (434) and 1979-80 (383)
Mark Herron: (1992-94)
- Named to the All-GLIAC Second Team and GLIAC All-Academic Team in 1993-94 as well as the GLIAC All-Defensive Team in 1992-93 and 1993-94
- Holds the WSU all-time record for career free throw percentage (.862)
- Led the team in three-point field goal percentage (.423) and free throw percentage (.849) in 1993-94
Art Johnson: (1988-1992)
- 2006 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Holds WSU's all-time record for career assists (434) and single-game records for free throws attempted (24) and free throws made (22)
- Ranks fourth all-time in games played (111), ninth in scoring (1215), and ninth in free throws made (272)
John L. Kline: (1950-1953)
- 1979 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Earned All-America and team MVP honors, as well as MVP of the Motor City and University of Detroit Christmas Tournaments in 1952-53
- Ranks ninth on WSU's career scoring list with 15.7 pts/game, and eighth all-time with 632 career rebounds
Charles LeSure: (1996-2000)
- Holds WSU single-game records for three-point field goals made (7) and attempted (16), as well as single-season records for field goals made (78) and three-point field goals attempted (221)
- Ranks fifth in career games played (110) and 11th in scoring (1098)
Kendall LeSure: (2000-2004)
- 15th player in WSU history to score 1000 career points
- Ranks 13th on the all-time scoring list (1068) and sixth in career games played (109)
- Holds WSU record three-point field goals attempted in a career (469)
Danny Lewis: (1991-93)
- Named to the All-GLIAC First Team in 1992-93 and the All-GLIAC Second Team in 1991-92
- Ranks 16th on WSU's all-time scoring list (993), fifth in scoring average (18.1), and 13th in free throw percentage (.766)
- Led the team in scoring in his junior (534) and senior (459) seasons
- Holds the school single-game record with 13 three-pointers
Russell Lightbody: (1921-1924)
- 1978 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Team captain for three years
- Led the nation in scoring in 1923-24 season and was named Midwest best floor guard
Grady Lowry: (1983-87)
- Three-time All-GLIAC First Team Selection (1984-85, 1985-86, 1986-87)
- Ranks third on the all-time lists for scoring (1570) and field goals made (629)
- Also on the WSU top-10 lists for games played (seventh - 108), field goals attempted (fourth - 1239), free throws made (fourth - 310), and free throws attempted (fourth - 418)
Fred Martus: (1967-1970)
- 1992 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- 1968-69 All-American
- Led WSU to its first NCAA Division II Tournament appearance in 1969-70
- One of only two players to serve as team captain for three seasons
Raheem Muhammad: (1982-1986)
- WSU's career rebounds leader (1,271)
- Holds single-season record for rebounds (428 in 1985-86)
- Three-time All-GLIAC First Team selection (1983-84, 1984-85, 1985-86)
- 1985-86 GLIAC Player of the Year
Charles Primas: (1951-1954)
- 1976 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee (charter member)
- 1952-53 All-American
- First WSU player to reach 1,000 points and rebounds
- Ranks third all-time in scoring average (19.5), seventh in scoring (1290), and second in rebounding (1034)
- Team captain in 1953-54 and 1954-55
Fred L. Prime, Jr.: (1960-62)
- 1989 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Holds the WSU single-season record for field goal attempts (493)
- Ranks second all-time in career scoring average (21.9)
- All-PAC (Presidents Athletic Conference) First Team in 1960-61 and 1961-62
Jack Rice: (1945 Graduate)
- 1978 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Earned two varsity letters in basketball
Therone (Ty) Richardson: (1974-1978)
- 1991 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- Ranks sixth all-time in points scored (1484) and third in rebounds (983)
- WSU's first ever All-GLIAC honoree (Second Team in 1976-77)
Myron "Susie" Schecter: (1926-1928)
- 1980 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee.
- Team captain in 1928
- First man in the state of Michigan to score over 200 points in a season (221 in 1926)
- Was a Michigan Collegiate Conference First Team honoree in 1928 after leading the team to a school-best 18-1 record and the school's first conference crown
Robert Solomon: (1970-1973)
- 1985 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- 1972-73 All-American
- Only Wayne State player in history to lead the Tartars for three seasons in points, scoring average, rebounds, rebounding average, field goals, field goal percentage, and free throws
- Ranks first in career scoring average (23.4), second in points scored (1612), and fifth in rebounds (909)
- Set the single-season record for scoring average (26.0)
Terrance Walker: (1993-1995)
- Ranks 12th all-time in career free throw percentage (.768)
- Held single-season record for assists with 200 (1993-94), until Darrell Evans broke it in 2004-05
Frederick L. Wolcott: (1962-1965)
- 1988 WSU Athletic Hall of Fame inductee
- All-PAC First Team in 1964 and 1965
- Two-year team co-captain
- Ranks seventh all-time in career scoring average (16.5)
