Bailey Howell (1971) - Hall of Fame

Bailey Howell

Induction:
1971
Class:
1959

Bailey Howell set the standard for basketball players who wear the Maroon and White over his three-year career from 1956-57 to 1958-59.

The Bulldogs compiled a 61-14 record, captured three Associated Press Top 15 finishes and won the program’s first SEC championship with a 24-1 record in 1958-59 while he played for Babe McCarthy.

Howell was the program’s first two-time AP All-America honoree, first consensus All-America pick as a senior and the first player to earn three All-SEC First-Team selections. He was named 1957-58 and 1958-59 SEC Player of the Year by the AP Players poll.

Howell was the first State player to average a career double-double with 27.1 points and 17.0 rebounds per game over his 75 outings. The two-time SEC scoring champion racked up double figures in 74 of 75 games fueled by a program-leading 24 outings of 30 or more points and three efforts of 40+ points. He ranked inside the NCAA’s Top 10 in scoring during all three of his seasons sparked by a pair of fourth place finishes as a junior and senior.

Howell finished as State’s all-time leader in points (2,030), points per game (27.1), rebounds (1,277) and rebounds per game (17.0). He established State’s overall and SEC single-game scoring marks with 47 points against Union on Dec. 4, 1958 in addition to 45 points against LSU on Feb. 22, 1958.

At the end of his career, Howell possessed additional program marks in free throws made (682 – 1st), field goal percentage (52.5 – 1st), field goals made (674 – 2nd). He registered 17 games of 30+ points and 10+ rebounds followed by eight performances of 30+ points and 20+ rebounds.

After State, Howell was selected No. 2 overall by the Detroit Pistons in the 1959 NBA Draft. He was a six-time NBA All-Star over a seven-year span from 1961 to 1967 and earned NBA All-Second-Team accolades in 1962-63.

Howell scored 17,770 points over his 12 seasons with the Pistons, Baltimore Bullets, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers. He won consecutive NBA titles in 1967-68 and 1968-69 with the Celtics and scored another 1401 playoff points over 10 appearances.

Howell, a Middletown, Tennessee native, has been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (1997), the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (2006), the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame (1981) and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame (1977).

Howell’s No. 52 jersey was retired to the Humphrey Coliseum rafters on Feb. 7, 2009. The road where Humphrey Coliseum is located was renamed Bailey Howell Drive in 2014. Since 2004-05, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame annually awards a bronze statue, the Bailey Howell Trophy, to the state’s top collegiate basketball player.