Gene Vance

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For the American soldier, see Gene Arden Vance Jr.
Gene Vance
Gene Vance 1948.jpg
Vance in 1948
Personal information
Born(1923-02-25)February 25, 1923
Clinton, Illinois
DiedFebruary 16, 2012(2012-02-16) (aged 88)
Champaign, Illinois
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High schoolClinton (Clinton, Illinois)
CollegeIllinois (1941–1943, 1946–1947)
NBA draft1947 / Round: -- / Pick: --
Selected by the Chicago Stags
Playing career1947–1952
PositionGuard / Forward
Number25
Career history
1947–1949Chicago Stags
1949–1952Tri-Cities Blackhawks / Milwaukee Hawks
Career BAA and NBA statistics
Points1,437 (8.3 ppg)
Rebounds103 (2.9 rpg)
Assists399 (2.3 apg)
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Ellis Eugene "Gene" Vance (February 25, 1923 – February 16, 2012) was an American professional basketball player. He played in the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Chicago Stags and Tri-Cities Blackhawks / Milwaukee Hawks.

Vence played college basketball for the Illinois Fighting Illini where he led the team as a member of the famed "Whiz Kids" of the 1940s. He and the other Whiz Kids, Andy Phillip, Art Mathisen, Ken Menke, and Jack Smiley, are regarded as some of Illinois' all-time greats, but only he and Phillip are on the team's all-century team. Vance and his Whiz Kids teammates left basketball to serve in World War II in 1943. Vance was selected by the Stags in the 1948 NBA draft, and played professionally for five seasons. He served as the athletic director of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign from 1967 to 1972.[1]

Vance was married to Grace Hoberg from 1943 until her death from stomach cancer in 1980. Vance later married Janann Duffy and had four children. He died on February 16, 2012, at age 88.[1]

Honors[]

  • 1973, Inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame as a player.[2]
  • 2004, Elected to the "Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team".[3]
  • December 18, 2006, The post office in his hometown of Clinton was named the "Gene Vance Post Office" in his honor.
  • September 13, 2008 Awarded as one of the thirty-three honored jerseys which hang in the State Farm Center to show regard for being the most decorated basketball players in the University of Illinois' history.

College and professional statistics[]

University of Illinois[]

Season Games Points PPG Big Ten
Record 		Overall
Record 		Postseason
1941–42
23
98
4.2
13–2
18–05
Big Ten Champions
1942–43
18
126
7.0
12–0
17–1
Big Ten Champions
Premo-Porretta National Champions
1946–47
20
135
6.75
8–4
14–6
—
Totals
61
359
5.9
33–6
49–12

BAA/NBA[]

Legend
  GP Games played  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game
 PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season[]

Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1947–48 Chicago 48 – .264 .603 – 1.0 8.4
1948–49 Chicago 56 – .338 .724 – 3.0 10.3
1949–50 Tri-Cities 35 – .338 .717 – 3.5 8.7
1950–51 Tri-Cities 29 – .404 .701 3.2 2.0 4.8
1951–52 Milwaukee 7 16.9 .269 .643 2.1 1.3 3.3
Career 175 16.9 .315 .687 3.0 2.3 8.3

Playoffs[]

Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1948 Chicago 5 – .258 .765 – .2 9.4
1949 Chicago 2 – .229 .833 – 3.5 10.5
1950 Tri-Cities 3 – .226 .500 – 3.0 6.3
Career 10 – .242 .697 – 1.7 8.7

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Gene Vance". The News-Gazette. February 21, 2012. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  2. ^ IBCA Hall of Fame
  3. ^ "Memory Lane: Gene Vance". Retrieved 18 February 2018.

External links[]


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