The 1961–62 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team represented the University of Illinois.
Regular season The 1961-62 Fighting Illini basketball team bounced back from a miserable season the year prior. Head coach Harry Combes non-conference season was nearly perfect with an 8-1 record. The only blemish for the University of Illinois was a home loss to Cornell. The most unusual thing about this season was that the Illini played three neutral court games in Chicago. This would also be the final full season that the Fighting Illini would play their home games at Huff Hall.
The 1961-62 team utilized several returning lettermen including the leading scorer and team "MVP" Dave Downey. It also saw the return of team captain Jerry Colangelo, juniors Bill Burwell, Bill Small, Bob Starnes as well as senior Doug Mills. The Illini also added sophomore John Love to their lineup. The Illini finished the season with a conference record of 7 wins and 7 losses, finishing in a 4th place tie in the Big Ten. They would finish with an overall record of 15 wins and 8 losses. The starting lineup included Bill Burwell at the center position, Bill Small and Jerry Colangelo at guard and Dave Downey and Bob Starnes at the forward slots.Fighting Illini Basketball: A Hardwood History By News-Gazette, Sports Publishing LLC
Roster
Schedule
SourceUniversity of Illinois Fighting Illini Statistics Summary for 1961-62, FightingIllini.com
Schedule |- !colspan=12 style="background:#DF4E38; color:white;"| Non-Conference regular season |- align="center" bgcolor=""
!colspan=9 style="background:#DF4E38; color:#FFFFFF;"|Big Ten regular season
Player stats Player Games played Field goals Free throws Rebounds PointsDave Downey 2217497269445Bill Burwell 23151124266426Bill Small231337090336Jerry Colangelo 231117395295Bob Starnes238158147220Doug Mills 152591859John Love2218158651Jay Lovelace13461014Jerry Curless 1062814Bill Edwards 1451911Jerry Renner542610Sam Leeper50232Jeff Ferguson30020
Awards and honors Dave Downey Converse Honorable Mention All-American Team Most Valuable Player Bill Burwell Converse Honorable Mention All-American
Team players drafted into the NBA Player NBA club Round PickNo Player Selected
Rankings
References