The passing of the College Basketball Hall of Famer was announced by Kentucky’s John Calipari, as well as the Kentucky men’s basketball team:
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Hall, a native of Cynthiana, Ky., was a former Kentucky basketball player; he was a member of Adolph Rupp’s 1948-49 national championship team before transferring to play at Sewanee. Though Hall used up his remaining eligibility playing for the Tigers, he did not graduate; he returned to Kentucky to finish his undergraduate degree, graduating in 1955.
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Hall began his coaching career at Regis University from 1959-64, compiling a 57-50 record. He then spent a year coaching what was then called Central Missouri State, leading the Mules to a 19-6 record. Following that season, he returned to Kentucky to serve as an assistant under Hall of Fame coach Adolph Rupp from 1965 through 1972. He took over the program in 1972-73, leading the Wildcats for 13 seasons.
Hall compiled a 297-100 record in 13 seasons at Kentucky, with his worst season coming in the second year of his tenure: The Wildcats finished 13-13 and did not make the postseason, the only time of Hall’s career. He also enjoyed plenty of success, bringing in eight SEC championships; 10 NCAA Tournament berths; two NIT berths — including a championship in 1975-76 — four trips to the Elite Eight; two Final Four trips; and the 1978 NCAA Tournament championship, the fifth in Kentucky program history and first in 20 years.
In leading the Wildcats to the 1977-78 national championship, Hall became just one of three people in college basketball history to both play for and coach a national championship team. He also led the Wildcats to a runner-up finish in the 1975 NCAA Tournament, behind only John Wooden’s UCLA team.
Hall coached seven players to earn All-America honors 11 times. Twenty-four of his players also went onto play in the NBA.
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Hall was a beloved figure in Kentucky, even following his retirement. He remained closely tied to the program, attending practices and attending home games at Rupp Arena. He also hosted a radio show with former rival and Louisville basketball coach Denny Crum — called the “Joe B. and Denny Show” — from 2004-14. In 2012, Kentucky unveiled a statue of Hall outside Rupp Arena to commemorate his accomplishments at Kentucky.
His passing created a wave of well wishes and memorials on social media, not only from Kentucky basketball fans, but also the college basketball world at large:
