Ralph Davis

Background

Davis was born in Vanceburg, Kentucky, the son of Ralph E. Davis Senior, a self-employed businessman, and Anna Louis (Plummer) Davis.

Education

Davis attended the University of Cincinnati, where he was a three-year starter for the Bearcats and coach George Smith.

Career

He played basketball at Lewis County High School in Vanceburg. He scored 1,810 points for the Lions and averaged 26.4 points and 18 rebounds per game as a senior. He was an all-district selection for three years.

As a senior in 1956 he was named second team all-state by Louisville Courier-Journal as he led the Lions to the Eastern Kentucky Conference title.

He was also an honor student. As a junior in 1958-1959, Davis started at guard alongside Carl Bouldin and averaged 15.5 points (second to Robertson), 4.4 assists and 2.0 rebounds as the Bearcats were again MVC champions and Davis was named All-MVC. The 26-4 Bearcats advanced to the National Collegiate Athletic Association Final Four, where they finished in third place.

Davis was named All-MVC and was also named second-team All-American by Converse. The Bearcats went 28-2, again advancing to the Final Four and again finishing third.

Davis" 1,093 career points ranked sixth in Cincinnati history upon his graduation in 1960.

Davis was drafted in the third round (17th overall) of the 1960 National Basketball Association Draft by the Cincinnati Royals. As a rookie in 1960-1961, he played in 73 games, averaged 16.6 minutes, 2.4 assists and 1.2 rebounds per game as a reserve guard for the 33-46 Royals. On April 26, 1961 he was drafted by the Chicago Packers in the National Basketball Association expansion draft.

Foreign the 1961-1962 season, in 77 games Davis" playing time increased to nearly 26 minutes per game as he posted career-high averages of 10.4 points, 3.2 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game for the 18-62 expansion team

In November 1961, the Packers had traded Davis to the Saint Louis Hawks in a multi-player deal, but the trade was rescinded by National Basketball Association Commissioner Maurice Podoloff. In 1962 he was officially traded to the Saint Louis Hawks, but he did not play and his ended after two seasons.

In 1981, Davis was inducted into the University of Cincinnati Athletics Hall of Fame. In 1998, he was inducted into the Greater Cincinnati Basketball Hall of Fame.

In December 2010, Lewis County High School held a ceremony to retire Davis" number.

Davis is retired and lives in Reading, a suburb of Cincinnati.

Achievements

• As a sophomore in 1957-1958, he averaged 7.8 points per game as the Bearcats posted a 25-3 record and won the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) title led by fellow sophomore and future Hall-of-Famer forward Oscar Robertson and future longtime National Basketball Association player Connie Dierking. As a senior in 1959-1960, Davis posted averages of 13.7 points (again second to Robertson), 4.4 assists and 2.0 rebounds per game while shooting 50 percent from the field as again the Bearcats won the league crown.