| Wins against Kentucky - 2 | Losses against Kentucky - 16 |
Alma Mater: Indiana [1920]
Hometown: Indianapolis, IN
Date Born: March 17, 1896
Date Died: August 15, 1977
Overall Record: 256-171 [18 Seasons]
| Date | Matchup | UK Result | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/12/1963 | Kentucky at Tulane | W | 81 - 72 | - |
| 3/5/1962 | Tulane at Kentucky | W | 97 - 72 | - |
| 1/14/1961 | Kentucky at Tulane | L | 70 - 72 | - |
| 1/11/1960 | Tulane at Kentucky | W | 68 - 42 | - |
| 1/12/1959 | Kentucky at Tulane | W | 85 - 68 | - |
| 1/13/1958 | Tulane at Kentucky | W | 86 - 50 | - |
| 1/14/1957 | Kentucky at Tulane | L | 60 - 68 | - |
| 1/12/1956 | Tulane at Kentucky | W | 85 - 63 | - |
| 1/15/1955 | Kentucky at Tulane | W | 58 - 44 | - |
| 1/16/1954 | Tulane at Kentucky | W | 94 - 43 | - |
| 2/29/1952 | Kentucky vs. Tulane | W | 85 - 61 | SEC Tournament (at Louisville, KY) |
| 2/4/1952 | Tulane at Kentucky | W | 103 - 54 | - |
| 1/29/1951 | Kentucky at Tulane | W | 104 - 68 | - |
| 3/5/1949 | Kentucky vs. Tulane | W | 68 - 52 | SEC Tournament Championship (at Louisville, KY) |
| 12/29/1948 | Kentucky vs. Tulane | W | 78 - 47 | Sugar Bowl (at New Orleans, LA) |
| 12/22/1948 | Kentucky vs. Tulane | W | 51 - 47 | (at Louisville, KY) |
| 3/1/1947 | Kentucky vs. Tulane | W | 55 - 38 | SEC Tournament Championship (at Louisville, KY) |
| 11/30/1946 | Tulane at Kentucky | W | 64 - 35 | - |
Obituary - Indianapolis News (August 16, 1977)
Cliff Wells Dies; Coaching Great
GARLAND, Tex. - Cliff Wells, one of the storied coaches in Indiana high school basketball history, died of an apparent heart attack at his home yesterday. He was 81.
Voted to the Indiana High School Basketball Hall of Fame in 1965, Wells won the state championship with Bloomington in 1919 and then captured his second title in 1934 at Logansport.
Wells moved to Tulane University at the conclusion of World War II and won nearly 300 games before retiring. Later he served as director of the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass. for three years and was executive director of the National Association of Basketball Coaches for 12 years.
Wells started his brilliant coaching career at Bloomington High upon graduation. He was a star forward during his playing days.
The championship was a breakthrough in 1919. For the first time since it began in 1911 the tourney finals were played at Purdue and a visiting team outside of the Crawfordsville area won.
Wells team overwhelmed its four sectional foes by a combined 149-37 score. Then in the finals the Panthers slipped by Richmond, 16-13, beat Indianapolis Manual and Thorntown and edged Lafayette, 18-15, in the championship game.
Wells shortly moved to Logansport and his North Central Conference battles with the likes of Everett Case, Pete Jolly and Orville Hooker are legendary.
In 1927 he guided the Berries to the finals of the old Indianapolis Exposition Building, but Wells' club was eliminated, 27-14, by eventual champion Martinsville, coached by another giant, Glenn Curtis.
The Berries lost only one game that year until falling to the Artesians. Old-timers still recall that midseason loss at Frankfort.
The bus carrying Wells' club to Frankfort broke down and the varsity game didn't start until almost midnight. Logansport jumped into a 7-6 lead in the first 5 minutes, but then Frankfort went into a stall,one man holding the ball at center court. Logansport tried the same tactic to the start of the second half as the officials sat in the front row of the bleachers. A Berry was called for traveling from this unusual referee's viewing position and Dick Pearcy scored from center court. Frankfort scored once again and the game ended, 10-7, with fights breaking out all around the gymnasium. Wells and Case agreed to cancel the game scheduled for Logansport.
This was the first of many stall games that led to changes in the rules.
After 15 years Wells won his second state title in 1934 as his Berries downed Indianapolis Tech, 26-19, after barely escaping Jasper's claws. Wells had his defense sag in on Tech's brilliant Johnny Townsend, holding him to four points. Wells felt Townsend was the best player in the tourney.
Wells has lived in Garland, a Dallas suburb, the past eight years.
