Lucas ‘grateful’ to have court named in his honor

How to go

What: Jerry Lucas Court Dedication

When: Today between junior varsity and varsity boys basketball games. The varisty game begins at 7:30 p.m.

Where: Wade E. Miller Gym, 1415 Girard Ave., Middletown

Tickets: $6 for adults and $4 for senior citizens and children.

For three glorious years, Jerry Lucas put Middletown on the map.

For two nights, the city will shine its light on Lucas.

The floor at Wade E. Miller Gym — where Lucas led the boys basketball team at Middletown High School to 76 consecutive wins and back-to-back state championships — will be named the Jerry Lucas Court. The ceremony will be held before the varsity game between Middletown and Hamilton and will feature Lucas; Tim Walker and Paul Walker Jr., sons of the late Middies coach Paul Walker; and Jim Nein, a 1963 MHS graduate and two-sport standout.

Two 5-foot-by 2-foot vinyl decals will be unveiled near midcourt. The Jerry Lucas portion of the decal will resemble his autograph, which Lucas says is unique because it’s legible.

Lucas, 72, called having the court named after him “a tremendous honor” considering all the great Middies who played there.

“I am extremely grateful,” Lucas said Thursday afternoon during a phone interview. “This is a very special time.”

Also on Friday night, a banner will be unveiled that will honor Coach Paul Walker, who compiled a 562-136 record in 30 seasons at Middletown. He led the Middies state championships in 1947, 1952, 1953, 1956 and 1957. His banner will be next to Lucas and Archie Aldridge.

Paul Walker Jr., 67, said his father would be “busting at the seams” of the recognition.

“I’m sure he’ll be smiling down on us,” Walker Jr. said Thursday afternoon. He said his father enjoyed the accolades of “being the main man” in Middie basketball history.

He said his father had opportunities to leave Middletown for other coaching positions, but preferred to coach the Middies. Now whenever Walker Jr. visits Middletown, his mind flashes back more than 50 years.

“That was a very, very special time,” he said. “It’s awful special here.”

Then on Saturday night, a sold out Jerry Lucas Dedication Dinner will be held at Miami University Middletown. Organizers said they sold 200 tickets and could have sold 300 if the venue was larger. Lucas is expected to address the crowd and the evening will be emceed by Paul Walker Jr. and Nein.

Proceeds from the event are going to establish a Jerry Lucas Scholarship. After graduating from MHS in 1958, Lucas earned an academic scholarship at Ohio State University, where he led the Buckeyes to the 1960 NCAA national championship. That same year, Lucas, the youngest player on the U.S. team, won a gold medal at the Rome Olympics.

This has been quite a time for Lucas. When Middletown native Kayla Harrison won the judo gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics, signs were erected at the city’s entrances welcoming motorists to the home of two Olympic gold medalists.

And now the court in the Miller Gym, and the one at Sunset Park, where Lucas perfected his basketball skills, will be named in his honored.

In 1996, on the NBA’s 50th anniversary, Lucas was named one of the 50 greatest players in National Basketball Association history. He was named to Sports Illustrated’s five-man College All-Century Team in 1999.