Denver Brackeen of Hickory found fame on the basketball courts of the Southeastern Conference and Mississippi junior colleges. Starring first for East Central Junior College in Decatur and then at Ole Miss, Brackeen earned honors from All-State to All-American.
At East Central, he was named the National Junior College Most Valuable Player in 1952-53 when he averaged a whopping 32 points per game. He was selected as a Junior College All-American that same season. He was All-State twice. Brackeen, the MVP of the Southeastern Conference, was named All-American in basketball at Ole Miss in 1954-55.
He scored 28.1 points per game for the Rebels that season, which placed him as the fifth most prolific scorer in the nation. Brackeen then played professionally with the New York Knickerbockers in 1955-56. But soon he headed back to Mississippi and coached at East Central from 1955-63. Brackeen died in 2006 at the age of 75.
Courtesy of Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum director Rick Cleveland, author of Mississippi’s Greatest Athletes. Cleveland can be reached at rcleveland@msfame.com.
