Buzzy Wilkinson
Buzzy Wilkinson was an American basketball player born on November 18, 1932, in Pineville, West Virginia. He played as a 6-foot-2 guard-forward for the University of Virginia from 1952 to 1955 and became one of the Cavaliers’ most famous scorers. In his senior season (1954-55), he averaged 32.1 points per game and finished his college career with 2,233 points. His No. 14 jersey was the first number retired by Virginia Cavaliers basketball.
Wilkinson earned two First-team All-ACC selections (1954, 1955) and AP third-team All-American honors in 1955. He was the ACC’s leading scorer in each of the league’s first two seasons. He also set multiple ACC field-goal-attempt records: most attempts in a game (44 vs. Duke, 1954), most in a season (767 in 1954), most attempts per game in a season (28.4 in 1954), and most attempts per career (27.4).
He was drafted by the Boston Celtics in the third round of the 1955 NBA draft (30th overall) but never played in the NBA. After his basketball career, Wilkinson served as president and CEO of First Century Bank in Bluefield, West Virginia. He passed away on January 15, 2016, at the age of 83 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 15:34 (CET).