HISTORY OF
MT. PULASKI
HILLTOPPER
BASKETBALL
by
Tim Deibert
|
Mount Pulaski
High School fielded its first high school basketball team during
the 1912-1913 season. That season was the beginning that has led
to more than 1600 high school victories for one of the most
respected basketball programs in the state of Illinois.
Mt. Pulaski
has long been known for its caliber of competition it played as
well as outstanding coaches that have coached at Mt. Pulaski.
The first team of note was the 1922-23 team coached by Earl
Beebe. The 1922-23 team won the district and regional titles,
losing to eventual state champ Villa Grove. This is the only
year in IHSA history that only four teams advanced to state.
This Mt. Pulaski team made it to the final eight teams.
In 1926
Kenneth Conrey came and led the Hilltoppers to a 68-25 record
over the next four years. In 1930 George Dertinger came to Mt.
Pulaski from the University of Illinois and inaugurated the idea
of playing “suicide schedules”. Coach Dertinger won several
district and regional titles while posting an amazing 96-23
record during his five year stay on the Hilltop. Coach Dolph Stanley, a charter member of the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame,
came to Mt. Pulaski in 1935 and posted a 60-18 record over 3
years. The 1936 team coached by Dolph placed fourth in the
state. This team reached the Sweet Sixteen by defeating
rival Lincoln 32-17. The team’s record was 26-7 overall,
against some of the state’s best teams. Stanley later won a
state championship at Taylorville and retired with over 800
victories. In a February 6, 1987 Wall Street Journal
article, Dolph stated that he, not John Wooden, had invented
the zone press defense and used it for the first time with
this 1936 Mt. Pulaski team.
<click on 1936
team photo for names & more>
Association
Hall of Fame. Virgil left Mt. Pulaski after one year where he
posted a 19-11 record and later coached at Collinsville,
retiring with over 700 victories.
Arthur Yates
coached one year before Carroll Wood came to Mt. Pulaski and had
six very good years. His 1947 Hilltoppers lost to Decatur in the
Sectional finals in a
heartbreaking
loss, barely missing a Sweet Sixteen berth in Champaign. After
Wood left, Frank Jones, James Moore, Loren Dittus, Harry Manes
and James Koch were some of the coaches who continued the wining
tradition of Mt. Pulaski Basketball.
In 1964 Ed
Butkovich came to Mt. Pulaski from
Coach
Butkovich started his career at Mt. Pulaski with a regional
title in 1965, defeating rivals Lincoln and Clinton. Mt. Pulaski
lost to defending state Champion Pekin in the Peoria sectional.
This was Mt. Pulaski’s first regional title since 1949. Mt.
Pulaski next won the regional in 1973 and placed second in the
sectional.
In the summer
of 1974, Mt. Pulaski consolidated with Elkhart High School. In
the 1974-75 season Mt. Pulaski posted a fine 25-2 record and won
the regional but lost on a last second shot in the sectional.
There would
be no stopping Mt. Pulaski the following year. The Hilltoppers
won the Class ‘A’ State Championship defeating Rova in the title
game. Mt. Pulaski upset the undefeated and then number one
ranked team in the state, Eldorado, 76-66 in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals they beat another undefeated team, Buda
Western to advance to the championship game. Jeff Clements
scored the winning basket against Rova to give the Hilltoppers
the State Championship Title. Other starters on the title team
were Jeff Anderson, David Welch, Brad Gibbs and David Thompson
with sixth man, Scott Moore.
1976 Class
‘A’ State Championship Team
With three
starters coming back, Mt. Pulaski made a return trip to
|
The 1978
team reached the Millikin Super-sectional, losing to Sullivan. In the regional
title game that year, Mt.
Pulaski, led by senior Jeff Clements, defeated the number one ranked team in the
state, Riverton, 91-65. Clements finished his career in 1978 with three state
tournament appearances where he scored 179 points and 2212 points for his
career, a school record. Mt.
Pulaski returned to the Elite Eight in 1980 losing a heartbreaker to Oakawville
59-57 in the quarterfinals. Mt. Pulaski almost won the State Title again in
1984, finishing second, losing to McLeansboro 57-50, the undefeated State Champ.
Mt. Pulaski thrilled the spectators at the Assembly Hall during the 1984 State Semi-finals when they defeated tournament favorite Chicago St. Mel 76-74. This game, with the advent of cable television, was seen in all 50 states and in over 150 countries. The starters on that 1984 team were Steven Hayes, Deron Powell, Roger Cook, Rick Edwards and Scott Olden. The 1985 team again reached the Sweet Sixteen before losing to eventual State runner-up Chrisman in the Decatur Super-sectional.  Kneeling: Bob Behle, Gary Helton, Dan Durchholz, Pat Przykopanski, Brad Gibbs, Scott Moore. Standing: Assist. Coach Jim Copper, Assist. Coach Jim Zimmerman, Gayle Cyrulik, David Welch, David Thompson, John Olsen, Jeff Anderson, Jeff Clements, Head Coach Ed Butkovich. Coach Ed Butkovich retired after the 1996 season with an outstanding 558-312 record on the hilltop and an overall record of 617-385. Former Illini center Bill Rucks replaced the legendary coach and guided the toppers from 1997-2002 winning 83 games and back-to-back regional titles in 1998-99. The Hilltoppers were next coached by Jim Jumper, who had a record of 124-71 during his seven years. The
Toppers are currently coached by 1999 graduate Ryan Deibert who helped guide the
Toppers to their first Regional Title in 15 years in 2014 and again in 2020. Mt.
Pulaski has had its share of fine individual players, some who were noted for
their rebounding, great passing, or their exciting or unique style of play, but
they are too numerous to mention.
Mt. Pulaski vs. Oneida (ROVA) - YouTube 
click here
Mt. Pulaski eases by ROVA for prep title
The Vidette 16 March 1976 — The Vidette Digital Archives (ilstu.edu)
March
Madness Record Book
|
Researched & written by Tim Deibert (rev 5 Jan, '25) edited by Phil Bertoni