Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 1977
- Class:
- 1937
Edwin Kenneth Kennedy '37
Hometown:Â Pawtucket, RI
Sport:Â Basketball
Year Inducted:Â 1977
Edwin Kenneth Kennedy '37 had the kind of sophomore season that would have satisfied even a Walter Mitty. The graduate of Pawtucket High led all the scorers in New England with 233 points and was named to the All-New England first team. The following winter he was the fourth leading scorer in New England and again was selected as the center on the All-New England team. But Ken Kennedy was accustomed to success. He and Hank Soar, later a defensive back for the New York football Giants and also a Major League umpire, led Pawtucket High to the state basketball championship and then to the finals of the New Englands. The 6-0 Kennedy - considered a big man for his era - played all three varsity seasons during the period when there was a center jump after every basket, resulting in much lower scoring statistics, both for team and individual, than is the case today. What is indicative of Kennedy's ability is that in 1935-36 the Bruins scored a total of 294 points and the rangy Kennedy ad 233 of them, a third of the team's total. Using a good two-handed set shot to set things up, Kennedy became one of the most effective slashing drivers in New England. He frequently was at his best in the big games, where it wasn't unusual for him to score about half of his team's points. In the 54-50 victory over URI in the victory. A year later Kennedy completely outplayed Larry Kelley, Yale's colorful football and basketball star, while leading a second half surge that brought Coach Art Kahler's team a 51-46 victory over the Elis. "Kennedy hooped shots of all varieties and caged a basket nearly every time he touched the ball," the Providence Journal said of that performance. Kennedy retired July 1 as sales manager of Pratt & Whitney Machine Tool Division in Indiana and is now a resident of Warwick, RI.
