Rupp, Adolph Frederick, 1901–77, American college basketball coach, b. Halstead, Kans. He attended the Univ. of Kansas (grad. 1923), and began coaching at the Univ. of Kentucky in 1930, leading the Wildcats for 43 seasons and earning the nickname “Baron of the Bluegrass” before retiring in 1972. His teams achieved a then unprecedented 874 wins, establishing a winning record of more than 82 percent, and Kentucky became famous for its aggressive fast-break, man-to-man offense. Among his teams' titles were 27 Southeastern Conference championships, four NCAA tournament victories (1948, 1949, 1951, 1958), and a National Invitational Tournament (1946). Rupp also was co-coach of the 1948 gold medal Olympic team, and was named (1969) to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
See his Championship Basketball (1949, repr. 1957); biography by R. Rice (1994).
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