102-point man takes bow

Bennie Fuller Court christened at School for Deaf

Former Arkansas School for the Deaf basketball player Bennie Fuller (center) talks with Emogene Nutt (left) as his wife, Emma, looks at a plaque honoring Fuller on Saturday at the school in Little Rock. The school’s new basketball court was named after Fuller, who scored 102 points in a game in 1971.

Former Arkansas School for the Deaf basketball player Bennie Fuller (center) talks with Emogene Nutt (left) as his wife, Emma, looks at a plaque honoring Fuller on Saturday at the school in Little Rock. The school’s new basketball court was named after Fuller, who scored 102 points in a game in 1971.

Sunday, January 13, 2013

— One of the best high school basketball players the state has ever seen received a long awaited honor Saturday night when the Arkansas School for the Deaf in Little Rock named its court for him.

Bennie Fuller, 61, who scored 102 points in a game in 1971, was honored in a pregame ceremony at Houston Nutt Sr. Athletic Complex before Arkansas School for the Deaf took on the Mississippi School for the Deaf in its homecoming game.

“This feels really good to have ASD call me back for a day in my honor,” Fuller said through a sign-language interpreter. “This is part of my heritage, and it’s wonderful to see everyone.”

Fuller, who is retired from the U.S. Postal Service and living in Moore, Okla., scored 102 points on Jan. 19, 1971, in a 134-58 victory at Leola. He scored 1,294 points during his senior season, an average of53.8 points per game. He averaged 39.4 per game during his career.

“I remember a few years ago when I started working here,” ASD Athletic Director Jon Parker said Saturday afternoon at a luncheon held in Fuller’s honor. “I was clueless about Fuller, and when I started looking up information about him my jaw dropped to the floor. He was that awesome.

“I remember a few years ago, I was in Oklahoma and somebody tapped me on the shoulder and it was Bennie Fuller and I was nervous. It was like meeting Elvis.”

According Paul S. Luchter, who compiles an online list of the nation’s top high school, collegiate and professional scorers, Fuller scored 98, 77, 65, 51, 65, 51, 50, 55 and 51 points during a nine-game stretch in 1970.

Fuller holds five of Arkansas’ top seven scoring performances in boys high school basketball, according to Luchter’s list.

The state record is 108 points set by Morris Dale Mathis of St. Joe against Witts Spring in 1955.

“If you asked anyone about high school basketball in the late 1960s and early 1970s, they would remember Bennie Fuller,” Parker said.

Fuller was named to the Frat All-America team in 1968 and 1970. He was a member of the Art Kruger All-America team in 1969-1971. He was a member of the Orlando Sentinel’s All-Southern Team in 1971.

He signed with Pensacola (Fla.) Junior College, where he averaged 30 points per game as a freshman. He finished his career at Arkansas-Pine Bluff, where he earned his degree in community recreation.

Fuller said he wasn’t sure about coming back for the ceremony when he was first informed. But after talking to Emogene Nutt, the widow of Nutt, and his former teammate, Tommy Walker, he decided to come back.

“Emogene told me to please accept the invitation, and it’s so nice to come back,” Fuller said. “Every time I come back, people are like, ‘Is that Bennie Fuller?’ I really don’t think I’m that big of a guy, but this is my heritage and it’s very humbling.”

“Bennie is very deserving of this honor,” said Emogene Nutt, the mother of former University of Arkansas football coach Houston Nutt Jr. “He’s not only a great athlete, but a great man. I remember riding on the yellow bus to all of the games, and my sons would hand out the sandwiches to them after the games.”

She added if Houston Sr., who died in 2005, was around that he would be very delighted and would want to see him honored.

Fuller said he remembers the night of his 102-point performance well.

“I had 22 points in the first quarter and after the second quarter I got a break,” he said. “Houston put me back in and I was going back and forth like a machine and I kept scoring. After the game, Houston was watching the official scorekeeper add up all of the points. The book came to 102 points, where ours came to 96. A lot of people came up to me and couldn’t believe it.” “He was such a great shooter,” said Carroll Koon, who played against Fuller while at Poyen. “I remember in 1971, they beat us 94-91. I scored 29 points and he scored 51. He had such a beautiful jump shot.”

Teams used all sorts of gimmicks to stop him. Fuller said there was one game when the opposition put three players on him for the entire game, disregarding his teammates.

“I remember, ‘oh my gosh, I was having to fight through them the entire night,’ ” Fuller said.

Once, according to Fuller’s teammate Al Jordan, when Arkansas School for the Deaf played at the Mississippi School for the Deaf, the team arrived to find Fuller’s No. 24 hanging in effigy from the rim. Fuller picked up four fouls early, which caused Nutt to throw his sport coat and tie. After a timeout, Nutt stationed Fuller alone in a corner on the court when Arkansas School for the Deaf was on defense. He finished with 32 points.

“I’m grateful for ASD because they allowed me to become the person I am and I’m happy to have the opportunity to set an example for everyone here,” Fuller said. “I wish Houston would be here today. I hope he’s in heaven watching and sees and appreciates my love for him.

“The thing I want for ASD is for everyone to follow their dreams and have success and to encourage everyone to succeed.”

Sports, Pages 30 on 01/13/2013