Warren Womble
Encyclopedia
Warren Womble was the coach for the Peoria Caterpillars, a National Industrial Basketball League
(NIBL) team in Peoria, Illinois
.
Womble attended Southeastern Oklahoma State University, where he was a two-sport Savage athlete, earning letters in tennis and basketball. He was a guard on the basketball team which reached the quarterfinals of the National AAU Tournament in Denver, Colorado in 1948.
In international competition Warren Womble had an unbelievable 34-0 mark against some of the best international competition in the world.
Womble, who coached the Cats for 10 seasons (1951-60), won 296 games and lost 126 while leading his teams to the National Amateur Athletic Union
Championship five times. In 1952, Womble's Cats won the Olympic Trials Tournament and he was named head coach of that outstanding United States team (a team which included seven of his Cats), a team that went on to defeat the Soviet Union, 36-25, to win the gold medal at the 1952 Olympics.
In 1954 his Peoria Caterpillars were tied with the Bartlesville Phillips 66ers for the most wins in the National Industrial Basketball League
(14-10).
He then coached the 1954 United States Gold Medal winning FIBA World Championship
team and the first United States team to tour the Soviet Union in 1958.
In 1960 his Cats placed second in the Olympic Trials Tournament, and Womble was named assistant coach for the U.S. team at the 1960 Rome Olympics. That team included Hall of Famers Jerry West
, Oscar Robertson
, Walt Bellamy, and Jerry Lucas
which defeated Brazil, 90-36, for the gold medal.
Womble also served as the first director of the National Industrial Basketball League
.
Warren Womble was named to the Helms Foundation Hall of Fame. He was named to the Oklahoma Athletic Hall of Fame in 1977. He was inducted into the Southeastern Athletic Hall of Fame on February 18, 1978.
National Industrial Basketball League
The National Industrial Basketball League was founded in 1947, to enable mill workers a chance to compete in basketball. The league was founded out of the teams that did not join the newly formed NBA...
(NIBL) team in Peoria, Illinois
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
.
Womble attended Southeastern Oklahoma State University, where he was a two-sport Savage athlete, earning letters in tennis and basketball. He was a guard on the basketball team which reached the quarterfinals of the National AAU Tournament in Denver, Colorado in 1948.
In international competition Warren Womble had an unbelievable 34-0 mark against some of the best international competition in the world.
Womble, who coached the Cats for 10 seasons (1951-60), won 296 games and lost 126 while leading his teams to the National Amateur Athletic Union
Amateur Athletic Union
The Amateur Athletic Union is one of the largest non-profit volunteer sports organizations in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs.-History:The AAU was founded in 1888 to...
Championship five times. In 1952, Womble's Cats won the Olympic Trials Tournament and he was named head coach of that outstanding United States team (a team which included seven of his Cats), a team that went on to defeat the Soviet Union, 36-25, to win the gold medal at the 1952 Olympics.
In 1954 his Peoria Caterpillars were tied with the Bartlesville Phillips 66ers for the most wins in the National Industrial Basketball League
National Industrial Basketball League
The National Industrial Basketball League was founded in 1947, to enable mill workers a chance to compete in basketball. The league was founded out of the teams that did not join the newly formed NBA...
(14-10).
He then coached the 1954 United States Gold Medal winning FIBA World Championship
FIBA World Championship
The FIBA World Championship is an international basketball competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of the International Basketball Federation , the sport's global governing body...
team and the first United States team to tour the Soviet Union in 1958.
In 1960 his Cats placed second in the Olympic Trials Tournament, and Womble was named assistant coach for the U.S. team at the 1960 Rome Olympics. That team included Hall of Famers Jerry West
Jerry West
Jerry Alan West is a retired American basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . His nicknames include "Mr...
, Oscar Robertson
Oscar Robertson
Oscar Palmer Robertson , nicknamed "The Big O", is a former American NBA player with the Cincinnati Royals and the Milwaukee Bucks...
, Walt Bellamy, and Jerry Lucas
Jerry Lucas
Jerry Ray Lucas was a basketball player from the 1950s to the 1970s, and is now a memory education expert. In 1996, the NBA's 50th anniversary, he was named one of the 50 greatest players in National Basketball Association history...
which defeated Brazil, 90-36, for the gold medal.
Womble also served as the first director of the National Industrial Basketball League
National Industrial Basketball League
The National Industrial Basketball League was founded in 1947, to enable mill workers a chance to compete in basketball. The league was founded out of the teams that did not join the newly formed NBA...
.
Warren Womble was named to the Helms Foundation Hall of Fame. He was named to the Oklahoma Athletic Hall of Fame in 1977. He was inducted into the Southeastern Athletic Hall of Fame on February 18, 1978.