Index
ABA Finals
| 1971 |
||
| BOXSCORE | Utah Stars | Kentucky Colonels |
| GAME1 | 4 | 3 |
| GAME2 | ||
| GAME3 | ABA FINALS STATS | ABA FINALS STATS |
| GAME4 | ||
| GAME5 | ||
| GAME6 | ||
| GAME7 | ||
Game #1 5/3/71 @Salt Lake City
Dan Issel had 17 points & Darrel Carrier 11 in the 1st period as the Colonels built a 9-point lead. Utah exploded in the 2nd period with an ABA record 50 points on 72% shooting. George Stone, who played high school ball in Kentucky, scored 20 of the 50 Star points in the 2nd. The Colonels’ chances ended in the 4th when they scored only 2 Dan Issel free throws in the first 5:43 of the period. By the time, Ligon scored their first field goal of the final period, Utah led by 21. Coaches Bill Sharman & Frank Ramsey cleared their benches as the 5 minute mark approached.
| KENTUCKY | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 36 4-11 0-0 5 6 11 3 7 3 8 |
| Ligon | 33 3-6 3-4 0 5 5 6 0 6 9 |
| Issel | 38 12-23 3-3 2 7 9 4 1 4 27 |
| Dampier | 31 1-9 1-3 1 2 3 3 4 2 3 |
| Carrier | 42 13-22 4-4 1 2 3 3 1 3 36 |
| Hunter | 12 2-6 3-5 5 2 7 1 2 6 7 |
| Simon | 29 5-9 1-2 1 6 7 5 4 4 11 |
| Pratt | 19 3-8 0-2 3 3 6 4 2 1 6 |
| Wright | 5 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 |
| Hester | 5 4-4 2-3 1 1 2 0 0 0 10 |
| TOTALS 240 47-100 17-26 19 34 53 30 21 30 117 | |
| 3-PT: Carrier 6-7, Dampier 0-2, Wright 0-2 | |
| UTAH | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 39 7-12 4-7 3 7 10 4 4 5 18 |
| Robbins | 19 4-5 0-0 2 4 6 0 0 4 8 |
| Beaty | 39 10-17 6-6 4 12 16 3 1 4 26 |
| Jackson | 33 7-15 1-1 0 1 1 9 0 1 15 |
| Combs | 32 6-14 0-0 0 2 2 6 4 3 12 |
| Boone | 30 9-19 5-6 2 3 5 4 3 2 24 |
| Stone | 33 10-17 5-5 4 8 12 1 1 2 26 |
| Butler | 5 1-2 2-2 0 1 1 1 1 0 4 |
| Nemelka | 4 0-1 1-2 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 |
| McDonald | 3 1-1 0-0 0 1 1 0 1 1 2 |
| Smith | 3 0-2 0-0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 |
| TOTALS 240 55-105 24-29 17 39 56 29 15 22 136 | |
| 3-PT: Boone 1-2, Stone 1-2, Combs 0-1, Butler 0-1, Smith 0-1 | |
| Kentucky | 35 25 33 24 117 |
| Utah | 25 50 25 35 136 |
| A- 12,051 | |
Game #2 5/5/71 @Salt Lake City
Utah broke off a 10-0 run in the 1st period (Zelmo Beaty had 8 of the 10 points) to lead 21-11. Utah would have a 10-point lead on 4 different occasions in the stanza. The Colonels answered back with a 14-2 run to start the 2nd period to lead 42-39. The game went back & forth as the teams traded punches; nearly literally. Ron Boone & Willie Wise of Utah accused Cincy Powell & Goose Ligon of dirty tactics. A 3-point play by Beaty put the Stars up 59-54. Dan Issel kept Kentucky close by scoring 8 of their last 10 points of the 1st half as Utah led by 3 at the break. Issel had 22 points on the half. Utah used a 14-5 run early in the 3rd to take a 79-67 lead. Utah widened their lead to 16 in the final period. Their lead stood at 95-83 with under 2 minutes when the Colonels staged a desperate rally. They scored 8 straight to cut the lead to 4 before Wise stopped the streak & sealed the win for Utah.
| KENTUCKY | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 33 8-17 1-2 4 6 10 0 2 6 17 |
| Ligon | 25 1-2 1-2 1 6 7 2 1 3 3 |
| Issel | 42 15-24 10-11 5 6 11 3 3 2 40 |
| Dampier | 33 5-17 2-3 2 4 6 6 2 5 12 |
| Carrier | 43 10-19 4-5 1 4 5 3 4 3 25 |
| Simon | 29 3-14 7-8 3 4 7 3 0 5 13 |
| Hunter | 15 0-5 2-2 0 1 1 6 1 6 2 |
| Pratt | 20 0-4 1-1 1 2 3 3 0 2 1 |
| TOTALS 240 48-102 28-34 17 33 50 26 13 32 125 | |
| 3-PT: Carrier 1-3, Dampier 0-1, Simon 0-1 | |
| UTAH | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 46 9-17 8-10 8 16 24 8 3 3 26 |
| Robbins | 30 3-6 3-3 0 6 6 6 0 5 9 |
| Beaty | 42 18-23 4-6 6 9 15 1 2 5 40 |
| Jackson | 37 6-10 3-5 1 0 1 8 5 4 16 |
| Combs | 47 8-19 5-7 1 4 5 4 5 4 22 |
| Boone | 26 5-12 9-12 4 3 7 4 4 5 19 |
| Stone | 12 2-7 2-2 0 2 2 0 0 2 6 |
| TOTALS 240 51-94 34-45 20 40 60 31 19 28 138 | |
| 3-PT: Combs 1-4, Jackson 1-1, Stone 0-2, Boone 0-1 | |
| Kentucky | 28 34 29 34 125 |
| Utah | 37 28 32 41 138 |
| A- 13,208 | |
Game #3 5/7/71 @Louisville
The Stars broke like they were going to take a 3-0 lead in the series as they built a big 1st quarter lead. The Colonels found their footing & scored the last 9 points of the 1st quarter. Utah still led by 8 in the 2nd period, but again Kentucky closed late. They staged a 10-0 run late in the 2nd period. Carrier had to get 6 stitches in the 1st half after injuring his right index finger. The Colonels led by 11 in the 4th period and led 110-101 with 2:50 to play. Powell then missed all 3 free throw attempts & Utah battled back. George Stone hit a jumper, Red Robbins hit 2 free throws and the lead was 110-105 at the 2:01 mark. Ligon put one in & Ron Boone answered back for Utah and it was 112-107 with 1:40 left. Powell faked out Utah for a lay-up to give the Colonels a 7-point lead at the 1:32 mark. Boone made 1 of 2 free throws, Issel missed a hook shot & Robbins hit a baseline jumper to make it 114-110 with 0:57 on the clock. Mike Pratt hit 2 free throws to stop the tide for the Colonels.
| UTAH | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 46 10-19 9-17 5 12 17 5 2 2 29 |
| Robbins | 26 6-10 2-2 2 4 6 0 2 1 15 |
| Beaty | 29 4-12 5-7 1 10 11 0 2 6 13 |
| Jackson | 15 1-3 0-0 0 0 0 4 3 1 2 |
| Combs | 36 5-16 6-8 0 2 2 1 2 3 17 |
| Boone | 33 7-14 4-6 1 5 6 4 4 4 18 |
| Stone | 43 6-16 4-4 4 9 13 2 0 5 16 |
| Butler | 17 0-1 2-2 1 1 2 1 2 2 2 |
| TOTALS 240 39-91 30-44 14 42 56 17 17 26 110 | |
| 3-PT: Combs 1-3, Robbins 1-2, Wise 0-2, Boone 0-1, Stone 0-1 | |
| KENTUCKY | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 46 8-13 1-6 6 11 17 3 6 5 17 |
| Ligon | 33 6-11 2-3 7 10 17 2 1 3 14 |
| Issel | 39 10-24 4-4 6 11 17 3 6 5 24 |
| Dampier | 44 8-25 6-9 3 4 7 11 2 5 23 |
| Carrier | 45 9-21 6-7 0 2 2 4 2 4 25 |
| Hunter | 10 1-4 1-2 0 1 1 0 1 3 3 |
| Simon | 15 4-9 0-0 0 6 6 1 0 6 8 |
| Pratt | 9 0-1 2-2 1 1 2 1 2 2 2 |
| TOTALS 240 46-108 22-33 22 44 66 24 16 33 116 | |
| 3-PT: Carrier 1-5, Dampier 1-3 | |
| Utah | 27 28 26 29 110 |
| Kentucky | 30 25 28 33 116 |
| A- 12,337 | |
Game #4 5/9/71 @Louisville
The Colonels opened up a double digit lead early and seemed to be in control as they led by 12 entering the final stanza. The Stars, after trailing by as many as 18 in the 2nd half, rallied to send the game into overtime. Red Robbins actually missed an open 10-footer at the buzzer that would have won the game in regulation. With the scored tied at 119, the Colonels looked in bad shape as their entire front court had fouled out. The guards picked up the slack though as Carrier scored the first 5 points in OT & Louie Dampier scored the last 5. With the score tied at 125, Dampier knocked the ball away from Glen Combs, drove the lane scored & drew a foul on Ron Boone. He converted the free throw to give Kentucky the lead. Stone missed a game-tying 3 with under 30 seconds left. Dampier grabbed the rebound and made 1 of 2 shots to give them their final margin.
| UTAH | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 47 13-20 8-12 3 14 17 3 3 4 34 |
| Robbins | 15 0-3 1-3 1 3 4 1 2 1 1 |
| Beaty | 33 8-17 9-10 10 6 16 2 2 6 25 |
| Jackson | 24 3-7 0-0 0 0 0 3 3 2 6 |
| Combs | 53 6-19 7-7 2 2 4 3 4 5 21 |
| Boone | 46 7-22 4-5 6 6 12 8 4 6 19 |
| Stone | 39 8-17 2-3 1 5 6 2 2 5 19 |
| Butler | 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |
| Nemelka | 7 0-3 0-0 1 1 2 1 0 2 0 |
| TOTALS 265 45-108 31-40 24 37 61 23 20 31 125 | |
| 3-PT: Combs 2-3, Stone 1-4, Boone 1-1, Nemelka 0-2 | |
| KENTUCKY | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 34 6-10 5-5 4 6 10 1 2 6 17 |
| Ligon | 31 4-8 0-3 8 9 17 3 1 6 8 |
| Issel | 30 7-17 5-5 1 3 4 0 5 6 19 |
| Dampier | 53 12-23 6-8 2 5 7 5 4 2 33 |
| Carrier | 33 11-16 4-4 1 3 4 6 4 4 27 |
| Simon | 34 4-14 2-2 4 5 9 2 0 6 10 |
| Hunter | 23 1-6 3-7 1 7 8 4 1 2 5 |
| Hester | 5 0-2 0-0 0 2 2 0 0 1 0 |
| TOTALS 265 49-106 27-38 22 39 61 24 17 33 129 | |
| 3-PT: Dampier 3-6, Carrier 1-2 | |
| Utah | 24 30 31 34 6 125 |
| Kentucky | 35 32 30 22 10 129 |
| A- 9,863 | |
Game #5 5/12/71 @Salt Lake City
Dan Issel scored 27 points in the 1st half to keep Kentucky from being blown out. Issel would run into foul trouble in the 2nd half and scored only 6 more points. The Stars led by as many as 20 points on several occasions. A fight erupted in the 3rd quarter after Cincy Powell undercut Willie Wise on a lay-up attempt. Wise took a poke at Powell and then the benches emptied. During the melee, Boone came off the bench and nailed Powell; leaving with a cut under his eye. Powell received a personal foul & Boone a technical foul. Utah led 87-74 at the time. Merv Jackson gutted out the game after getting a painkilling shot in his knee while Carr Creek, Kentucky native Glen Combs lit up the Colonels.
| KENTUCKY | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 39 9-22 3-4 7 9 16 3 2 4 22 |
| Ligon | 21 4-9 5-9 4 2 6 1 0 4 13 |
| Issel | 37 13-23 7-8 7 9 16 0 1 2 33 |
| Dampier | 39 6-19 1-1 0 2 2 11 2 2 14 |
| Carrier | 35 2-10 2-2 0 3 3 4 2 6 7 |
| Hunter | 19 5-12 1-1 4 3 7 4 1 6 11 |
| Simon | 28 8-14 1-1 2 6 8 3 3 3 17 |
| Pratt | 22 4-10 2-2 4 1 5 5 3 2 10 |
| TOTALS 240 51-119 22-28 28 35 63 31 14 29 127 | |
| 3-pt: Dampier 1-4, Carrier 1-3, Powell 1-2, Simon 0-1, Pratt 0-1 | |
| UTAH | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 35 6-10 2-3 4 8 12 2 4 4 14 |
| Robbins | 31 7-15 1-1 4 4 8 4 2 5 16 |
| Beaty | 43 11-21 10-12 9 13 22 5 2 4 32 |
| Jackson | 31 7-11 5-5 1 6 7 6 4 1 20 |
| Combs | 42 9-19 6-10 4 4 8 8 2 4 25 |
| Boone | 36 9-17 4-4 1 3 4 4 1 4 24 |
| Stone | 22 2-7 2-2 0 5 5 2 1 3 6 |
| TOTALS 240 51-102 30-37 23 43 66 31 16 25 137 | |
| 3-PT: Boone 2-2, Combs 1-2, Jackson 1-1, Robbins 1-1, Stone 0-2 | |
| Kentucky | 25 31 32 39 127 |
| Utah | 34 41 29 33 137 |
| A- 13,250 | |
Game #6 5/15/71 @Louisville
The Colonels led by as many as 7 in the 1st period and by 11 in the 2nd period. They could have blown the game wide open had the Colonels not committed 16 turnovers in the 1st half. Issel led the way in the 1st half with 19 points, 10 rebounds & 3 blocks. Issel picked up his 5th foul with 7:23 left in the 3rd period and the Colonels leading by 6 points. He would not return for almost 13 minutes and, when he did they were losing by 2 points. Controversy erupted at the end of 3rd; with 2 seconds left, Boone took a pass at mid-court, dribbled twice and passed to Robbins who hit a 20-footer. Colonels’ coach Frank Ramsey, his players & the crowd went nuts when the basket was allowed. Powell kept the Colonels in the game by scoring 20 of Kentucky’s first 31 points of the 2nd half. Utah led 100-95 with 3:58 left in the game and looked poise to claim the title. With the score 100-97, Simon stole a Wise pass and fed Dampier. Dampier hit the lay-up, drew a foul and tied the game at 100 with the free throw. It was 101-101 with 0:33 left when Simon knocked down 2 free throws. Dampier hit 2 more free throws to make it 105-101. Robbins hit 1 of 2 free throws with 7 seconds left. He got his own rebound on the 2nd and found Nemelka who missed a game-tying trey. Powell sealed the game by grabbing the board.
| UTAH | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 45 15-21 4-4 2 13 15 3 5 6 34 |
| Robbins | 38 7-17 4-6 3 5 8 3 2 2 18 |
| Beaty | 45 7-16 13-14 4 12 16 2 2 5 27 |
| Jackson | 19 1-5 0-0 1 1 2 4 3 3 2 |
| Combs | 40 1-10 4-4 2 0 2 2 4 5 6 |
| Boone | 37 5-16 2-3 4 1 5 1 3 4 12 |
| Stone | 10 0-3 1-1 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 |
| Butler | 4 1-2 0-0 0 2 2 0 1 1 2 |
| Nemelka | 2 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 |
| TOTALS 240 37-92 28-32 16 35 51 15 20 28 102 | |
| 3-PT: Stone 0-3, Robbins 0-2, Combs 0-2, Nemelka 0-1, Boone 0-1 | |
| KENTUCKY | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 45 14-32 3-5 3 14 17 2 3 3 31 |
| Ligon | 31 1-4 0-0 3 3 6 1 0 4 2 |
| Issel | 33 9-20 3-5 2 9 11 0 6 5 21 |
| Dampier | 45 8-16 5-5 3 3 6 10 3 2 22 |
| Carrier | 33 2-8 5-6 0 4 4 1 5 4 10 |
| Hunter | 15 1-5 1-2 0 3 3 1 4 3 3 |
| Pratt | 18 1-8 4-4 3 3 6 2 2 4 6 |
| Simon | 20 3-4 4-6 3 2 5 4 1 4 10 |
| TOTALS 240 39-88 25-33 17 41 58 21 24 30 105 | |
| 3-PT: Dampier 1-5, Carrier 1-4 | |
| Utah | 24 25 34 19 102 |
| Kentucky | 31 27 23 24 105 |
| A- 11,793 | |
Game #7 5/17/71 @Salt Lake City
Utah started the game with a 10-1 blitz, but Kentucky answered later in the 1st period with their own 10-1 run to take a 21-18 lead. The Colonels missed 12 of its first 13 attempt, but then made 11 of their next 18 shots. The Colonels built their biggest lead in the 2nd period at 36-29. Glen Combs gave the Stars the lead for a good when his hoop put them up 41-40. Utah led by a 95-81 lead when Carrier hit 3 consecutive 3-pointers to cut the lead to 98-90. Utah still led by 4 with 5 minutes left in the game. Wise hit a jumper while being fouled; the ensuing free throw made it 119-112. Beaty hit a lay-up that made it 121-112. After an Issel free throw, Butler banked in a 25-footer that made it 124-113 with 2:21 left and closed the door.
| KENTUCKY | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 46 8-20 2-4 8 12 20 2 2 5 19 |
| Ligon | 13 1-4 1-1 2 2 4 0 0 2 3 |
| Issel | 43 15-29 11-12 4 8 12 0 0 3 41 |
| Dampier | 48 5-16 6-8 1 3 4 14 4 3 17 |
| Carrier | 40 11-22 4-4 1 3 4 6 4 2 31 |
| Hunter | 15 2-9 2-3 2 2 4 2 2 6 6 |
| Simon | 27 1-5 0-0 1 5 6 2 2 5 2 |
| Pratt | 8 1-3 2-3 2 1 3 2 0 0 4 |
| TOTALS 240 44-108 26-33 21 36 57 28 14 26 121 | |
| 3-PT: Carrier 5-10, Dampier 1-2, Powell 1-1, Simon 0-1 | |
| UTAH | MN FG-FTA FT-FTA OR DR RB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 47 8-20 6-8 3 17 20 6 4 3 22 |
| Robbins | 37 5-10 3-5 6 9 15 5 2 3 13 |
| Beaty | 40 15-24 6-7 9 7 16 3 3 4 36 |
| Jackson | 35 7-12 5-7 1 6 7 7 1 3 19 |
| Combs | 37 7-20 5-5 1 2 3 5 3 6 20 |
| Boone | 17 2-8 0-0 3 3 6 2 1 6 5 |
| Stone | 19 4-9 1-2 1 1 2 4 0 4 9 |
| Butler | 4 2-2 2-2 0 2 2 1 0 0 7 |
| TOTALS 240 50-105 28-36 24 47 71 33 14 29 131 | |
| 3-PT: Combs 1-3, Boone 1-1, Butler 1-1, Stone 0-3, Robbins 0-1 | |
| Kentucky | 32 22 36 31 121 |
| Utah | 28 33 37 33 131 |
| A- 13,260 | |
| COMPOSITE BOX SCORE | |
| UTAH | G MIN FG-FGA 3P-3PA FT-FTA OR RB REB AS TO PF PTS |
| Wise | 7 305 68-119 0-2 41-61 28 87 115 31 25 27 177 |
| Robbins | 7 196 32-66 2-6 14-20 18 35 53 19 10 20 80 |
| Beaty | 7 271 73-130 0-0 53-62 43 69 112 16 14 34 199 |
| Jackson | 7 194 32-63 2-2 12-18 4 14 18 41 19 15 78 |
| Combs | 7 287 42-116 6-18 33-41 10 16 26 29 24 30 123 |
| Boone | 7 225 44-108 5-9 28-36 21 24 45 27 20 31 121 |
| Stone | 7 178 32-76 2-17 17-19 10 31 41 11 4 22 83 |
| Butler | 5 31 4-7 1-2 6-6 1 6 7 3 4 3 15 |
| Nemelka | 3 13 0-6 0-3 1-2 2 1 3 1 0 3 1 |
| McDonald | 1 3 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 1 1 2 |
| Smith | 1 3 0-2 0-1 0-0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 |
| KENTUCKY | G MIN FG-FGA 3P-3PA FT-FTA OR RB REB AS TO PF PTS |
| Powell | 7 269 57-125 2-3 15-26 36 62 98 13 20 32 131 |
| Ligon | 7 187 20-44 0-0 12-22 25 37 62 15 3 28 52 |
| Issel | 7 262 81-160 0-0 43-48 27 53 80 10 22 27 205 |
| Dampier | 7 293 45-125 7-23 27-37 12 23 35 60 21 21 124 |
| Carrier | 7 271 58-118 16-34 29-32 4 21 25 27 22 26 161 |
| Hunter | 7 109 12-47 0-0 13-22 12 19 31 18 12 32 37 |
| Simon | 7 182 28-69 0-3 15-19 14 34 48 20 10 33 71 |
| Pratt | 7 118 13-44 0-1 13-18 15 13 28 20 9 11 39 |
| Hester | 2 10 4-6 0-0 2-3 1 3 4 2 0 1 10 |
| Wright | 1 5 0-2 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 |