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LOGAN — 50 years ago Sunday night, Utah State lost a man many still consider to be the greatest basketball player in school history.
Wayne Estes played the final game of his college career Feb. 8, 1965, against Denver in USU’s Nelson Fieldhouse. The All-American scored 48 points that night, the second-most in a single game in school history (he had 52 in a previous matchup that season), and became the 18th player in the NCAA to eclipse the 2,000-point mark.
Following the game, Estes and a group of friends stopped to help at the scene of a car accident on campus. While crossing the street that night, the native of Anaconda, Montana, was struck by a downed power line, electrocuting one of the nation’s best cagers in the middle of the season.
Estes averaged 33.7 points per game as a senior in 1965, second-most in the nation behind Rick Barry of Miami. He started all 75 games of his Aggie career as soon as he was eligible as a sophomore (freshmen weren’t allowed to play varsity basketball with the NCAA).
Estes came to Logan as a freshman with the potential to be a great football player and weight thrower in track and field. But his true love was basketball, and he went on to set a freshman scoring record of 254 points in his first season on campus.
He led the Aggies to an NCAA tournament bid as a sophomore in 1963, when he averaged 20.0 points per game. As a junior, he increased his average to 28.3 points per game and helped Utah State to a regional semifinal bid (what is now known as the Sweet 16).
Estes still rates as the No. 3 scorer in Utah State history with 2,001 points at the time of his death. Before his death, he was rated as one of the top projected picks in the 1965 NBA draft.
Utah State will honor Estes during its regular-season home finale March 7 at 7 p.m. against Colorado State. Several of his teammates will be honored in a halftime ceremony with a highlight video of his career.
KSL caught up with one of Estes’ former teammates, roommate Del Lyons — a man who was with the Aggie All-American on the night of his death. Click the video to see the full interview with Lyons.
Contributing: Rod Zundel
