Former Tiger Billy Buford dies at age 74

According to reports this morning, former Tiger Billy Buford died on May 27 at the age of 27. Buford played for Memphis from 1972-74 and was part of the Tigers’ team that faced UCLA in the national championship game in 1973. 

Buford, a native of Glasgow, Kentucky, spent his first two collegiate seasons at Paducah Community College in Kentucky before transferring to Memphis. Buford and Larry Kenon, who played at Amarillo Junior College, were the only two players on the 1972-73 team who transferred from a junior college ahead of that season.

Buford helped lead Paducah CC to the Region Seven Junior College Championship and the NCAA Junior College Finals. He also, at the time, held the single-game scoring and rebounding record at the school with a 44-point performance and a 36-rebound game.

During his first season with the Tigers, Buford appeared in 29 games and averaged 18.1 minutes per game off the bench for Gene Bartow’s team. He averaged 5.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game and shot 49.3 percent from the field.

The forward played a role in getting the Tigers to the national championship game in 1973, and by the time the NCAA Tournament came around, Buford was in the starting lineup. During the tournament, he averaged 6.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, and he recorded a double-double in the first-round game against South Carolina.

In the championship game, Buford played 38 minutes and finished with seven points, three rebounds and an assist.

Buford returned for his senior season and carved out a larger role on the team. He appeared in 30 games and averaged 27.5 minutes per game, nearly 10 more minutes per game than his junior season.

The Tigers went 19-11 that season, and Buford averaged 11.6 points, seven rebounds and two assists per game.

In the 1973-74 media guide, his bio said that he was known as “BB” and was the “super sixth man” during his junior season. It also pointed out how much he hustled on both ends of the court. 

During the 2022-23 season, Memphis basketball honored the 50th anniversary of the 1972-73 team during its game against Houston. The Athletic department put out bobbleheads of Bartow and the entire starting lineup during the national championship game, and the the first 1,000 fans in attendance for the game against SMU on January 26, 2023, received a Buford bobblehead. 

Buford was in attendance for the team celebration in March, and he and several of his teammates were recognized during halftime against the Cougars.