Remembering Husker Great Herschell Turner
One of the greatest players in Nebraska men’s basketball history passed away recently as Herschell Turner died last week in Grand Rapids, Mich., at the age of 86.
Turner was a legendary performer for Head Coach Jerry Bush in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The 6-foot-2 guard from Indianapolis, Ind. was the first 1,000-point scorer in program history, as he averaged double figures in all three seasons he played for the Big Red. During his sophomore season, he played a major role in back-to-back upsets of No. 4 Kansas and No. 1 Kansas State. As a junior, he earned Helms All-America honors and first-team All-Big Eight accolades, averaging 17.1 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. He repeated as a first-team All-Big Eight honoree as a senior, averaging 15.9 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. Turner finished his career as Nebraska’s all-time leading scorer with 1,056 points and ranked second with 622 rebounds.
Turner was invited to the 1960 Olympic Trials but did not make the team which was considered the greatest U.S. team before professionals began playing in 1992. He was selected in the 1960 NBA draft but played professionally in the Eastern Professional Basketball League, the American Basketball League, the Harlem Globetrotters, the North American Basketball League and with the American Basketball Association.
Turner moved to Grand Rapids in 1963 to work at General Motors. He served on the Grand Rapids Task Force during the pivotal time of the riots and became the first director of the Baxter Community Center, where he won many civic honors for his work. A noted artist, Turner was the art director of the Michigan Department of Correction, where he taught inmates how to draw for 15 years. Some of Turner’s work can be found at Herschellturnerartwork.com.
Turner was a 1990 inductee into the Nebraska men’s basketball Hall of Fame and was a 1991 inductee into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.