May 11, 2010
Notre Dame, Ind. – Former Notre Dame men’s basketball player Orlando Woolridge will be inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame this summer. The Mansfield, La., product played for the Irish from 1977-81 and was a freshman on the 1978 Final Four team. The induction will take place in Natchitoches, La., on June 26, 2010.
Woolridge was a freshman on the 1977-78 team, which advanced to the Final Four in St. Louis after spending the entire season ranked in the top-10. After appearing in 24 games that season, the forward went on to average double-figures in scoring during his final three seasons. As a senior captain in 1980-81, he averaged 14.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game while leading the Irish to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in his four years. He is also one of 50 Notre Dame players to notch at least 1,000 career points, totaling 1,160 points to go with 500 rebounds in 190 games.
Following his time at Notre Dame, Woolridge became the 40th Irish player selected in the NBA Draft when the Chicago Bulls made him the sixth-overall pick. He also went on to play for the New Jersey Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers. In more than 850 career games, he started nearly 500 while averaging 16.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game over his professional career.
Joining Woolrdige in the 2010 class are fellow basketball player Larry Wilson, former Pro Bowl receiver Mark Carrier, Louisiana prep football coaching legends J.T. Curtis and Lee Hedges, women’s basketball star Teresa Weatherspoon, former LSU baseball player Ben McDonald and long-time Louisiana-Monroe basketball coach Mike Vining.
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