DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Mourns Loss of Kenneth Jaksy
7/27/2015 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
CHICAGO -- DePaul athletics is saddened to learn of the passing of men's basketball alum Kenneth Jaksy. The 6-5 center lettered for DePaul as a three-year starter from 1953-56 and finished with 928 career points.
A small memorial service was held mid-July in Venice, Calif. A chapel service and a graveside service will be Saturday, Aug, 8 at St. Casimir cemetery at 11 a.m. St. Casimir cemetery is located at 4401 W. 111th Street in Chicago.
Jaksy played alongside some of the all-time great Blue Demons Hall of Famers Ron Sobieszczyk, Bill Robinizine Sr. and Dick Heise Sr. during his tenure. Despite being undersized as a center, Jaksy provided stability in the middle for the Blue Demons while averaging 14 points per game over his career.
In a senior season that concluded with a berth in the 1955-56 NCAA tournament, Jaksy was part of several huge Blue Demon victories, including an 81-79 win over Kentucky. The Blue Demon center led the way in a DePaul win over Notre Dame with a 27-point effort. He and Robinzine paced the Meyer men in the season sweep of the Irish with a 77-74 win in South Bend. That same season, Jaksy and his teammates met a tough match losing to all-time great Bill Russell and the Dons of San Francisco. That senior campaign, Jaksy averaged 17.6 points per game and compiled 165 rebounds.
Jaksy and the Blue Demons finished the 1954-55 season with a 16-6 mark which included a season split with Notre Dame and a key win over Bradley, who would advance to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament that season. The center was the team's second-leading rebounder and third-leading scorer behind future NBA players Sobieszczyk and Robinzine.
Jaksy came to DePaul after a stellar career at St. Rita where he was remembered for his record performance at the 1952 Chicago Prep championship game against Roosevelt when he scored 40 points. He was honored as all-sectional and all-catholic league as a junior and all-city and all-Chicago area as a senior.
