Wake won the Southern Conference in 1953. Both Hemric and Davis were on that team and played in the NCAA.
Right.
http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wake-forest/1953.html
ETA: So was Jack Williams, whom I mistakenly put on my list in an earlier post. I had forgotten that Williams took two years off for military service before playing on the 1956 & 1957 WF teams. I was only 6 years old in 1953 and didn't start following WF basketball until 4 years later in 1957. BTW, that 1957 WF team was really good. Finished 19-9 & ranked in the Top 20.... with 4 close losses to undefeated Carolina (2, 3, 5 & 8 points). The 61-59 ACC Tournament semi-final loss will go down as one of the most controversial games in ACC history....as Wake led 59-58 with less than a minute to play and Wendell Carr was called for blocking against Len Rosenbluth, leading to a 3-point play and the final score, when many fans there thought that it could just as easily have been called charging against Rosenbluth. Carolina was 25-0 at the time....and only one team from the conference could go to the NCAA tourney.
Here is a bio on Jack Williams from when he was inducted into the WF Hall of Fame:
Jack Williams
Jack Williams was a consistent standout performer on Wake Forest basketball teams in the 1950s. After earning second team All-Southern Conference honors in 1953, Williams spent two years in the military. When he returned, he helped lead the 1956 and 1957 teams to consecutive 19-win seasons.
Today, Williams ranks as the 15th-leading scorer and 8th-leading rebounder in Wake Forest history, even though he played just three seasons. He led the 1957 team in scoring (16.2 points per game) and he led the 1956 team in rebounding (11.0 rebounds per contest). He played much of his career with a back brace, resulting from a slight spinal deformity.
Williams played on balanced and unselfish Demon Deacon teams that included Lowell "Lefty" Davis, Ernie Wiggins, Jack Murdock and Jim Gilley. In his first season in 1953, he played alongside the great Dickie Hemric. In fact, many followers of college basketball called Hemric and Williams the best one-two punch in the nation. In 1957, Williams shared the very first Deacon Award with teammates Murdock and Wiggins.
Williams played his entire career for Murray Greason, the winningest coach in Wake Forest history. Horace "Bones" McKinney took over the reigns one year after Williams' departure in 1958.
Williams saw many changes during his college career. When he returned from the military, Wake Forest had moved from the old Southern Conference to the new Atlantic Coast Conference. Between his junior and senior seasons, Wake Forest University moved its campus to Winston-Salem.
During his two-year stint in the military, Williams kept his skills sharp by playing for the Eielson Warriors in Alaska. He earned a spot on the Armed Forces All-Star team, which played in the Pan American Games in South America.
Born and raised in Johnston City (Ill.), Williams was a remarkable overall athlete. In high school he was an all-state fullback in football and team captain of the Johnston City High School baseball team.
Williams worked as a teacher, coach and administrator until retiring on July 1, 1992.
