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Kentucky's fall from glory in the 50's was a shocking, sobering reminder of the sports frailty

Basketball royalty in the Bluegrass suffered a quick downfall when points shaving came up. Find out who and when.

Tennessee v Kentucky | James Drake/GettyImages

They were champions, legends in the Bluegrass—names that once dripped with glory now cloaked in infamy. The 1951 college basketball point-shaving scandal hit the sport like a sledgehammer. But nowhere did it cut deeper than in Lexington, where the University of Kentucky, a proud symbol of hardcourt excellence, found itself front and center in one of the darkest episodes in the history of American athletics.