William Rodney âBirdâ Averitt, age 68, died Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020 at his residence of natural causes.
Services will be at noon, Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020 at Hopkinsville High School Gymnasium, with limited capacity, with the Rev. James Dunbar officiating. Burial will be in Cave Springs Cemetery.
A walk-thru visitation will be held from 10 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020 at Hopkinsville High School Gymnasium. Gamble Funeral Home is charge of arrangements.
A native of Hopkinsville, he was born July 22, 1952, the son of the late Julian and Mary Helen Waller Averitt.
William was a member of Mt. Olive Baptist Church. Averitt enjoyed the two greatest seasons in Pepperdine menâs basketball history, as he averaged 28.9 points as a sophomore in 1971-72 and then led the NCAA in scoring with 33.9 points per game as a junior in 1972-73. He stills hold West Coast Conference records for points in a game and scoring average for both seasons and career.