Carpenter was born in Ash Flat in 1919. He was a two-time All-State performer in high school and lettered three years while at Arkansas. He was also an All-SWC basketball selection in 1943. He played six seasons with the Phillips team and was named AAU All-America from 1943-47, scoring 2,366 points. He joined the Denver AAU team in 1948 and was again named All-America in 1950. Carpenter was a Big Eight basketball official and was named to the Helms Hall of Fame in 1960.
