TicketsJan. 29, 2007
CINCINNATI, Ohio -- On November 19, 2006, the University of Cincinnati's Oscar Robertson was one of five individuals inducted as the Founding Class of the newly created National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. At halftime of Wednesday's men's basketball game, UC Director of Athletics Mike Thomas and Reggie Minton, chair of the Blue Ribbon Selection Committee for the Hall of Fame will be on hand to recognize the accomplishments of Robertson in a special ceremony in front of the home crowd at Fifth Third Arena.
"The University of Cincinnati can never recognize Oscar Robertson enough," stated Thomas. "We are proud to have `The Big O' as one of the first to be enshrined. His legacy is synonymous with the tradition of the Bearcats and college basketball. Oscar is truly one of the great ambassadors for our city and university."
The three-time national Player of the Year, NABC Player of the Year and NABC Player of the Century (20th Century), Robertson was joined in the Founding Class of 2006 by Bill Russell, one of the game's great defenders who led the University of San Francisco to back-to-back NCAA titles in 1955 and 1956; former University of North Carolina head coach Dean Smith, John Wooden, UCLA's legendary "Wizard of Westwood" who won more national collegiate basketball championships than any other coach; the winningest coach in college basketball history; and Dr. James Naismith, inventor of the game of basketball.
The National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame is part of what will be the College Basketball Experience, a 40,000-square-foot interactive attraction being incorporated into the Sprint Center, Kansas City's new downtown arena set to open in fall 2007.
The five inaugural honorees inducted in November into the Hall of Fame represent each of the three categories that will be recognized every year - coach, player and contributor. They are part of a Founding Class of over 100 individuals who are members of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame with roots in college basketball and are automatically being included in the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. The remaining Founding Class members will be inducted over a period of years at the annual induction ceremony in Kansas City.
-- UC --