Personal information | |||||||||||||
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Born |
Martins Ferry, Ohio |
October 7, 1926||||||||||||
Died | January 21, 1995 San Diego, California |
(aged 68)||||||||||||
Nationality | American | ||||||||||||
Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | ||||||||||||
Listed weight | 218 lb (99 kg) | ||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||
High school |
Martins Ferry (Martins Ferry, Ohio) |
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College | Kentucky (1945–1949) | ||||||||||||
BAA draft | 1949 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall | ||||||||||||
Selected by the Indianapolis Olympians | |||||||||||||
Playing career | 1949–1951 | ||||||||||||
Position | Center | ||||||||||||
Number | 15 | ||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||
As player: | |||||||||||||
1949–1951 | Indianapolis Olympians | ||||||||||||
As coach: | |||||||||||||
1959–1966 | Bellarmine | ||||||||||||
1970 | Kentucky Colonels | ||||||||||||
1974–1975 | San Diego Conquistadors | ||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||
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Career NBA statistics | |||||||||||||
Points | 2,925 (22.5 ppg) | ||||||||||||
Rebounds | 709 (10.7 rpg) | ||||||||||||
Assists | 318 (2.4 apg) | ||||||||||||
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||||||||||||
Medals
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Alex John Groza (October 7, 1926 – January 21, 1995) was an American professional basketball player from Martins Ferry, Ohio who was banned from the NBA for life in 1951 for point shaving. This scandal was the CCNY point shaving scandal He had an outstanding college career at the University of Kentucky and was a two-time All-Star for the Indianapolis Olympians before his career came to an abrupt end.
Groza grew up in Martins Ferry, Ohio and attended Martins Ferry High School. He was the brother of future Pro Football Hall-of-Famer Lou Groza.
Alex Groza led the Purple Riders to two undefeated regular seasons and to the Ohio state tournament both years, as Martins Ferry finished 24-1 in 1943 and 26-1 in 1944. In 1944, he scored 628 points, including 41 in one game, and was named first-team All-Ohio.
Groza was the captain and center of the "Fabulous Five" that won the 1948 and 1949 NCAA Men's Basketball Championships, as well as the leading scorer on the gold medal-winning 1948 US Olympic basketball team. Groza was three-time All-American and All-SEC, and two-time NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player.
Groza was drafted in the 1st round of the 1949 NBA Draft by the Indianapolis Olympians. Groza averaged 23.4 points per game in his rookie season and was named NBA Rookie of the Year. Because the award was selected by newspaper writers at the time, the NBA currently does not recognize Groza having won the award. He averaged 22.5 points per game over two seasons before being implicated along with college teammates Ralph Beard and Dale Barnstable in a point shaving scandal during the 1948–49 season at Kentucky. NBA president Maurice Podoloff banned all of the implicated players from the league for life.