Jules Bender (1914 – January 13, 1982) was an American collegiate and professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. He was an All-American at

Long Island University Long Island University (LIU) is a private university in Brooklyn and Brookville, New York, United States. The university enrolls over 16,000 students and offers over 500 academic programs at its main campuses, LIU Brooklyn and LIU Post on Long I ...

, leading the Blackbirds to a 103–6 record over his career. Bender was a native of

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, and attended Boys High School. He went on to play college basketball at Long Island University from 1934 to 1937.

College

Bender came to L.I.U. to play for future

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

coach

Clair Bee Clair Francis Bee (March 2, 1896 – May 20, 1983) was an American basketball coach who led the team at Long Island University in Brooklyn, New York to undefeated seasons in 1936 and 1939, as well as two National Invitation Tournament titles in 1 ...

. During Bender's four-year career, the Blackbirds went a remarkable 103–6, including a perfect 24–0 in the 1935–36 season, with Bender leading the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

metropolitan area in scoring, a feat he also accomplished the previous season. At the completion of the 1936 season, Bender was named the winner of the inaugural

Haggerty Award __NOTOC__ The Lt. Frank J. Haggerty Award is given to the top men's college basketball player from an NCAA Division I school in the New York metropolitan area. The Haggerty Award is presented by the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MB ...

, presented since to the top player in the New York City metropolitan area each year. After the 1936 season, the L.I.U. Blackbirds were invited to try out for the 1936 Olympics, the first year in which basketball would be an event. In a move that surprised many, the largely Jewish team, including Bender, boycotted the trials over the games' placement in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and the anti-semitic leanings of the country's leader

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

.A Basketball Team That Stood Up
/ref> Bender was named a Consensus All-American in 1937. He was inducted into the L.I.U. Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000 (their inaugural class).

Professional

After his college career, Bender played in the American Basketball League for Kate Smith's Celtics, the Kingston Colonials,

Wilkes-Barre Barons The Wilkes-Barre Barons were a basketball team from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The Barons played between 1933 and 1980 in different United States, American sports league, leagues. The team won 11 titles during this time, including while playin ...

Baltimore Clippers The Baltimore Clippers were a minor league professional ice hockey team from in Baltimore, Maryland, playing in the Baltimore Civic Center. The Clippers were members of the American Hockey League from 1962 to 1976, and then played one season i ...

and the Paterson Crescents. Following his professional career he became a high school teacher at his alma mater, Boys High School and then at

John Dewey High School John Dewey High School is a public high school in Gravesend, Brooklyn, New York City. It was founded and based on the educational principles of John Dewey. The school, under the supervision of the New York City Department of Education, was name ...

, both in Brooklyn. He also coached at the college level for

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...

and the

United States Merchant Marine Academy The United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA or Kings Point) is a United States service academies, United States service academy in Kings Point, New York. It trains its midshipman, midshipmen (as students at the academy are called) to serv ...

. Bender died of cancer on January 13, 1982. He was buried at Mount Hebron Cemetery in

Flushing, Queens Flushing is a neighborhood in the north-central portion of the New York City Borough (New York City), borough of Queens. The neighborhood is the fourth-largest central business district in New York City. Downtown Flushing is a major commercial ...

References

External links

Jews in Sports profile

LIU Hall of Fame profile
1914 births 1982 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Baltimore Bullets (1944–1954) players Basketball coaches from New York (state) Boys High School (Brooklyn) alumni Brooklyn Bulldogs men's basketball coaches Deaths from cancer in Florida High school basketball coaches in New York (state) Jewish American basketball players LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds men's basketball players Merchant Marine Mariners men's basketball coaches Paterson Crescents players Basketball players from Brooklyn Forwards (basketball) Guards (basketball) Brooklyn College faculty Burials at Mount Hebron Cemetery (New York City) 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American sportsmen {{1910s-US-basketball-bio-stub