Irving Bernhard Terjesen (March 4, 1915 – April 12, 1990) was an American

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. An

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

college player at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

, Terjesen played three seasons in the United States' National Basketball League (NBL). Terjesen played in his native

Brooklyn 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 ...

for James Madison High School, then played four seasons for

Howard Cann Howard Goodsell Cann (October 11, 1895 – December 18, 1992) was an American sportsman best known as the long-time men's basketball coach at New York University. He was also an Olympic shot putter and a college basketball and football player. ...

NYU Violets NYU Violets is the nickname of the sports teams and other competitive teams at New York University. The school colors are purple and white. Although officially known as the Violets, the school mascot is a bobcat. The Violets compete as a member ...

, where he was the leading scorer for two seasons. After the close of his college career, Terjesen played for the NBL's Akron Firestone Non-Skids from 1938 to 1941. The Firestone Non-Skids won the National Basketball League championships in both 1938–39 and 1939–40. In 63 career NBL appearances, Terjesen averaged 3.1 points per game. He was also known by the nicknames "Rip" and "Swede." He was inducted into the Summit County Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.

References

1915 births 1990 deaths Akron Firestone Non-Skids players All-American college men's basketball players Centers (basketball) Forwards (basketball) NYU Violets men's basketball players Basketball players from Brooklyn James Madison High School (Brooklyn) alumni American men's basketball players 20th-century American sportsmen {{1910s-US-basketball-bio-stub