Bob Kurland
(1924-2013)
Hall of Fame Induction: 1961
Card Shown:
1993 Action Packed
Position: C
Height: 7’0″
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Bob Kurland was a great defensive player who starred in college at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) and led the Aggies to two NCAA championships. At a time when professional basketball was still in its infancy, Bob decided to forego the pro game. Instead he went to work for Phillips Petroleum and led their Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team to great success. He went on to lead the United States to gold in two Olympics and was one of the first in organized basketball to regularly dunk the ball.
Awards and Honors
- Kurland led Oklahoma A&M to two consecutive NCAA basketball championships in 1945 and 1946. In 1945, Bob scored 22 points in the championship game as Aggies defeated New York University 49-45. In 1946, he scored 23 as they outscored North Carolina 43-40 in the title game. Kurland was named the NCAA tournament Most Outstanding Player both years.
- Bob was named an All-American three times during his college career.
- Kurland decided not to play professional basketball. Instead, he joined Phillips Petroleum and led their team to three national AAU championships during six All-America seasons with the team. This also preserved his amateur status and allowed him to represent the USA in the Olympics.
- Bob led the Team USA to basketball gold medals in the Olympics in London in 1948 and again in Helsinki in 1952. The USA went 8-0 in Olympic play both years, defeating France in the championship game in 1948 and the Soviet Union in 1952. In 1952, Kurland was chosen to carry the United States flag in the opening ceremony in Finland.
- The Helms Foundation named Kurland college basketball’s Most Outstanding Player following the 1945-46 season.
Points of Interest
- Bob was considered one of the first 7-footers to reach basketball stardom, although he said that he was really 6’10 1/2″ tall.
- In 1945, after Kurland and Oklahoma A&M had won the NCAA tournament and George Mikan and DePaul had won the NIT tournament, the two schools faced off in an epic battle to determine an unofficial national champion. Bob led his team to a 52-44 victory over DePaul in a wartime game that benefited the Red Cross.
- Both Kurland and Mikan used to swat away opponents’ shots as they ended their downward trajectory toward the basket. In response, the NCAA adopted the goaltending rule in 1944, which prohibits players from interfering with a shot on its downward arc.
- The military deemed Kurland, who was 6’6″ as a freshman in high school, too tall to serve in wartime.
- In 1946, Bob scored 58 points against St. Louis University and Ed Macauley. Ed kept a newspaper clipping of that game with him for years, looking at it when he felt he needed a dose of humility. Then he could consider how he had “held” Kurland to 58 points.