The 1949–50 CCNY Beavers men's basketball team represented the
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a public university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York City. Founded in 1847, Cit ...
. The head coach was
Nat Holman
Nat Holman (October 19, 1896 – February 12, 1995) was an American professional basketball player and college coach. He is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and is the only coach to lead his team to NCAA and National In ...
, who was one of the game's greatest innovators and playmakers. Unlike today, when colleges recruit players from all over the country, the 1949–50
CCNY team was composed of "kids from the sidewalks of New York City," who had been recruited by Holman's assistant coach Harold "Bobby" Sand from
Public Schools Athletic League
The Public Schools Athletic League, known by the abbreviation PSAL, is an organization that promotes student athletics in the public schools of New York City. It was founded in 1903 to provide and maintain a sports program for students enrolled in ...
(PSAL) schools such as
Taft,
Clinton,
Boys
A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is described as a man.
Definition, etymology, and use
According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy is "a ...
,
Erasmus
Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' wa ...
, and
Franklin
Franklin may refer to:
People
* Franklin (given name)
* Franklin (surname)
* Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class
Places Australia
* Franklin, Tasmania, a township
* Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...
High Schools.
Background
The team’s starting five was composed of two Black and three Jewish players. The team is the only team to win both the
National Invitation Tournament
The National Invitational Tournament (NIT) is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Played at regional sites and traditionally at Madison Square Garden (Final Four) in New York City ...
and the
NCAA tournament in the same year, by defeating
Bradley University
Bradley University is a private university in Peoria, Illinois. Founded in 1897, Bradley University enrolls 5,400 students who are pursuing degrees in more than 100 undergraduate programs and more than 30 graduate programs in five colleges. The ...
in the championship game of each tournament. The 1950 City team was also the first NCAA champion to have black players in its starting lineup. The players on the team were
Ed Warner
Edward Emory Warner (June 20, 1889 – February 5, 1954) was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played in with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He batted right-handed and threw left-handed.
He was born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and died in New York ...
,
Norm Mager,
Irwin Dambrot
Irwin Dambrot (May 24, 1928 – January 21, 2010) was an American basketball player, best known for his college career at the City College of New York.
Early life
Dambrot was born in the Bronx and attended William Howard Taft High School in the ...
,
Alvin "Fats" Roth,
Ed Roman,
Floyd Layne, Herb Cohen, Ron Nadell, Leroy Watkins,
Joe Galiber, and Arthur Glass. Students at CCNY, dubbed the poor man's Harvard because of its lofty academic standards, lived and died with every game, raising arena roofs with their unique school cheer:
"Allagaroo garoo gara,
Allagaroo garoo gara,
Ee-yah ee-yah,