Arthur Fremont Mathisen (February 27, 1920 – January 5, 2004) was an American college basketball standout for

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

in the 1940s. A

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

, Mathison led the Fighting Illini in rebounding while scoring over 500 points in his three years of varsity play earning a

varsity letter A varsity letter (or monogram) is an award earned in the United States for excellence in school activities. A varsity letter signifies that its recipient was a qualified varsity team member, awarded after a certain standard was met. Description ...

each year. Graduating from

Dwight High School Dwight is a village located mainly in Livingston County, Illinois, with a small portion in Grundy County. The population was 4,032 at the 2020 census. Dwight contains an original stretch of U.S. Route 66, and from 1892 until 2016 continuously us ...

, Mathisen was the son of James Mathisen and Mary (Jensen) Mathisen, marrying Virginia Mae DeLong in 1946. While in high school, Mathisen led his basketball team to the ''" Sweet Sixteen"'' of the IHSA state tournament in 1939. Mathisen enrolled at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

in the fall of 1939, playing on the freshman basketball team. In his sophomore year he was the starting center of the 1940–41 Fighting Illini team that finished third in the

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

with a 13–7 record. As a junior, Mathisen maintained his starting center role on a team that finished as conference champions and an overall record of 18–5. The pinnacle of his career was be the 1942–43 season, Mathisen was named team captain and the Illini finished their schedule with an overall record of 17–1, and a conference record of 12–0. This team was not only a Big Ten champion, they were also named a Premo-Porretta National Champion. Even though they were ranked #1 in the nation, Illinois elected not to play in the

1943 NCAA basketball tournament The 1943 NCAA basketball tournament involved eight schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 24, 1943, and ended with the championship game on Mar ...

because three starters were drafted into active duty.

Military service and coaching career

After completing his undergraduate studies, Mathisen served in the United States Army for three years, of which a year and a half was spent in the

European Theater The European theatre of World War II was one of the two main theatres of combat during World War II. It saw heavy fighting across Europe for almost six years, starting with Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 and ending with the ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Upon his return, Mathisen began a 30-year career with Danville High School in

Danville, Illinois Danville is a city in and the county seat of Vermilion County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, its population was 33,027. As of 2019, the population was an estimated 30,479. History The area that is now Danville was once home to the Miami, K ...

, teaching from 1950 to 1968 and becoming school principal from 1969 until his retirement in 1980. During his tenure at Danville, Mathisen was head coach of several sports, including; baseball (1959–1960), golf (1952–1962) and basketball (1950–1958). Mathisen's basketball teams made the IHSA ''"Sweet Sixteen"'' in 1951 and in 1954. In 1973, Mathisen was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame as a player.IBCA Hall of Fame
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References

# # # 1920 births 2004 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball players from Illinois Centers (basketball) High school baseball coaches in the United States High school basketball coaches in the United States Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball players People from Dwight, Illinois {{collegebasketball-stub