Gale Eugene McArthur (March 6, 1929 – January 2, 2020) was an All-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 (appr ...

player at

Oklahoma A&M University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...

(now Oklahoma State). McArthur, a guard from Mangum, Oklahoma, attended

Oklahoma A&M Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...

and played basketball for

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 Henry Iba from 1948 to 1951. During his time in Stillwater, McArthur played on two Final Four teams, playing in the NCAA championship game in

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – Luis ...

(a 46–36 loss to

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

) as a sophomore and the national semifinals as a senior in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

. In that senior year of 1950–51, McArthur averaged 11.6 points per game and led the Aggies to a 29–6 record. The team won the Missouri Valley Conference for the second time in McArthur's career. After graduation from Oklahoma A&M, McArthur was drafted by the Minneapolis Lakers in the

1951 NBA draft The 1951 NBA draft was the fifth annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 25, 1951, before the 1951–52 season. In this draft, ten remaining NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basket ...

. However, McArthur opted for dental school instead, ultimately starting his own practice in Ponca City, Oklahoma. He died on January 2, 2020.https://www.poncacitynews.com/obituaries/services-pending-10

References

1929 births 2020 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American dentists American men's basketball players Basketball players from Oklahoma Guards (basketball) Minneapolis Lakers draft picks Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball players People from Mangum, Oklahoma People from Ponca City, Oklahoma {{1920s-US-basketball-bio-stub