Melvin Russell Riebe (July 12, 1916 – July 25, 1977) was an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player. A 5'11"

guard-forward A swingman is an athlete capable of playing multiple positions in their sport. Basketball In basketball, the term “swingman” (a.k.a. “wing” or “guard-forward”) denotes a player who can play both the shooting guard (2) and small forw ...

who also played minor league baseball in the Cleveland Indians' organization, Riebe played professionally in both the National Basketball League (1943–1945) and the Basketball Association of America (1946–1949), finishing his career with two seasons with the Boston Celtics. He led the NBL in scoring twice, averaging 17.9 points per game during the 1943–44 season and 20.2 points per game the following year as a member of the Cleveland Chase Brassmen and the Cleveland Allmen Transfers. From 1950 to 1954 he attended the

College of Wooster The College of Wooster is a private liberal arts college in Wooster, Ohio. Founded in 1866 by the Presbyterian Church as the University of Wooster, it has been officially non-sectarian since 1969 when ownership ties with the Presbyterian Church ...

, where he was ineligible to play basketball or baseball due to his professional experience but played on the golf team. He spent the rest of his life as a football and basketball coach, athletic director, and physical education teacher at

Waynedale High School Waynedale High School is a public high school in Apple Creek, Ohio, United States. It is the only high school in the Southeast Local School District. They are nicknamed the "Golden Bears" and wear the colors of brown and gold for athletic events. ...

in Apple Creek, Ohio. Riebe's brother, Hank Riebe, was a catcher in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

from 1942 to 1949.

BAA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

1916 births 1977 deaths American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Ohio Basketball players from Cleveland Boston Celtics players Cleveland Allmen Transfers players Cleveland Chase Brassmen players Cleveland Rebels players College of Wooster alumni Forwards (basketball) Guards (basketball) High school basketball coaches in Ohio High school football coaches in Ohio Providence Steamrollers players Sportspeople from Cleveland {{1910s-US-basketball-bio-stub