May 19, 2003

 

NORTHERN ILLINOIS’ ROBERT COLLINS, DON RUSSELL TABBED FOR PUBLIC LEAGUE CAGE HALL OF FAME

 

DeKALB, IL --- Two long-time contemporaries with ties to Northern Illinois University, the Windy City, and prep basketball---Robert Collins and Don Russell---will be inducted into the Chicago Public League Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame at the Hillside Holiday Inn on Tuesday, June 3. The 2003 induction class includes four other coaches, 14 players, four friends of basketball, two officials, one team, and four special awards.

 

The 56-year-old Collins, currently in his 11th year as associate athletics director at Northern Illinois, became known as the “Windy City Connection” during his six seasons as a Division I assistant basketball coach at NIU and DePaul University, plus eight winters as a head coach in the Public League at Calumet (1978-80) and Robeson (1980-86) high schools.

 

At Robeson, Collins posted a 129-43 won-lost record in six seasons, highlighted by 26-4 marks in both 1982-83 and 1983-84. During the latter campaign, his Robeson quintet went 12-0 in winning the Public League Red-Central Division title and reached the city championship game against Simeon. Collins was named the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association District Two Coach of the Year in 1983-84.

 

As a high school coach, Collins helped polish two of the state’s most prolific frontcourt major-college scorers in Alfredrick Hughes (2,914 career points at Loyola University during 1981-85) and Donnell Thomas (1,853 career points at Northern Illinois in 1987-91).

 

Collins spent three years as an assistant to Joey Meyer at DePaul when the Blue Demons reached the National Invitation Tournament quarterfinals (20-15 overall record) in 1989-90, plus won National Collegiate Athletic Association tourney bids in 1990-91 and 1991-92 (both 20-9 seasons). Under Huskie head coach Jim Rosborough in the late 1980s, he aided in the recruitment of Thomas, guard Donald Whiteside, and forward Antwon Harmon. All three would become starters on NIU’s 25-6 Mid-Continent Conference regular-season champions and NCAA entry in 1990-91 for Jim Molinari.

 

As a Northern Illinois administrator, Collins oversees the Huskie football program, serves on the NCAA Women’s Tennis Tournament Committee, and participated in the initial NCAA Leadership Institute for Ethnic Minority Males in 2001.

 

A 1965 graduate of Chicago Hirsch, Collins lettered in basketball, track, and baseball there and won All-City honors on the hardwood and diamond as a prep, plus earned a scholarship to Tennessee State University where he played baseball for four years and matriculated in 1971.

 

The 55-year-old Russell, a well-established head boys’ basketball coach in the Public League with tenures at Collins, Lincoln Park, Amundsen, and Vocational, won three cage letters at Northern Illinois for Hall of Fame head coach Tom Jorgensen during 1967-70 and received votes on the school’s All-Century Team during its Centennial celebration in 1999-2000. Russell’s best-known Public League pupil would be former Chicago Bulls’ guard Randy Brown (Collins).

 

A 6-foot-2, 195-pound guard from Carver, Russell started on the Huskies’ first three NCAA Division I quintets in the late 1960s and finished his career with 786 points in 72 appearances for a respectable 10.9 points-per-game average. He led Northern Illinois in free throw percentage in both the 1967-68 (.688) and 1968-69 (.779) seasons. As a sophomore, Russell finished No. 2 in team scoring with a 12.7 ppg. average behind All-Century pick Jim Smith who would become NIU’s first National Basketball Association and American Basketball Association draft pick. He graduated from NIU in 1970.

 

Prior to Northern Illinois, Russell averaged 28.0 ppg. at Western Wyoming Community College as a freshman in 1966-67. As a high school senior, he led Carver to the section championship in 1965-66. His older brother is Cazzie Russell, the former All-Stater at Carver, All-America at the University of Michigan, and standout with the New York Knicks.

 

Tickets for the Chicago Public League Coaches Association Hall of Fame Recognition Dinner cost $35 apiece and can be obtained from Eugene Henry at Fenger High School by telephone (AC 773-535-5430). The Hillside Holiday Inn is located at 4400 Frontage Road (Wolf Road and the Eisenhower Expressway). The CPLBCA banquet starts at 6 p.m. (CDT).

 

(For further information, please contact Mike Korcek) -30-