Red Rocha

Red Rocha
No. 4, 6, 16
Center / Forward
Personal information
Date of birth September 18, 1923(1923-09-18)
Place of birth Hilo, Hawaii
Nationality American
Date of death February 13, 2010(2010-02-13) (aged 86)
Place of death Corvallis, Oregon
High school Hilo
Listed height 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight 185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
College Oregon State
NBA Draft 1947 / Round: 2 / Pick: 12th overall
Selected by the Toronto Huskies
Pro career 1947–1957
League BAA and NBA
Career history
As player:
19471950 St. Louis Bombers
1950–1951 Baltimore Bullets
19511956 Syracuse Nationals
1956–1957 Fort Wayne Pistons
As coach:
19571960 Detroit Pistons
Career highlights and awards
Career BAA and NBA statistics
Points 6,362 (10.9 ppg)
Rebounds 2,747 (6.6 rpg)
Assists 1,153 (2.0 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Ephraim J. "Red" Rocha (September 18, 1923 in Hilo, Hawaii – February 13, 2010[1]) was a professional basketball player and coach.

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Basketball

A 6'9" center from Oregon State University, he earned All-Pacific Coast Conference honors in 1945, 1946, and 1947. He was also selected as a 1947 All-American.

Rocha played in the BAA and NBA in the late 1940s and early 1950s. He represented the Baltimore Bullets in the 1951 NBA All-Star Game, the first NBA All-Star Game.[2] Rocha had 6,362 career points in the NBA and won an NBA title with the Syracuse Nationals in 1955.[2] He is also the only person from Hawaii to have ever played in the NBA.[3] Rocha still shares, with former teammate Paul Seymour, the NBA record for most minutes in a playoff game with 67.[4]

After his playing days he became a coach, including head coach of the Detroit Pistons from 1958 to 1960.[2] Rocha then became head coach for the University of Hawaii men's basketball team.[2] At UH, he assembled what is known today as the "Fabulous Five" during the 1970 to 1972 seasons. In 1970, the team advanced to postseason play for the first time in school history. Red also co-founded the Rainbow Classic — an eight-team collegiate men's basketball tournament, with UH hosting the tournament.

Later years

He was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1980, and into the Oregon State University Sports Hall of Fame in 1990. Ephraim "Red" Rocha died from cancer on February 13, 2010, in Corvallis, Oregon, at the age of 86.[3]

References

External links