Cazzie Russell (1978) - University of Michigan Hall of Honor

Cazzie Russell

Induction:
1978

He is a three-time All-American. A legend, whose name is synonymous with Michigan basketball. His name is Cazzie Russell. To any true Wolverine, Michigan basketball is defined as BC (Before Cazzie) and AC (After Cazzie). Before Cazzie Russell, there were empty seats galore in old Yost Fieldhouse and last-place finishes in the Big Ten. Some felt basketball at Michigan was mainly a way for football players to stay in shape between seasons. In the pre-Cazzie era, you could leave home a few minutes before the start of the game, park within yards of Yost Fieldhouse and walk in. Maybe they would ask for a ticket, maybe they would not. Michigan’s long-suffering basketball fans could not have dreamed of anything so absolutely perfect -- three straight Big Ten championships, 65 victories and seven victories in 10 NCAA Tournament games, all by the time Cazzie had completed his fabulous three years at Michigan (freshmen were not eligible). Named an All-American each of his three seasons (1964-66), he captured virtually every offensive statistical record at Michigan, including a 27-point per-game average. A product of Chicago Carver High School where he was a scholastic All-American, Russell has captured the admiration of fans everywhere. He has been the center of more dramatic situations on the court than perhaps any other college player. The moment number 33 stepped on the court, miraculous things happened.

Russell fired up shots from the outside, whirled around the corners for driving lay-ups, and snared rebounds from opposing front-line giants, all while keeping the game’s pace under control from his position at guard. Russell’s teammates were just as tough and just as physical. It was in those years that the area from the key to the basket was known as Bloody Nose Lane. Whether on offense or defense, that area belonged to Russell, his All-America teammates Bill Buntin, Oliver Darden, Larry Fregoning and George Pomey. It was an area of hazardous travel for opponents. After leaving Michigan, Cazzie was the first player selected in the 1966 NBA Draft and played for the New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors. Still, Russell’s career is highlighted by those few years when he turned Ann Arbor upside down and drove Michigan’s athletic department crazy trying to find enough room in Yost Fieldhouse for the fans and media. Cazzie Russell was the defining figure of Michigan basketball in the 1960s, ‘70s, ‘80s, and into the ‘90s. In the nearly 30 years after Cazzie, the Wolverines have added four more Big Ten championships, more than two dozen NCAA Tournament appearances and a national championship in 1989.