The early 1930s marked a time when our basketball court was as intimidating as our SAT scores, with the men's basketball team pulling in two consecutive Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League titles in 1930 and 1931. The success of this team was largely due to the efforts of six-foot-one forward Lou Bender, CC '32. During his years at Columbia, he was recognized as a three-time all-Metropolitan and two-time all-American athlete.
Finally, at the age of 98, Bender was inducted into the New York Basketball Hall of Fame on Sept. 17. This honor was bestowed upon him by the Hall of Fame Veterans Committee.
Growing up in the Bronx, Lou Bender played high school basketball at DeWitt Clinton High School where he became known as "Lulu," a name that would stick with him throughout his days at Columbia. This nickname reportedly developed from a fan at one of his high school basketball games who yelled out, "Now that was a lulu of a basket" after he made a deep shot.
After his time at Columbia, Bender started his professional career playing for the New York Celtics in the American Basketball League, a precursor league to the current National Basketball Association. Bender also played for the ABL's Union City Reds and Boston Trojans before retiring after the 1941 season when he played with the independent New York Whirlwinds.
Despite all of his basketball-related travels, it is fair to say that he found his one and only true love while playing and studying in Morningside Heights. While attending Columbia, he met Jean, his wife of 75 years and a graduate of Barnard College. In the early days of their marriage, they were living off of the fifty dollars per game that Bender made—a fairly good sum in those days. After retiring from basketball, he continued to support his family as he pursued a career in law. Today, he and his wife reside in Longboat Key, Fla.
Bender's fellow inductees last Wednesday at the Hall of Fame dinner hosted by the New York Athletic Club included former NBA players Kenny Anderson, Rod Strickland, Sam Perkins, and former University of Virginia and Providence College coach Pete Gillen.
