 Henry in his senior year at Rice. | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 27, 1924 Dallas, Texas |
| Died | January 1, 1985 (aged 60) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Listed weight | 215 lb (98 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Highland Park (University Park, Texas) |
| College | Rice (1942–1945) |
| Playing career | 1947–1950 |
| Position | Center |
| Number | 30, 16, 20 |
| Career history | |
| 1947–1948 | Houston Mavericks |
| 1948–1950 | Fort Wayne Pistons |
| 1950 | Tri-Cities Blackhawks |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 613 |
| Rebounds | Not tracked |
| Assists | 103 |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
William Gambrell Henry (December 27, 1924 – January 1, 1985) was an American professional basketball player.[1] Henry played for one season with the Fort Wayne Pistons (1948–49) in the Basketball Association of America (BAA) before splitting the following season with the Pistons and Tri-Cities Blackhawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He recorded career totals of 613 points and 103 assists.[1] Although he played professionally, Henry is better known for his college basketball career at Rice University.
At Rice, Henry played three varsity seasons (1942–45).[2] A 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), 215 lb center,[1] Henry was twice selected as a consensus NCAA All-American, once in 1944 and again in 1945. As a senior in 1944–45, he led the Owls to an undefeated Southwest Conference season and only lost one game all season.[2] He scored 280 points in 12 conference games that year, good for a 23.3 points per game average.[3] He was also one of the biggest players in the league and led Rice to Southwest Conference first-place finishes all three years he played for them.[2][3] In his sophomore season of 1942–43, Rice qualified for the National Invitation Tournament (NIT), which at the time was as popular and respected as the modern day NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.[2] Rice would lose to the eventual tournament champion St. John's, 51–49, in the first round.
Henry was listed as Rice University's all-time greatest men's basketball player in the 2009 book ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game.[2] He was also inducted into the school's athletic hall of fame as part of the 1970 class.[4]
Bill Henry died five days after his 60th birthday.