Santa Clara University

Jim Russi was a All American forward for the 1959-1960 Santa Clara Basketball team. He averaged 15.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. During the 1960 NCAA tournament, he was nominated to the All-Region team. Russi and teammate, Frank Sobrero, made the Santa Clara record books as a top scoring tandem with 979 points. Russi proved to balance basketball and the books rather well; he was named a Rhodes Scholar. After Santa Clara, Russi was drafted by the St. Louis Hawks in the first round. In 1999 he was inducted into the Santa Clara Hall of Fame.