William J. Walker Jr. (born c. 1926) was an American basketball player. He was a native of Queens, New York and played the guard position.[1] Walker played collegiately for the Toledo Rockets from 1948 to 1951.[2] He was known as an excellent dribbler and passer, and was the first officially recorded national season assists leader with his 7.24 per game average during the 1950–51 NCAA men's basketball season.[3] However, Walker's collegiate accomplishments were overshadowed by his involvement in a point shaving scandal during his senior year.[4]
During a game against the Niagara Purple Eagles on December 15, 1950, Walker's Toledo Rockets held a lead of 17 points with three minutes remaining.[1][5][6] In the final minutes of the game, the Rockets misdribbled the ball, threw errant passes and only won the game by three points.[1][6] The game began suspicion among spectators that a fix had occurred and an investigation was subsequently commenced. Walker and teammates Carlo Munzi and Robert McDonald were found to be involved with the point shaving plot after having been instructed to win the Niagara game by less than the predicted seven points following a payment from New York gambler Eli Klukofski, who had been involved in other fixes.[1][6] The three Toledo players had turned down opportunities to point shave previous games against the Michigan Wolverines, Illinois Fighting Illini and Denver Pioneers as it "meant too much for them and the school" to defeat those teams.[6] For the Niagara game, Walker received $1,750 from Klukofski and gave $250 each to Munzi and McDonald.[6] No charges were formally placed against Walker and his teammates as the state of Ohio had no laws dealing with sports bribery.[6]
Prior to enrolling at Toledo, Walker had served in the United States Navy.[1] Walker graduated from Toledo just six weeks before the accusal; he was 25 years old, was married and had fathered one son at the time.[1] Walker showed remorse for his involvement in the scandal. In a July 29, 1951 issue of The Toledo Blade, he was quoted "In the end all this scandal will help a lot of kids and a lot of schools. My own boy will never make the same mistake I did."[5]
^ abcdefRosen, Charley (1999). Scandals of '51: How the Gamblers Almost Killed College Basketball (1st ed.). New York, NY: Seven Stories Press. pp. 147–151. ISBN1-888363-91-6.
^"William Walker career". FanBase. Archived from the original on July 30, 2012. Retrieved November 7, 2011.
^"2010–11 NCAA Men's Basketball Records" (PDF). 2010–11 NCAA Men's Basketball Media Guide. National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2010. Retrieved November 7, 2011.
^"Toledo Trio Latest Confessed Fixers in Basketball Scandal", The Milwaukee Journal: 6, July 25, 1951
^ abRothman, Seymour (July 29, 1951). "Gambler Warned to Lay off Bush". The Toledo Blade. Retrieved November 7, 2011.
^ abcdef"Three Toledo Players Admit $1,750 Payoff In Basketball 'Fix'". Madera Tribune. 25 July 1951. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
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January 01, 1970
bill, walker, toledo, basketball, current, basketball, player, formerly, known, bill, walker, henry, walker, basketball, william, walker, born, 1926, american, basketball, player, native, queens, york, played, guard, position, walker, played, collegiately, tol. For the current basketball player formerly known as Bill Walker see Henry Walker basketball William J Walker Jr born c 1926 was an American basketball player He was a native of Queens New York and played the guard position 1 Walker played collegiately for the Toledo Rockets from 1948 to 1951 2 He was known as an excellent dribbler and passer and was the first officially recorded national season assists leader with his 7 24 per game average during the 1950 51 NCAA men s basketball season 3 However Walker s collegiate accomplishments were overshadowed by his involvement in a point shaving scandal during his senior year 4 Bill WalkerWalker in 1951Personal informationBornc 1926 age 97 98 Queens New YorkDied2001Indian Harbor Beach FloridaNationalityAmericanListed height5 ft 10 in 1 78 m Career informationCollegeToledo 1948 1951 NBA draft1951 undraftedPositionGuardCareer highlights and awardsNCAA season assists leader 1951 During a game against the Niagara Purple Eagles on December 15 1950 Walker s Toledo Rockets held a lead of 17 points with three minutes remaining 1 5 6 In the final minutes of the game the Rockets misdribbled the ball threw errant passes and only won the game by three points 1 6 The game began suspicion among spectators that a fix had occurred and an investigation was subsequently commenced Walker and teammates Carlo Munzi and Robert McDonald were found to be involved with the point shaving plot after having been instructed to win the Niagara game by less than the predicted seven points following a payment from New York gambler Eli Klukofski who had been involved in other fixes 1 6 The three Toledo players had turned down opportunities to point shave previous games against the Michigan Wolverines Illinois Fighting Illini and Denver Pioneers as it meant too much for them and the school to defeat those teams 6 For the Niagara game Walker received 1 750 from Klukofski and gave 250 each to Munzi and McDonald 6 No charges were formally placed against Walker and his teammates as the state of Ohio had no laws dealing with sports bribery 6 Prior to enrolling at Toledo Walker had served in the United States Navy 1 Walker graduated from Toledo just six weeks before the accusal he was 25 years old was married and had fathered one son at the time 1 Walker showed remorse for his involvement in the scandal In a July 29 1951 issue of The Toledo Blade he was quoted In the end all this scandal will help a lot of kids and a lot of schools My own boy will never make the same mistake I did 5 See also editCCNY point shaving scandalReferences edit a b c d e f Rosen Charley 1999 Scandals of 51 How the Gamblers Almost Killed College Basketball 1st ed New York NY Seven Stories Press pp 147 151 ISBN 1 888363 91 6 William Walker career FanBase Archived from the original on July 30 2012 Retrieved November 7 2011 2010 11 NCAA Men s Basketball Records PDF 2010 11 NCAA Men s Basketball Media Guide National Collegiate Athletic Association 2010 Retrieved November 7 2011 Toledo Trio Latest Confessed Fixers in Basketball Scandal The Milwaukee Journal 6 July 25 1951 a b Rothman Seymour July 29 1951 Gambler Warned to Lay off Bush The Toledo Blade Retrieved November 7 2011 a b c d e f Three Toledo Players Admit 1 750 Payoff In Basketball Fix Madera Tribune 25 July 1951 Retrieved 25 March 2020 External links editCollege statistics Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bill Walker Toledo basketball amp oldid 1161180921, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
