Andy_Tonkovich
Andy Tonkovich
American basketball player
Andrew Edward Tonkovich (November 1, 1922 – September 2, 2006) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He was selected as the first overall pick in the 1948 BAA draft by the Providence Steamrollers. He played college basketball for the Marshall Thundering Herd.
Tonkovich as a senior at Marshall | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1922-11-01)November 1, 1922 Wheeling, West Virginia |
| Died | September 2, 2006(2006-09-02) (aged 83) Inverness, Florida |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Union (Benwood, West Virginia) |
| College | Marshall (1944–1948) |
| BAA draft | 1948: 1st round, 1st overall pick |
| Selected by the Providence Steamrollers | |
| Playing career | 1948–1952 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 7 |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 1948 | Providence Steamrollers |
| 1949–1952 | Wheeling Blues |
| As coach: | |
| 1949–1952 | Wheeling Blues |
| 1952–1954 | St. John Central HS |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career BAA statistics | |
| Points | 44 (2.6 ppg) |
| Assists | 10 (0.6 apg) |
| Games played | 17 |
Stats  at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
College career
Tonkovich led the Thundering Herd as team captain to the NAIB championship in 1947. He was named to the All-Tournament team and the NAIB All-American first-team. Tonkovich scored 1,578 points for the Thundering Herd, which was a record for the program at the time.[1]
Professional career
After his college career, he was selected as the first overall pick in the 1948 BAA draft by the Providence Steamrollers.
Tonkovich played 17 games for the Steamrollers during the 1948–49 BAA season. He left the team midseason and signed with the Wheeling Blues of the All-American Basketball League as a player-coach.[2][3]
After his playing retirement, Tonkovich became a high school coach and physical education teacher in West Virginia and Florida.[1] He served as the basketball coach at St. John Central High School in Bellaire, Ohio, from 1952 to 1954.[3] Tonkovich was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1973 and the Marshall Athletic Hall of Fame in 1985.[1]
BAA
Source[4]
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | FG% | FT% | APG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1948–49 | Providence | 17 | .268 | .667 | .6 | 2.6 |
- "Andy Tonkovich". Marshall University Athletics. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- "Blues Get Tonkovich". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 7, 1949. p. 18. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- "Legends to be honored at OVAC HOF banquet". Weirton Daily Times. May 4, 2014. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- "Andy Tonkovich". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
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