Couts, Thrasher to be inducted into Hall of Fame Urbana High School graduate Ed Couts and West Liberty-Salem graduate Al Thrasher will both be inducted into the Ohio Hoop Zone Hall of Fame Saturday night at the Columbus Convention Center.
Couts will be inducted as part of the 1965 Central State University basketball team which went undefeated and won the NAIA national title.
"Going into the Ohio Hall of Fame is unbelievable," said Couts, who graduated from UHS in 1963. "It's a very humbling experience."
In Couts' final three years at UHS, the Hillclimbers posted a 71-4 record.
As a sophomore at CSU in 1964-65, the 6-foot-3 Couts was a defensive specialist under the basket.
"If we were behind at halftime, I started the second half," said Couts. "I played in the middle and mixed it up with the big boys. We won at Wittenberg and at Xavier that season ... we had some amazing strength and speed. I guess I came along at the right time."
Thrasher had an outstanding career at the old Salem Local High School and jumped right into the Wittenberg University starting lineup as a freshman in 1960. He averaged 11.2 points per game as the Tigers won the national small college championship. The AP and UPI made him a first team Little All-America selection as a junior, and he was one of two small college players named to the major college All-America squad. In his junior year, he became the first Wittenberg player to score 500 points in a season. He averaged 17.9 points over 28 games and was Witt's second-leading rebounder. He was voted outstanding player in the Ohio Athletic Conference. Injuries sidelined him for much of his senior year.
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