Columbia University Athletics

Basketball may have been invented when some Springfield, Mass. lads threw a ball through a YMCA peach basket, but it was in New York City that the sport took hold. And it was a Columbia man, Harry Fisher, who was most responsible, as a player, coach and administrator.

His record is impressive by any standard:
*Fisher starred for the Lions for three seasons – from 1902 to 1905 -- leading the team in scoring all three years and earning All-America honors his junior and senior years.

*Although his scoring averages – 10.4, 9.4 and 10.9 – seem low by modern standards, they were remarkable in an era when 23-18 scores were common. In 1905, Fisher set a Columbia field goal record of 13, a mark that stood for 48 years, and in a key game against Yale in 1905, he scored 22 points in the Lions’ 24-21 win.

* While leading Columbia, Fisher found time to coach Fordham, leading the Rams to a 4-2 record in 1904-05. Later, he doubled up as head coach at St.John’s, leading the team to a 15-5 record in 1909-10, the same year he directed Columbia to an 11-0 season.

* A year after graduation Fisher returned to his alma mater to begin a 10-year tenure as Columbia’s first professional coach (and possibly the first paid coach in the nation) His teams won three Eastern League titles and were second twice (in eight seasons). They were ranked among the top teams in the nation, compiling a 101-39 record, a remarkable .721 winning percentage.

* While leading Columbia, Fisher found time to coach Fordham, leading the Rams to a 4-2 record in 1904-05. Five years later, he doubled up as head coach at St.John’s, leading the team to a 15-5 record, the same year he directed Columbia to an 11-0 season.