Kopitko, Sol

Solomon Koptiko

A two-year starter at center, Kopitko played at the City College of New York (CCNY) in the 1930s before playing professionally in the American Basketball League.

Birth and Death Dates:
b. Sept 28, 1912 - d. May 1971

Career Highlights:
A tall center in the mid-1930s at CCNY, Kopitko was a two-year starter for Hall of Fame coach Nat Holman�s. One of the best players on the team, he joined the varsity as a junior in 1935 and was immediately an impact player. Teaming with future CCNY Athletic Director Sam Winograd, Kopitko finished the season tied for second high-scorer on the team with 82 points. However, the Beavers did not play up to expectations and finished 10-6 (it was the first time in Holman�s 15-year reign as City coach that he lost more than five games in one season).

The following year, Kopitko captained CCNY as they looked to return to the top of college basketball. At this time, New York City was the center of the basketball world in the Eastern U.S. as NYU won the National Championship in 1935 and LIU was joining City College, NYU, and St. John's as national powers. The 1936 City College season started well as they won their first four games, but Kopitko injured his ankle in the fifth game, a 32-28 surprise loss to Geneva. He returned for the Beavers' next game and played stellar defense in a 25-22 loss to St. John's.

After the loss to St. John's, City College began playing terrific basketball and won six of its next seven games. Kopitko was among CCNY's star players during this run, scoring a team-high 12 points in a 36-30 win over Princeton and helping the squad crush Villanova, 36-13. In the season finale, Kopitko scored seven points, but City lost to their rivals, NYU, 35-32. He ended the season with 77 total points while appearing in every game. The Beavers had a record of 10-4 and outscored their opponents, 465-362; their four losses were by a combined 12 points.

After graduating from City College, Kopitko played professionally in the American Basketball League, the top pro league in the East before 1946. According to statistics compiled by basketball historian Robert Bradley, Kopitko played one game during the 1939-40 season with the Troy Haymakers (he was scoreless), missed the next six seasons, and then returned in 1946-47 with the Brooklyn Gothams.

That year with the Gothams, Kopitko played in all 34 regular season games (one of only five players on Brooklyn to do so) and was fourth on the team in scoring (282 points) as Brooklyn finished first in the Northern Division with a 24-10 record. In the playoffs though, the Gothams lost in the first round to the Southern Division champs, the Baltimore Bullets (31-3). The 1946-47 season also saw the formation of the Basketball Association of America, which eventually became the NBA. By the early 1950s, the NBA was the top pro league in the country, and the ABL folded in 1953.

Koptiko played two more seasons in the ABL with the Gothams, although he appeared in only two games in 1948-49. The previous season, he played in 23 games and scored 200 points (third on the team) but the Gothams finished 8-20 and missed the playoffs.

Origin:
New York

Career Dates:
Kopitko played center at CCNY, 1935-36. He then played in the ABL with Troy in 1939-40 (one game), and for Brooklyn from 1946-49.

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