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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Cornelius Cash: 2009 BGSU Hall of Fame Inductee
October 13, 2009 | Men's Basketball
The Bowling Green State University Athletics Hall of Fame will welcome five new members on Saturday, Oct. 24, on the BGSU campus.
The class of 2009 will include Cornelius Cash (men's basketball), Travis Downey '00 (men's track and field), Ron Mason (hockey coach), Sara Puthoff '98 (women's basketball) and Scott Vallow '02 (men's soccer).
The official induction ceremony will take place Saturday, Oct. 24. The class will be recognized on the field at halftime of the BGSU-Central Michigan football game at Doyt Perry Stadium that afternoon. The game, which begins at 12:00 p.m., is designated as Hall of Fame Day, and is part of Family Weekend. The class will be officially inducted into the Hall at a ceremony following the game.
This is the first of a series of five biographical updates, leading up to the 24th...
CORNELIUS CASH (men's basketball; 1973-75)
Cash, a native of Dayton, Ohio, was a three-year letterwinner and a prolific rebounder for Falcon coach Pat Haley's teams. An All-Mid-American Conference First-Team selection in each of those three years, Cash averaged 15.8 points and a whopping 13.5 rebounds for his career. In 79 games, he had a total of 1,245 points and 1,068 boards.
Cash, a member of the last freshman team in BGSU history, averaged 17.5 points and 14.2 boards per game with that freshman squad, leading them to a 10-4 record and showing signs of things to come. As a sophomore in 1972-73, Cash was the top-rebounding forward in the nation with a 15.2 rpg average. He finished eighth in the nation overall, and also averaged 18.0 points per outing en route to being named BGSU's Most Valuable Player. Twice that year, he pulled down 23 rebounds in a game, and he had a 32-point night against Loyola of Chicago. In addition to his first-team all-conference honor, Cash also was an honorable-mention All-American in that sophomore season.
In his junior year, Cash led the Falcons in both scoring and rebounding for the second-straight year. He had 13.6 points per game, pulled down 12.4 boards per game to rank fourth in the conference, and had a total of 59 blocked shots, which remains the BGSU single-season school record.
Then, in his senior season of 1974-75, Cash averaged 15.3 ppg and a MAC-high 13.0 rpg, pulling down 22 boards twice that year. He also blocked 34 shots that season. In one of BGSU's 18 wins that year, Cash had a 22-point, 22-rebound performance in a win over San Diego State. The Falcons went 18-10 that year, including a 9-5 MAC mark, and finished third in the NCIT, beating Tennessee before losing to Drake.
In February of 1975, Cash became only the third MAC player to reach the 1,000 plateau in both points and rebounds. He joined fellow Falcon Hall-of-Famer Nate Thurmond and Miami's Wayne Embry on that list.
Cash led the MAC in rebounding as a senior, finishing 15th in the nation. He hit double figures in either points or rebounds in 25 of 27 games as a senior and 70 of 79 games in his career. Cash was a second-round choice by the Milwaukee Bucks in the 1975 NBA draft. In addition to the Bucks, he saw time with the Detroit Pistons of the NBA and the Utah Stars of the ABA.
Cash finished his BGSU career ranked second in school history in career rebounding and ninth in scoring. He remains second on the rebounding chart, trailing only Thurmond, and is now 22nd on the BGSU scoring list.
In addition to his time in the NBA, Cash also played professional basketball in Belgium, Yugoslavia and Brazil. He worked at Howard Paper Company for 13 years, and is currently employed by Houser Asphalt & Concrete in the Dayton area. He has three children, Erica, Cornelius III and Robert.
The 2009 class of inductees, the 46th class in history, brings membership in the Athletic Hall of Fame to 216. The 1983-84 national championship hockey team is also in the Hall of Fame.
The class of 2009 will include Cornelius Cash (men's basketball), Travis Downey '00 (men's track and field), Ron Mason (hockey coach), Sara Puthoff '98 (women's basketball) and Scott Vallow '02 (men's soccer).
The official induction ceremony will take place Saturday, Oct. 24. The class will be recognized on the field at halftime of the BGSU-Central Michigan football game at Doyt Perry Stadium that afternoon. The game, which begins at 12:00 p.m., is designated as Hall of Fame Day, and is part of Family Weekend. The class will be officially inducted into the Hall at a ceremony following the game.
This is the first of a series of five biographical updates, leading up to the 24th...
Cash, a native of Dayton, Ohio, was a three-year letterwinner and a prolific rebounder for Falcon coach Pat Haley's teams. An All-Mid-American Conference First-Team selection in each of those three years, Cash averaged 15.8 points and a whopping 13.5 rebounds for his career. In 79 games, he had a total of 1,245 points and 1,068 boards.
Cash, a member of the last freshman team in BGSU history, averaged 17.5 points and 14.2 boards per game with that freshman squad, leading them to a 10-4 record and showing signs of things to come. As a sophomore in 1972-73, Cash was the top-rebounding forward in the nation with a 15.2 rpg average. He finished eighth in the nation overall, and also averaged 18.0 points per outing en route to being named BGSU's Most Valuable Player. Twice that year, he pulled down 23 rebounds in a game, and he had a 32-point night against Loyola of Chicago. In addition to his first-team all-conference honor, Cash also was an honorable-mention All-American in that sophomore season.
Then, in his senior season of 1974-75, Cash averaged 15.3 ppg and a MAC-high 13.0 rpg, pulling down 22 boards twice that year. He also blocked 34 shots that season. In one of BGSU's 18 wins that year, Cash had a 22-point, 22-rebound performance in a win over San Diego State. The Falcons went 18-10 that year, including a 9-5 MAC mark, and finished third in the NCIT, beating Tennessee before losing to Drake.
In February of 1975, Cash became only the third MAC player to reach the 1,000 plateau in both points and rebounds. He joined fellow Falcon Hall-of-Famer Nate Thurmond and Miami's Wayne Embry on that list.
Cash finished his BGSU career ranked second in school history in career rebounding and ninth in scoring. He remains second on the rebounding chart, trailing only Thurmond, and is now 22nd on the BGSU scoring list.
In addition to his time in the NBA, Cash also played professional basketball in Belgium, Yugoslavia and Brazil. He worked at Howard Paper Company for 13 years, and is currently employed by Houser Asphalt & Concrete in the Dayton area. He has three children, Erica, Cornelius III and Robert.
The 2009 class of inductees, the 46th class in history, brings membership in the Athletic Hall of Fame to 216. The 1983-84 national championship hockey team is also in the Hall of Fame.
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