(September 23, 2005) ?C Former Fordham University head men??s basketball coach John Bach was inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame in a ceremony last night at the New York Athletic Club in Midtown Manhattan. Joining Bach, who was inducted for his coaching prowess, was long-time Molloy High School coach Jack Curran. Former players who were inducted last night included Dwayne Washington, Vern Fleming, Lennie Rosenbluth, Willie Rubenstein and Clarence ??Puggy?? Bell. The original Celtics were also inducted as a team as was Lou Eisenstein, who became the only referee to work the N.B.A., N.C.A.A. and N.I.T. championships in the same year in 1950. After beginning his basketball career as a prepster in New York City in the early 1940s, playing on two New York City Catholic High School championship teams, Bach came to Fordham and was a regular on the school??s great 1942-43 freshman squad. His career with the Rams, however, was interrupted by years at the University of Rochester, Brown University, and the U.S. Navy ROTC program. He was commissioned as an ensign in the Navy and served until late 1947, at which point he returned to Fordham, earned a B.S. in Economics, and garnered team MVP honors for the 1947-48 season. Following two years of playing professionally for Hartford and Boston, Bach accepted the head coaching position at Fordham. He took over the program in 1950 and, over the next 18 seasons, compiled a 263-193 record, including five NIT appearances and NCAA appearances in 1953 and 1954. Bach is still the all-time winningest coach in Fordham??s rich basketball history. He served as assistant to the athletic director for four years and as athletic director for his final eight years before leaving for Penn State after the 1967-68 season. Bach??s success continued at Penn State where he won 123 games in ten seasons with his Nittany Lions consistently being ranked among the top 20 teams in the nation in defense. Following the 1977-78 season, Bach turned to the professional ranks, joining the staff of Golden State Warriors. He logged a 136-188 mark in three-plus seasons as an assistant in Oakland before Warrior head coach Al Attles stepped down with four games remaining in the 1982-83 season. Bach assumed interim responsibilities, split the final four games, and the following season, became the oldest rookie coach in league history (since eclipsed by Jerry Tarkanian) at age 58. He recorded an 89-157 mark as the Warriors?? head man over the ensuing three seasons before leaving for the Chicago Bulls Highly-regarded as a defensive specialist, Bach then began an impressive eight-year stint as assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls. Under head coaches Doug Collins and Phil Jackson, the Bulls accumulated a 432-224 (.659) record during Bach's tenure, notching 50 or more wins in six of his eight seasons. He is the proud owner of three NBA Championship rings from the Bulls?? 1990-91, ??91-92, and ??92-93 title seasons. From the Windy City Bach brought his ??take no prisoners?? approach to the Charlotte Hornets sidelines and helped head coach Allan Bristow engineer the biggest defensive turnaround in the NBA from 1994-96. The club held its opponents to 97.3 ppg--the sixth-best average in the league, the lowest figure in team annals, and a 9.4 ppg decrease from their 106.7 ppg average of '93-94. From 1996-98 Bach served as an assistant under Collins in Detroit and following a brief retirement, he answered the call from Jordan to return to the bench for the Washington Wizards in 2000. He served with the Wizards, under Collins, for three years before returning to the Bulls. Bach also has international coaching experience, serving as the assistant coach of the 1972 Olympic Team and on the United States Olympic Committee for 16 years. He has coached and conducted clinics in Puerto Rico, Peru, Finland, Poland, Russia, China, Brazil, Denmark, and Turkey. Bach and his wife Mary, a practicing attorney, currently reside in Chicago. He has five children who reside throughout the country, living in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and California.