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Fred Bassi

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Fred Bassi
Born 1945
Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 182 lb (83 kg; 13 st 0 lb)
Position Forward
Played for Boston University
Syracuse Blazers
Johnstown Jets
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 1964–1970
Boxing career
NationalityCanadian
Statistics
Weight(s)Heavyweight
Boxing record
Total fights2
Wins1
Wins by KO1
Losses1

Fred Bassi is a Canadian retired ice hockey Center and coach who was an All-American for Boston University.[1]

Career

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Bassi began playing varsity hockey for Boston University in 1964. As a sophomore, Bassi played well on offense. However, head coach Jack Kelley benched him for half the season because he didn't backcheck.[2] After the season, Bassi got involved in boxing and was paid $20 for two appearances. He won both bouts but never made any further appearances in the ring until years later.[3]

As a junior, Bassi was put on a line with Bruce Fennie and Dennis O'Connell, forming a potent trio that pushed BU towards the top of the conference. Bassi led the team in scoring and finished as the second leading scorer in the nation. His 64-point season earned him a place on both the All-ECAC First Team and All-American team. Bassi used his large frame to position himself in front of the net and act as a "garbage collector" by knocking in rebounds. He was also able to rely on his experience as a boxer to establish his toughness; after knocking out a Harvard player in the 1966 Beanpot tournament with one punch, few were willing to challenge Bassi to additional fights.[2] Bassi also helped his team to a third-place finish in the ECAC Tournament that season, being named to the All-Tournament Second Team,[4] but due to Cornell turning down its invitation, BU was able to make the NCAA Tournament.

As a senior, Bassi led the team with 30 goals and helped the Terriers finish atop ECAC Hockey. The team battled Cornell all season for the claim as the best team and the two tied their only regular season meeting. The second game between the two came in the ECAC Championship game and the Terriers fell by a narrow 3–4 margin. BU returned to the NCAA tournament due to their Runner-up finish and met the Big Red again in the championship game. Bassi's final college point came on BU's first goal of the game; unfortunately, it turned out to be the Terriers' only goal of the match and BU lost 1–4.[5]

After graduating, Bassi continued his playing career for a few years but retired in 1970 while also pursuing a graduate degree at Boston University.[6] In the fall of that year, he joined Niagara College as a member of the athletic department faculty and immediately took over as the head coach of the ice hockey team. He spent the next thirty years working in that capacity and added stints as coach of the tennis, touch football and cross-country teams as well. Bassi led the Knights ice hockey program to 5 gold medal finishes in the International Collegiate Hockey League as well as four silver and five bronze medals.

In 1977, Bassi returned to the ring, primarily to lose weight as he had gotten up to 220 lbs. at the time. His training went well and Bassi started appearing in amateur bouts. In the late 1970s and early 80s, he fought 38 matches, producing a record of 26–12. In March 1981, Bassi fought his first professional match against Lou Alexander who was 4 inches taller and nearly 50 pounds heavier. Bassi lost in the second round after a few knockdowns but he fought one more match a year later, earning a TKO over Morris Fulgham. Bassi was inducted into the Boston University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1987 and the Niagara College Athletic Hall of Fame upon his retirement in 2000.[7]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Ice Hockey

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    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1964–65 Boston University ECAC Hockey 15 15 13 28 8 — — — — —
1965–66 Boston University ECAC Hockey 35 35 29 64 33 — — — — —
1966–67 Boston University ECAC Hockey 31 30 19 49 26 — — — — —
1967–68 Syracuse Blazers EHL 71 27 36 63 161 — — — — —
1968–69 Johnstown Jets EHL 7 0 2 2 11 — — — — —
1969–70 Braintree Hawks NEnHL — 30 16 46 — — — — — —
NCAA Totals 81 80 61 141 67 — — — — —

Professional boxing record

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[8]

2 fights 1 win 1 loss
By knockout 1 1
By decision 0 0
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round Date Age Location
2 Win 1–1 United States Morris Fulgham TKO 1 Aug 13, 1982 36 Canada Welland Arena, Welland, Ontario, CAN
1 Loss 0–1 United States Lou Alexander TKO 2 Mar 6, 1981 35 Canada Niagara Arena, Niagara Falls, Ontario, CAN

Awards and honors

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Award Year
All-ECAC Hockey First Team 1965–66 [9]
AHCA East All-American 1965–66 [1]
ECAC Hockey All-Tournament Second Team 1966 [10]

References

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  1. ^ a b "1965-1966 All-American Team". The American Hockey Coaches Association. Retrieved 2017-06-21.
  2. ^ a b "After BU days, alum went back to the rink -- and the ring". B.U. Bridge. March 9, 2001. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  3. ^ "Bassi a Niagara Boxing Legend". BPSN. June 8, 2018. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  4. ^ "Men's All-Tournament Teams" (PDF). ECAC Hockey. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2013-06-16. Retrieved 2014-04-26.
  5. ^ "NCAA Tournament". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  6. ^ "Fred Bassi". Boston University Terriers. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  7. ^ "Fred Bassi". Niagara Knights. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  8. ^ "Fred Bassi". Boxer List. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  9. ^ "ECAC All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  10. ^ "All-Tournament Honors" (PDF). ECAC Hockey. Retrieved 2014-05-12.
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