Extra! Extra! Rather than listening to Senate Majority Moron Schmucky Schumer threaten Supreme Court justices again, you can read news about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Former college hoopers Mike Hargrove (Northwestern Oklahoma State) and Graig Nettles (San Diego State) each delivered three doubles as lefthanded hitters for the Cleveland Indians in a MLB game on this date. Ex-NYU hoopers Hank Greenberg and Eddie Yost provided outstanding offensive outputs in the American League on this date. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a May 6 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

MAY 6

• Hall of Fame C Mickey Cochrane (Boston University basketball player in early 1920s) clobbered his first MLB homer with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1925.

• Los Angeles Dodgers LHP Al Downing (attended Muhlenberg PA on hoops scholarship but left before ever playing) tossed a two-hit shutout against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1973.

• Boston Red Sox rookie RHP Boo Ferriss (Mississippi State hoops letterman in 1941) hurled his second straight shutout in 1945, whitewashing the New York Yankees, 5-0.

• New York Giants 2B Frankie Frisch (Fordham hoops captain) furnished four hits against the Philadelphia Phillies in a 1924 game.

• RF Jim Gleeson (NAIA Hall of Famer was all-league hoops pick for Rockhurst MO in early 1930s) traded by the Cincinnati Reds to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1942.

• Detroit Tigers LF Hank Greenberg (enrolled at NYU on hoop scholarship in 1929 but attended college only one semester) contributed three extra-base hits in a 6-4 victory against the New York Yankees in 1940.

• Cleveland Indians 1B Mike Hargrove (Northwestern Oklahoma State hoops letterman) collected three doubles against the Chicago White Sox in a 1983 outing.

• Milwaukee Braves SS Johnny Logan (Binghamton hooper in 1948-49) supplied at least three hits for the third consecutive contest in 1959.

• In 1968, San Francisco Giants RHP Lindy McDaniel (Oklahoma's 1954-55 freshman squad) established a N.L. record with his 225th consecutive errorless game.

• New York Yankees LF Bud Metheny (William & Mary hoops letterman from 1935-36 through 1937-38) stroked four hits in a 4-3 win against the Boston Red Sox in 1944.

• In 1967, 1B Cotton Nash (three-time All-American averaged 22.7 ppg and 12.3 rpg for Kentucky from 1961-62 through 1963-64) traded by the California Angels with cash to the Chicago White Sox for 1B Bill "Moose" Skowron (scored 18 points in eight games for Purdue in 1949-50).

• Cleveland Indians 3B Graig Nettles (shot 87.8% from free-throw line for San Diego State in 1963-64) stroked three doubles against the Chicago White Sox in a 1972 game.

• A two-out, seventh-inning single by CF Jim Northrup (second-leading scorer and third-leading rebounder for Alma MI in 1958-59) was the Detroit Tigers' lone safety when they were blanked, 4-0, by Dave Leonard of the Baltimore Orioles in 1968.

• Chicago White Sox rookie LHP Gary Peters (Grove City PA hooper in mid-1950s) won his first MLB start in 1963, limiting the Kansas City Athletics to four hits and one run over eight innings.

• Oakland Athletics 3B Tony Phillips (New Mexico Military juco hooper in 1977-78 as teammate of eventual Drake All-American Lewis Lloyd) banged out four hits, scored three runs and chipped in with three RBI in a 1986 game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

• LF Rip Repulski (started handful of hoops games for St. Cloud State MN) traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Boston Red Sox in 1960.

• Los Angeles Angels RHP Jack Spring (freshman hooper for Washington State in 1951-52) hurled 4 2/3 innings of hitless relief in posting victory against the Baltimore Orioles in 1962.

• Cincinnati Reds 1B Champ Summers (led SIUE in scoring in 1969-70 after doing same with Nicholls State in 1964-65) went 4-for-4 and chipped in with five RBI against the Houston Astros in the opener of a 1979 doubleheader.

• Boston Red Sox C Birdie Tebbetts (Providence hooper in 1932) blasted two homers against the Chicago White Sox in a 1950 game.

• Cleveland Indians 1B Jim Thome (played junior-college hoops for Illinois Central in 1988-89) provided three extra-base hits (two doubles/one homer) and five RBI in a 1998 game against the Baltimore Orioles. Five years later with the Philadelphia Phillies, he hammered a pair of round-trippers in 2003 game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

• Philadelphia Phillies CF Cy Williams (Notre Dame forward in 1909-10) homered twice in a 5-4 win against the New York Giants in 1924.

• Washington Senators 3B Eddie Yost (NYU freshman hooper in 1943-44 under coach Howard Cann) knocked in four runs in opener of a 1951 twinbill against the Cleveland Indians, igniting a career-long 16-game hitting streak.

Extra! Extra! Rather than try to understand lobotomy candidate Plagiarist Bidumb, the poster boy for early-cognitive impairments (Alzheimer's/dementia/Parkinson's), you can read news about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Former college hoopers Joe Adcock (Louisiana State), Zeke Bonura (Loyola LA), Gil Hodges (St. Joseph's IN/Oakland City IN) and Bill White (Hiram OH) each hit two homers as a MLB first baseman on this date. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a May 5 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

MAY 5

• Los Angeles Angels 1B Joe Adcock (Louisiana State's leading basketball scorer in 1945-46) launched two homers against the Kansas City Royals in a 1964 game.

• San Diego Padres RHP Steve Arlin (played two basketball games for Ohio State in 1964-65 under coach Fred Taylor) tossed his second of back-to-back shutouts in 1972.

• Chicago White Sox SS Bosey Berger (Maryland's first hoops All-American led Southern Conference in scoring in league competition in 1930-31) banged out four hits against the Philadelphia Athletics in a 1938 contest.

• Seattle Mariners 1B Bruce Bochte (starting forward for Santa Clara's NCAA playoff team in 1969-70) contributed four hits against the Boston Red Sox in a 1979 outing.

• Chicago White Sox 1B Zeke Bonura (best basketball forward for Loyola LA in late 1920s and early 1930s) whacked two homers in an 8-5 setback against the Philadelphia Athletics in 1936.

• In 1943, New York Giants LF Vic Bradford (Alabama hoops letterman in 1937) supplied his lone MLB hit with a single against the Boston Braves.

• 2B Marv Breeding (Samford hooper in mid-1950s) traded by the Atlanta Braves to the San Francisco Giants in 1966.

• Boston Braves SS Dick Culler (#9 jersey retired by High Point for hoops Little All-American in 1935 and 1936) went 5-for-6 in a 1945 doubleheader against the New York Giants.

• New York Giants SS Alvin Dark (hoops letterman for LSU and USL in mid-1940s) went 4-for-4 and chipped in with four RBI in a 1951 game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

• After two shaky starts in 1951, Pittsburgh Pirates RHP Con Dempsey (played hoops for San Francisco during Golden Age of athletics on Hilltop) tossed two shutout innings of relief against the New York Giants in his third and final MLB appearance.

• RHP George Earnshaw (Swarthmore PA hooper in 1922) ignited a 17-game winning streak for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1931 with a 4-1 triumph over the Boston Red Sox.

• St. Louis Browns C Rick Ferrell (played forward for Guilford NC before graduating in 1928) furnished four hits for the second time in a three-game span in 1931.

• Oakland Athletics 3B Wayne Gross (led Cal Poly Pomona in assists in 1974-75) went 4-for-4, including three extra-base hits, in a 6-2 win against the Detroit Tigers in 1981.

• Brooklyn Dodgers 1B Gil Hodges (hooper for St. Joseph's IN in 1943 and Oakland City IN in 1947 and 1948) homered twice against the Cincinnati Reds in a 1951 contest.

• Atlanta Braves RF David Justice (led Thomas More KY in assists in 1984-85 while averaging 9.3 ppg) smacked two homers against the Philadelphia Phillies in a 1996 game.

• St. Louis Browns LHP Ernie Koob (Western Michigan hoops letterman in 1914) hurled a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox in 1917.

• OF Don Lock (led Wichita State in field-goal percentage in 1956-57 and 1957-58) traded by the Philadelphia Phillies to the Boston Red Sox in 1969.

• In a twinbill sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals LF Wally Moon (averaged 4.3 ppg with Texas A&M in 1948-49 and 1949-50) began a 24-game hitting streak, the longest of the 1957 season in the N.L.

• Utilityman Bob Oliver (All-Valley Conference basketball choice for American River Community College CA in 1962) traded by the Kansas City Royals to California Angels in 1972.

• Chicago White Sox LHP Gary Peters (Grove City PA hooper in mid-1950s) pounded a grand slam off Al Downing (attended Muhlenberg PA on hoops scholarship) in a 5-1 win against the New York Yankees in opener of 1968 twinbill.

• In the midst of a career-high 17-game hitting streak at start of 1934 campaign, Boston Red Sox CF Carl Reynolds (Southwestern TX hoops MVP and captain in mid-1920s) went 4-for-4 against the St. Louis Browns. It was the first of three consecutive contests where he secured two extra-base hits among at least three safeties.

• Philadelphia Phillies LHP Eppa Rixey (Virginia hoops letterman in 1911-12 and 1913-14) went 3-for-3 at the plate in game against the Boston Braves. Outburst was one of eight multiple-hit outings for him in 1920.

• Kansas City Athletics 1B Norm Siebern (member of Southwest Missouri State's back-to-back NAIA Tournament titlists in 1952 and 1953) went 5-for-6 and scored five runs in an 18-6 romp over the Cleveland Indians in the opener of a 1962 doubleheader.

• Detroit Tigers SS Ken Szotkiewicz (Georgia Southern hoops letterman in 1966-67) supplied career highs of two hits and two RBI against the Minnesota Twins in a 1970 contest.

• San Diego Padres OF Will Venable (All-Ivy League first-team selection as junior and second-team choice as senior averaged 9.3 ppg under Princeton coach John Thompson III from 2001-02 through 2004-05) stroked a game-winning, two-run single in bottom of 12th inning in a 6-5 win against the Kansas City Royals in 2014.

• St. Louis Cardinals 1B Bill White (two-year hooper with Hiram OH in early 1950s) belted two homers against the San Francisco Giants in a 1965 contest.

• Philadelphia Phillies RF Cy Williams (Notre Dame forward in 1909-10) homered twice against the New York Giants in a 1925 game.

• San Diego Padres RF Dave Winfield (starting forward for Minnesota's first NCAA playoff team in 1972) delivered two homers against the Montreal Expos in a 1979 outing.

• Chicago Cubs RHP Zip Zabel (premier hooper for Baker KS from 1913 to 1915) hurled his second shutout and third complete-gave victory in nine-day span in 1915.

Extra! Extra! Rather than putting any stock into what Mary Poppins karaoke reject Ms. Misinformation says, you can read news about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Former Notre Dame hoopers Ron Reed and Cy Williams made National League news in games involving the Philadelphia Phillies on this date. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a May 4 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

MAY 4

• Milwaukee Braves 1B Joe Adcock (Louisiana State's leading basketball scorer in 1945-46) cracked a grand slam in the bottom of the 10th inning of a 10-6 triumph against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1961.

• RHP Ray Benge (multi-year hoops letterman for Sam Houston State first half of 1920s) won his first four appearances with the Boston Bees in 1936.

• Chicago Cubs 1B Larry Biittner (runner-up in scoring and rebounding for Buena Vista IA in 1966-67) banged out four hits against the Cincinnati Reds in the nightcap of a 1980 doubleheader.

• Boston Red Sox 2B Denny Doyle (averaged 2.7 ppg for Morehead State in 1962-63) delivered four hits against the Kansas City Royals in a 1976 game.

• Oakland Athletics 3B Wayne Gross (led Cal Poly Pomona in assists in 1974-75) contributed two homers and five RBI in an 11-5 win against the New York Yankees in 1979.

• In the midst of a career-high 23-game hitting streak in 1980, Cleveland Indians 1B Mike Hargrove (Northwestern Oklahoma State hoops letterman) supplied at least one RBI in his eighth consecutive contest.

• LHP Bill Henry (hoops letterman for Houston's 1947 NAIA Tournament team featuring co-captain Guy Lewis) traded by the Cincinnati Reds to San Francisco Giants in 1965.

• Los Angeles Dodgers 1B Gil Hodges (hooper for St. Joseph's IN in 1943 plus Oakland City IN in 1947 and 1948) went 4-for-4, including two homers and two doubles, against the Milwaukee Braves in a 1959 game.

• In 1927, New York Giants RHP Mul Holland (Virginia hoops letterman from 1923-24 through 1926-27 was All-Southern Conference Tournament selection as sophomore) posted his lone MLB victory.

• Chicago White Sox 3B Irv Jeffries (posted team-high scoring average of 11.5 ppg for Kentucky in 1927-28) hit safely in his first five starts in 1931.

• Milwaukee Braves SS Johnny Logan (Binghamton hooper in 1948-49) logged three doubles in a 9-4 win against the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1953.

• San Diego Padres 3B Graig Nettles (shot 87.8% from free-throw line for San Diego State in 1963-64) whacked two homers against the Chicago Cubs in a 1985 contest.

• Kansas City Royals rookie CF Bob Oliver (All-Valley Conference basketball choice for American River Community College CA in 1962) went 6-for-6 against the California Angels in 1969. Four years later as an Angels 1B, Oliver provided the contest's lone RBI against the Baltimore Orioles while supplying three hits for second time in a three-game span.

• St. Louis Browns LHP Joe Ostrowski (leading scorer in 1942-43 for Scranton PA) tossed his second complete-game victory in as many starts in 1950.

• Atlanta Braves RHP Ron Reed (Notre Dame's leading rebounder in 1963-64 and 1964-65) incurred the defeat in a 20-inning marathon against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1973.

• In 1966, Houston Astros RHP Robin Roberts (Michigan State's second-leading scorer in 1945-46 and 1946-47) tossed the last of 45 MLB shutouts in his 19-year Hall of Fame career.

• RHP Sonny Siebert (team-high 16.7 ppg for Missouri in 1957-58 as All-Big Eight Conference second-team selection) shipped by the Boston Red Sox to the Texas Rangers as part of a conditional deal in 1973.

• RHP Lee Smith (averaged 3.4 ppg and 1.9 rpg with Northwestern State in 1976-77) traded by the Boston Red Sox to the St. Louis Cardinals for OF Tom Brunansky in 1990.

• Cleveland Indians 2B Freddy Spurgeon (Kalamazoo MI hooper in 1921-22) supplied four hits and four RBI against the St. Louis Browns in a 1926 outing.

• Detroit Tigers 2B Gary Sutherland (averaged 7.4 ppg with Southern California in 1963-64) stroked four hits against the Minnesota Twins in a 1976 contest.

• Philadelphia Phillies CF Cy Williams (Notre Dame forward in 1909-10) collected three extra-base hits against the New York Giants in a 1923 game.

Extra! Extra! Rather than lose your lunch over loathsome leaker at Supreme Court, you can read news about memorable major league baseball achievements, moments and transactions involving former college basketball players. Numerous ex-college hoopers had front-row seats to many of the most notable games and dates in MLB history.

Former NCAA Tournament hoop starters Steve Hamilton (Morehead State) and Rollie Sheldon (Connecticut) became MLB pitchers involved in American League trades on this date during first half of 1960s. Ex-Penn hoopers Fritz Knothe and Tommie Upton also made MLB news on this date. Baseball is portrayed as a thinking man's game but only 4% of active MLB players earned college diplomas. Unless you habitually pore over the content at baseballlibrary.com, baseballreference.com and nationalpastime.com, following is a May 3 calendar focusing on such versatile MLB athletes:

MAY 3

• En route to hitting safely in 15 of his first 18 MLB starts, Philadelphia Phillies rookie 1B Ed Bouchee (freshman hooper for Washington State in 1951-52) went 4-for-4 in a 9-6 win against the Chicago Cubs in 1957 outing.

• In 1977, Chicago Cubs RHP Ray Burris (basketball-baseball standout in Southwestern Oklahoma State Hall of Fame) fired a five-hit shutout against the Houston Astros for his first of five victories in the month.

• Pittsburgh Pirates 1B Donn Clendenon (four-sport letterman with Morehouse GA) cracked two-run homers in the 8th and 12th innings in a 5-4 win against the Cincinnati Reds in 1966.

• Detroit Tigers C Mickey Cochrane (five-sport athlete with Boston University) collected four hits, including three for extra bases, against the Chicago White Sox in a 1937 contest.

• New York Yankees LHP Al Downing (attended Muhlenberg PA on hoops scholarship but left before ever playing) tossed a three-hit shutout in the opener of 1964 doubleheader against the Washington Senators, notching 13 of his A.L.-leading 217 strikeouts.

• Boston Red Sox LF Hoot Evers (Illinois hoops starter in 1939-40) scored four runs against the St. Louis Browns in the opener of a 1953 doubleheader.

• Washington Senators C Rick Ferrell (played forward for Guilford NC before graduating in 1928) registered four hits against the St. Louis Browns in a 1939 game.

• First triumph in 1982 campaign for Baltimore Orioles LHP Mike Flanagan (averaged 13.9 ppg for UMass' freshman squad in 1971-72) was a three-hit shutout against the Seattle Mariners. Seven years later with the Toronto Blue Jays, Flanagan provided the final whitewash of his 18-year career (four-hitter against the Oakland Athletics in 1989).

• INF Jake Flowers (member of 1923 "Flying Pentagon" championship hoops squad for Washington College MD) traded by the St. Louis Cardinals to the Brooklyn Robins in 1927.

• LHP Steve Hamilton (Morehead State's leading scorer and rebounder in 1956-57 and 1957-58) traded by the Cleveland Indians to the Washington Senators in 1962.

• Boston Braves 3B Fritz Knothe (member of Penn's freshman hoops squad in 1923-24) knocked a go-ahead, two-run homer in bottom of the eighth inning in 6-4 win against the Cincinnati Reds in 1933.

• Teammates OF Irv Noren (hoops player of year for California junior college state champion Pasadena City in 1945) and INF Tommie Upton (led Southeast Missouri State in scoring three years last half of 1940s and was school's career scoring leader upon graduation; while serving in military, Upton was All-EIBL first-team selection with Penn in 1945-46) traded by the Washington Senators to the New York Yankees for promising OF Jackie Jensen and three other players in 1952. Upton never played for the Yanks.

• New York Giants RF Dave Robertson (one of two reserves on North Carolina State's first basketball team in 1911) went 4-for-4 and swiped two bases in a 3-2 win against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1915.

• RHP Steve Roser (hoops center for Clarkson NY before passing up senior season after signing professional baseball contract in 1940) purchased from the New York Yankees by the Boston Braves in 1946.

• RHP Rollie Sheldon (third-leading scorer as sophomore for Connecticut's 1960 NCAA Tournament team) traded by the New York Yankees to the Kansas City Athletics in 1965.

• Chicago Cubs SS Roy Smalley Jr. (one of top scorers for Drury MO in 1942-43 and 1943-44) went 4-for-4 against the Philadelphia Phillies in a 1950 contest.

• Boston Red Sox 3B Jim Tabor (Alabama hoops letterman in 1936-37) jacked two homers against the St. Louis Browns in a 1940 outing.

• St. Louis Cardinals RHP Ray Washburn (Whitworth WA scoring leader in 1958-59 and 1959-60 when named All-Evergreen Conference) tossed a two-hit shutout against the Cincinnati Reds in 1967.

• Chicago Cubs RF Bob Will (all-league athlete was hoops captain for Mankato State MN in 1954-55) stroked two doubles in midst of four consecutive two-hit contests in 1960.

Do you want to be an authentic hero or a zero resembling petty politicians, press pestilent pundits and big tech termites futilely trying to intimidate resourceful Conservatives? For several years, Fox News aired a riveting two-part program featuring Navy SEAL Team 6 member Robert O'Neill (senior chief petty officer is recipient of two Silver and five Bronze Stars) as "The Man Who Killed Usama Bin Laden." Amid focusing on the 10th anniversary ridding Planet Earth of UBL, it seems we should also be celebrating authentic courage from the college basketball ranks stemming from an individual instrumental in tracking down the terrorist ringleader of 9/11 attack. But the selfless ex-athlete from a Midwest university hasn't "come out of the closet" for security reasons and might be underground with a fake identification unless, of course, ax-grinding Left Coast Sen. Dianne "Fossil" Feinstein rats him out amid another of her vendettas or some sycophant from the old Obama Administration eventually unmasks him via a smut merchant Michelle Wolf monologue while Lurch Kerry exhibits loose lips with the Iranians.

In the documentation about dispatching UBL to hell (equivalent status even if nonsense about satisfying 72 virgins transpired in some towelhead aspirational dream), the White House unveiled a photograph of President Barack Obama and his Cabinet inside the Situation Room, watching the daring commando raid unfold on May 1, 2011. But POTUS (JV player for Occidental CA) apparently wasn't the tallest ex-college hooper in the room. Standing just outside the frame of that famous pic was an anonymous Central Intelligence Agency officer ("CIA John") who pursued UBL as a dogmatic deputy chief and reportedly was also influential as one of the principal proponents of drone deterrence. Two days after the world's most-wanted man was transformed into marine treat when deposited in the North Arabian Sea, "CIA John" accompanied then CIA Director Leon Panetta to Capitol Hill, where the Senate Intelligence Committee received a full briefing on the mission.

According to AP accounts at the time, the meticulous senior intelligence analyst was the first individual to put in writing that a legitimate CIA lead had been assembled on possibly locating UBL. He spearheaded the collection of clues for nearly 10 years, leading the agency to a fortified compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and its epic counter-terrorism success. Our freedom-loving nation is eternally grateful that his manhunt accuracy as a deep-cover agent in pinpointing UBL's whereabouts stood in stark contrast to his free-throw marksmanship as a deep-bench player (barely over 30%) as a member of multiple NCAA playoff teams.

Sy Hersh muckraking notwithstanding, box-office hit "Zero Dark Thirty" was an inspiring movie focusing on a young female CIA operative allegedly also from flyover country. She exhibited her tenacity, dedication and courage in primarily monitoring a vital courier for al-Qaeda's upper brass. According to Esquire, the shooter who killed UBL (subsequently acknowledged as Butte MT native O'Neill) gave the magazine out of his gun as a souvenir to bloodhound "Maya." While the film doesn't do justice to the male super spy, the patriot is likely to defer anyway to the concept "there is no 'I' in team" insofar as it was a remark his college hoops coach frequently cited. Naturally, Langley issued a perfunctory "no comment" because concern exists about publishing his name and running biographical details might make him a target for Muslim radical retribution.

Over the decades, there have been other notable "Secret Agent Men" in the CIA who were former college hoopsters. In fact, a Final Four player isn't required to hit a decisive basket or be selected Most Outstanding Player to be a hero. He doesn't even need to participate on the court. Bob Ames, a member of the Tom Gola-led La Salle teams in 1954 (national champion) and 1955 (runner-up to San Francisco), never got off the bench at the Final Four those two years although he was the only La Salle player to hit more than three-fourths of his free throws the season the Explorers won the NCAA title.

"Our coach, Ken Loeffler, only used seven guys, and Bob was the eighth man," said Frank Blatcher, a starter for the Explorers each season and their leading scorer with a total of 42 points at the Final Four on the championship team. "He had the talent. He just never got a chance to show it."

Ames, a pre-law major who scored a total of eight points in three NCAA playoff games in 1955, did have an opportunity to show his ability in another more vital endeavor, however. He joined the CIA and worked his way up the chain of command to become the Director of the CIA's Office of Analysis of the Near East and South Asia. "The Spy Who Loved Basketball" worked closely with both the Carter and Reagan administrations.

Regrettably, Ames was killed in Beirut in 1983. A truck loaded with TNT on a suicide mission rammed into the facility where Ames was staying while serving as a liaison trying to allay contacts among the Lebanese, Syrians and Israelis in hopes of calming the escalating discord.

"Here was a guy that turned out to have had a greater influence on our lives than just about any 1,000 other basketball players you can name," Blatcher said. "It just shows you that you don't have to be a star to accomplish something." Something like becoming a genuine American hero.

Elsewhere, the CIA's deputy director under George Bush in 1976 was Hank Knoche, the leading scorer in the Mountain States (Big Seven) Conference with 16.4 points per game for Colorado's 1946 NCAA Tournament team. Knoche, the father of former American University coach Chris Knoche, reputedly was the first player selected in the NBA's first college draft in 1947 after enrolling at Washington and Jefferson (Pa.) to play on a 16-4 team with two of his brothers. But he never appeared in the then-fledgling league, which doesn't have any official draft records prior to 1949. The franchise that selected him, the Pittsburgh Ironmen, folded shortly after the draft, and his rights reverted to the New York Knicks.

"I didn't know I was the first No. 1 pick until a writer from Atlanta called me for a story," Knoche said. "An NBA historian had informed him of my alleged status."

The elder Knoche, who went to live in the Denver area, chose not to play in an uncertain situation for little money. "I never received any contact from the Ironmen," he said. "The Knicks sent a contract offer in the mail, but it was for just $3,500 and that's if I made the team (many NBA standouts earn five times that amount every quarter).

"I chose to play industrial basketball, where I remember playing six times one year against seven-footer Bob Kurland (Oklahoma State three-time first-team All-American who never played in the NBA). That wasn't much fun going against Kurland because I was just a 6-4 center."

Knoche was recalled to the military during the Korean War, where he was assigned to intelligence work for the Navy and later embarked on a civilian career leading to a job with the CIA.

Another former college hooper who carved out a CIA career was Pete Sivess, a center for Dickinson PA in 1935-36 before compiling a 7-11 record as a righthanded pitcher with the Philadelphia Phillies in three years from 1936 through 1938. While Moe Berg is the most famous MLB player linked with the CIA, his career as a spy pales in comparison to baseball contemporary Sivess, who is credited with defining CIA policy for handling Eastern Bloc defectors. During the height of the Cold War, Sivess conducted a "first haven" on Maryland's Eastern Shore where defectors were shipped to be debriefed. Probably the highest-profile spy Sivess monitored was "notorious double agent" Nicholas Shadrin, who died on a trip to Vienna in 1975 in a kidnapping attempt by Moscow's counterspies.

In the shadowy world of the CIA, no precise clues exist as to whether a basketball background for "CIA John" contributed to helping POTUS develop a comfort-zone bond with him similar to other ex-college hoopers in his inner circle - Secretary of Education Arne Duncan (Harvard), Attorney General Eric Holder (Columbia), "body man" Reggie Love (Duke) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen (Navy). But it isn't ridiculous to suggest there might not have been a second inauguration for President Obama if he didn't trust "CIA John."

A vital hurdle approving the raid came when the SEAL Squadron leader briefed Mullen on merits of the mission. According to O'Neill's anonymous interview with Esquire, Vice Admiral William McRaven, head of Joint Special Ops Command, compared the raid and its fighters to the basketball movie Hoosiers in a final briefing with the participants in Operation Neptune's Spear.

A pithy precept occasionally surfaces in basketball trash talking that "some talk a good game and some play a good game." Depending upon your point of view, Time's Person of the Year in 2011 and each subsequent year could have been "CIA John." Surely, ex-Time managing editor Rick Stengel, a backup for Pete Carril-coached Princeton in the mid-1970s, would have encouraged co-workers to give "CIA John" special consideration after the White House acknowledged him and his colleagues as "unbelievably competent professionals" prior to joining Obama's State Department.

The dumber-than-doorknob Obama Administration admitted doctoring State Department videos. Wanna bet whether "CIA John" was photo-shopped out of the famous Situation Room pic? Perhaps Plagiarist Bidumb of Logan Act lore was involved in similar General Flynn intrigue while donning aviator sunglasses and profanely instruct his German Shepherd (Major) to bite underlings annoying him. In midst of feeling so clever switching from unmasking opponents to masking entire nation, "the big guy's" alleged e-mail pseudonym - Peter Henderson - seems to have been "borrowed" straight from KGB mole in Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan series.

Deserved or not, other ex-college hoopers may get the bulk of the glory ranging from taking credit for UBL's demise to some searing social issue actually paling in comparison. When, if ever, will our nation get the opportunity to pay homage to a genuine hoop hero comparable to Ames, Knoche and Sivess? Heaven only knows we need an authentic hero these days to offset riots in major U.S. cities, lying by eventual Presidential nominee in front of caskets as server-swiping Secretary of State, lawless #Demonrat West Wings supported by ideologically-driven lame-stream media, punk politicians peppering opposing views with inane questions plus collegiate academic scandals and athletes treating women as bad as Sharia-Law zealot Islamic radicals. But at the moment, the stirring tale will simply be "The Greatest Hoop Story Never Fully Told."

Four Notre Dame players named All-American in 20-year span from 1936 through 1955 were born this month. The Fighting Irish and Kentucky are tied for most A-As born this month with five apiece. May 9 is the day to celebrate the most birthdays this month for former All-Americans. Syracuse (May 10), UK (May 12) and Michigan State (May 18) each had two A-As born on the same day. Penn All-American Howie Dallmar was born 100 years ago this month. Following are birthdates in May for All-Americans and Hall of Fame coaches:

MAY

1: All-Americans Billy Owens (born in 1969/attended Syracuse) and Alan Seiden (1937/St. John's) plus Hall of Fame coach Amory "Slats" Gill (1901/bench boss at Oregon State).
2: All-Americans Troy Murphy (1980/Notre Dame), William "Red" Stroud (1941/Mississippi State) and Keith Wilkes (1953/UCLA).
3: All-Americans Ken Owens (1959/Idaho) and Kelvin Ransey (1958/Ohio State).
4: All-Americans Sam Clancy Jr. (1980/Southern California), Johnathan Motley (1995/Baylor) and Kyle Singler (1988/Duke).
5: All-Americans Alfred "Butch" Beard (1947/Louisville), Bill Buntin (1942/Michigan), Bill Haarlow (1913/Chicago), Paul Hoffman (1925/Purdue), Harold Miner (1971/Southern California), Mike Silliman (1944/Army) and Anthony "P.J." Tucker (1985/Texas).
6: All-American Chris Paul (1985/Wake Forest).
7: All-Americans Ethan Happ (1996/Wisconsin), Jerry Harkness (1940/Loyola of Chicago) and Paul Unruh (1928/Bradley).
8: All-Americans Quentin Grimes (2000/Houston), Juan "Pepe" Sanchez (1977/Temple) and Kemba Walker (1990/Connecticut).
9: All-Americans Ed Beisser (1919/Creighton), Kevin "Yogi" Ferrell (1993/Indiana), Erick Green (1991/Virginia Tech), Howard "Butch" Komives (1941/Bowling Green State), Calvin Murphy (1948/Niagara), Chris Porter (1978/Auburn), Elmore Smith (1949/Kentucky State) and George Wilson (1942/Cincinnati).
10: All-Americans Eddie Finnigan (1911/Western Reserve OH), Malachi Flynn (1998/San Diego State), Rudy Hackett (1953/Syracuse), Mike Maloy (1949/Davidson) and Rony Seikaly (1965/Syracuse) plus Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun (1942/Northeastern and Connecticut).
11: All-Americans Leo Barnhorst (1924/Notre Dame), Price Brookfield (1920/West Texas State), Darrell Floyd (1932/Furman), Ed Gayda (1927/Washington State) and Barry Parkhill (1951/Virginia).
12: All-Americans Keith Bogans (1980/Kentucky), Jack Gray (1911/Texas), Kevin Grevey (1953/Kentucky) and Gene Tormohlen (1937/Tennessee) plus Hall of Fame coach Everett Shelton (1898/Wyoming).
13: All-Americans Louis "Bosey" Berger (1910/Maryland), Mike Bibby (1978/Arizona), Wayne Estes (1943/Utah State), Trajan Langdon (1976/Duke) and Dean Meminger (1948/Marquette).
14: All-Americans Jim Ashmore (1935/Mississippi State), Walter Berry (1964/St. John's) and Vern Gardner (1925/Utah).
15: All-Americans Gene Banks (1959/Duke), Don Nelson (1940/Iowa), Freeman Williams (1956/Portland State) and Nate Wolters (1991/South Dakota State).
16: All-Americans Charles "Tub" Bradley (1959/Wyoming) and John Salley (1964/Georgia Tech).
17: All-Americans Winford Boynes (1957/San Francisco), Bill "Pickles" Kennedy (1938/Temple), Jon Koncak (1963/Southern Methodist) and Danny Manning (1966/Kansas).
18: All-Americans Chester "Chet" Aubuchon (1916/Michigan State), Donyell Marshall (1973/Connecticut), Ron Mercer (1976/Kentucky), John "Jack" Stephens (1933/Notre Dame) and Sam Vincent (1963/Michigan State).
19: All-Americans Michael Smith (1965/Brigham Young) and Jarrod Uthoff (1993/Iowa).
20: All-Americans Larry Hennessy (1929/Villanova), Howard Wood (1959/Tennessee) and Julian Wright (1987/Kansas).
21: All-Americans James Bailey (1957/Rutgers), Isaiah Canaan (1991/Murray State), Leo Klier (1923/Notre Dame) and Jack Twyman (1934/Cincinnati) plus Hall of Fame coaches Clarence "Big House" Gaines (1923/Winston-Salem State) and Gene Keady (1936/Western Kentucky and Purdue).
22: All-Americans Lauri Markkanen (1997/Arizona), John Moir (1915/Notre Dame) and Larry Siegfried (1939/Ohio State).
23: All-American Rod Thorn (1941/West Virginia) and Hall of Fame coach Tom Penders (1945/Columbia, Fordham, Rhode Island, Texas, George Washington and Houston).
24: All-Americans Howie Dallmar (1922/Penn), Irwin Dambrot (1928/CCNY) and Mitch Kupchak (1954/North Carolina).
25: All-Americans Chester "Chet" Giermak (1927/William & Mary), Kendall Gill (1968/Illinois), K.C. Jones (1932/San Francisco), Bill Sharman (1926/Southern California) and Derrick Williams (1991/Arizona).
26: All-American Tom McMillen (1952/Maryland).
27: All-Americans David Greenwood (1957/UCLA), George McCloud (1967/Florida State) and Dick Schnittker (1928/Ohio State) plus Hall of Fame coach George "Jud" Heathcote (1927/Montana and Michigan State).
28: All-Americans Bob Brannum (1925/Kentucky), Armon Gilliam (1964/UNLV), Glen Rice Sr. (1967/Michigan), Elwood "Woody" Romney (1911/Brigham Young) and Jerry West (1938/West Virginia) plus Hall of Fame coach Ward "Piggy" Lambert (1888/Purdue).
29: All-Americans Carmelo Anthony (1984/Syracuse), Bob Burrow (1934/Kentucky), Bill Curley (1972/Boston College), Markelle Fultz (1998/Washington), Stanley Johnson (1996/Arizona) and Raef LaFrentz (1976/Kansas).
30: All-Americans Harrison Barnes (1992/North Carolina), Evan Eschmeyer (1975/Northwestern), Morris "Moe" Goldman (1913/CCNY), Bob Mattick (1933/Oklahoma A&M) and Billy McCaffrey (1971/Vanderbilt).
31: All-Americans Ron Bonham (1942/Cincinnati), Bob Ferry (1937/St. Louis), Matt Harpring (1976/Georgia Tech) and Nate Robinson (1984/Washington).

Birthdays in January for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in February for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in March for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in April for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in May for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in June for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in July for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in August for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in September for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in October for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in November for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches
Birthdays in December for All-Americans and Hall of Fame Coaches

In the aftermath of the New York Mets' combined no-hitter, it's time to take a look at former college hoopers who went on to hurl a no-no at the major-league level. Brooklyn native Sandy Koufax attended Cincinnati one year on a combination baseball/basketball scholarship under coach Ed Jucker in both sports before signing a pro baseball contract. Koufax was the third-leading scorer with 9.7 ppg for the Bearcats' 12-2 freshman squad in 1953-54 before hurling no-hitters in four straight seasons during first half of the 1960s.

Two former Bucknell products - Bob Keegan and Christy Mathewson - are among the following ex-college basketball players going on to toss a MLB no-hitter (listed in reverse order):

*Perfect game.

Has there ever been an individual spend as long a time as an assistant (32 years) as Brian Dutcher before moving over a chair and becoming San Diego State's head coach five years ago succeeding Steve Fisher? Exercising patience to the max while world became full of masked Michael Jackson impersonators, five new bench bosses (Chris Gerlufsen, Ryan Pedon, Daniyal Robinson, Mike Schwartz and Dwayne Stephens) joined the following list of 18 active mentors toiling more than 20 seasons as a college aide:

Seems as if it took a vagabond to know one. When Tim Jankovich joined Larry Brown at Southern Methodist as coach-in-waiting before moving over one chair to become bench boss, it paired two wanderlust mentors. Now that Jankovich has retired, Florida A&M pilot Bobby McCullum is the only active coach to pack his suitcase as often for so many moves.

It is a battle of nomads when SEC head coaches Eric Musselman (Arkansas) and Buzz Williams (Texas A&M) oppose each other. Louisiana Tech's Talvin Hester (eight) and Texas' Chris Beard) (seven) have toiled for numerous different universities in the state. New Evansville bench boss David Ragland is at his ninth college despite tender age of 40. But Ragland didn't join Hester (total of 11 different schools) among the following list of active head coaches working for a total of at least 10 different junior colleges, four-year universities and NBA franchises in a coaching capacity (listed chronologically):

Bobby McCullum (13) - South Alabama, Samford, Southern Illinois, Kansas State, Florida, Illinois, *Western Michigan, *South Florida, San Francisco, UCF, Georgia Tech, Oregon and *Florida A&M.

Chris Jans (12) - Elmhurst College (Ill.), Grand View College (Iowa), *Kirkwood (Iowa), *Independence (Kan.), Idaho, *Howard (Tex.), *Chipola (Fla.), Illinois State, Wichita State, *Bowling Green, *New Mexico State and *Mississippi State.

Talvin Hester (11) - North Lake College (Tex.), Texas Wesleyan, Texas College, Prairie View A&M, San Jose State, Stephen F. Austin, Texas State, Houston, Oral Roberts, *Louisiana Tech and Texas Tech.

Chris Beard (10) - *Texas, Incarnate Word (Tex.), Abilene Christian (Tex.), North Texas, *Fort Scott (Kan.), *Seminole State (Fla.), *Texas Tech, *McMurry (Tex.), *Angelo State (Tex.) and *UALR.

Lance Irvin (10) - Idaho, DePaul, Loyola of Chicago, Iowa State, Illinois State, Texas A&M, Missouri, SMU, Southern Illinois and *Chicago State.

Ritchie McKay (10) - Washington, Queens College (N.C.), Seattle Pacific, Bradley, *Portland State, *Colorado State, *Oregon State, *New Mexico, *Liberty and Virginia.

Eric Musselman** (10) - Minnesota Timberwolves, Orlando Magic, Atlanta Hawks, *Golden State Warriors, Memphis Grizzlies, *Sacramento Kings, Arizona State, Louisiana State, *Nevada and *Arkansas.

Desmond Oliver (10) - Niagara, Texas A&M, Cornell, St. Bonaventure, Rhode Island, Georgia, Canisius, Charlotte, Tennessee and *East Tennessee State.

Pat Skerry (10) - Tufts (Mass.), Stonehill (Mass.), *Curry (Mass.), Northeastern, William & Mary, College of Charleston, Rhode Island, Providence, Pittsburgh and *Towson.

Buzz Williams (10) - Navarro (Tex.), Oklahoma City, Texas-Arlington, Texas A&M-Kingsville, Northwestern State, Colorado State, *Texas A&M, *New Orleans, *Marquette and *Virginia Tech.

*Worked for team as head coach.
**Musselman also coached five different minor-league professional franchises.

Did you know that Arizona Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins, a first-round draft selection in 2013, played basketball for Clemson in 2010-11? Hopkins led the NFL in touchdown catches with 13 in 2017 and supplied at least 96 receptions in five of the previous seven seasons with the Houston Texans and Cardinals. Historically, the first 15 NFL drafts from 1936 through 1950 had a former college basketball regular selected among the top 10 picks. Four of the top six choices and five of the top 11 in the 1957 draft were ex-college hoopers. To our knowledge, none of them featured the excess baggage of Jameis "Crab Legs" Winston, the #1 selection several years ago who was also a versatile athlete but in baseball.

Back in 1963 when men were men before social scholar kneeling knuckleheads, commissioner hugging plus all of the ESPC-contrived Sam Who I Am draft-day crying/kissing and diversity sensitivity training (#BringBackOurMen), six of the top 22 picks, including five from schools that have always been or subsequently became members of the Big Ten Conference, were in the same category. Ex-hoopers for Notre Dame provided five top seven NFL draft choices in 23-year span from 1946 through 1968. Baylor, Michigan and Ohio State have had four former hoopers chosen in the opening round of NFL draft.

In the average NFL draft, nearly half of the athletes selected also competed in basketball in high school. There might not be a former college hooper selected in opening round of this year's NFL draft, but following is an alphabetical list of first-round draft choices who played varsity college basketball for a current NCAA Division I university:

*Bechtol played in the AAFC, where he was a second-round pick (9th overall).

In a caste-like era separating the haves from the have-nots, imperial universities are seeking mega-conferences and, perhaps in the near future, a restrictive upper division. But the socially elite won't ever be able to exclude small schools from making a big impact among power-conference members, including two mentors in Pac-12 from Eastern New Mexico.

Smaller colleges, many of them in the hinterlands, have supplied a striking number of the biggest names in coaching including three new power-league pilots (Mississippi State's Chris Jans, South Carolina's Lamont Paris and Kansas State's Jerome Tang). From 1995 through 2000, five of the six NCAA Tournament championship coaches (Jim Calhoun, Jim Harrick, Tom Izzo, Lute Olson and Tubby Smith) graduated from obscure colleges with smaller enrollments. In fact, it is a rarity for a Final Four not to feature at least one coach who graduated from a non-NCAA Division I school.

John Calipari, a graduate of Clarion (Pa.) State, guided Kentucky to the 2012 national championship before Michigan's John Beilein (Wheeling Jesuit NY) and Wichita State's Gregg Marshall (Randolph-Macon VA) directed teams to the Final Four the second half of the previous decade. After nine such bench bosses were hired in the last two years, following is an alphabetical list of fraternity of active power-league mentors working their way up the ladder after graduating from a small school:

Current Head Coach	Power-League Member	Small-College Alma Mater
Dana Altman	Oregon	Eastern New Mexico '80
Rick Barnes	Tennessee	Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.) '76
Brad Brownell	Clemson	DePauw (Ind.) '91
John Calipari	Kentucky	Clarion (Pa.) State '82
Ed Cooley	Providence	Stonehill (Mass.) '94
Andy Enfield	Southern California	Johns Hopkins (Md.) '91
Steve Forbes	Wake Forest	Southern Arkansas '88
Mark Fox	California	Eastern New Mexico '91
Greg Gard	Wisconsin	Wisconsin-Platteville '95
Earl Grant	Boston College	Georgia College '00
Leonard Hamilton	Florida State	Tennessee-Martin '71
Chris Holtmann	Ohio State	Taylor (Ind.) '94
Tom Izzo	Michigan State	Northern Michigan '77
Chris Jans	Mississippi State	Loras College (Iowa) '91
Kevin Keatts	North Carolina State	Ferrum (Va.) '95
Tommy Lloyd	Arizona	Whitman College (Wash.) '98
Nate Oats	Alabama	Maranatha Baptist (Wis.) '97
T.J. Otzelberger	Iowa State	Wisconsin-Whitewater '01
Lamont Paris	South Carolina	College of Wooster (Ohio) '96
Micah Shrewsberry	Penn State	Hanover College (Ind.) '99
Shaka Smart	Marquette	Kenyon (Ohio) '99
Craig Smith	Utah	North Dakota '96
Kyle Smith	Washington State	Hamilton (N.Y.) College '92
Tony Stubblefield	DePaul	Nebraska-Omaha '93
Jerome Tang	Kansas State	North Central Bible College (Minn.)
Brent "Buzz" Williams	Texas A&M	Oklahoma City '94
Mike Young	Virginia Tech	Emory & Henry (Va.) '86

NOTE: Nebraska-Omaha, North Dakota and Tennessee-Martin subsequently were classified as NCAA DI universities. OCU previously was designated as a major college.

Fran Dunphy will be bench boss for his third different school in Philadelphia after accepting job at La Salle following long stints with Penn (1989-90 through 2005-06) and Temple (2006-07 through 2018-19). Billy Gillispie (Tarleton) is coaching his fourth different university in Texas. He previously was mentor at Texas-El Paso (2002-03 and 2003-04), Texas A&M (2004-05 through 2006-07) and Texas Tech (2011-12). But Dunphy and Gillispie aren't the only individuals in multiple-schools-in-same-state category. They are joined by the following alphabetical list of other active NCAA DI coaches presently serving as bench boss in same state (five in Texas) where they previously piloted another DI school:

*Ellis also coached two DI schools in Alabama (South Alabama and Auburn).