After 100 years of basketball tradition, in August 2009, Eastern Illinois University Athletics announced the ten members of the EIU All-Century Team at the Panther Club Golf Outing in Mattoon, Illinois. Henry Domercant, Kyle Hill, Andy Sullivan, Jon Collins, Tom Katsimpalis, Jay Taylor, John Milholland, Kevin Duckworth, Charlie Thomas, and Craig Dewitt were the ten former players that make up the All-Century roster. These men were selected for their outstanding career achievements as Panther Basketball players.
EIU All-Century Team member Craig Dewitt '80 most fondly remembers the people at Eastern Illinois University. He cites the personal environment as one of the reasons he chose Eastern. Coach Don Eddy and players Bill Berndt and Brad Warble made lasting impressions on Dewitt, then a high school senior out of Sterling, IL, during his initial recruiting trip. “They both treated us with great respect and seemed to actually enjoy 'babysitting' a couple of high school seniors,” Dewitt recalls.
He also recalls home games as one of his favorite collegiate memories. One of the most memorable parts of home games? The student section infamously called “The Pit”. He remembers how The Pit would sit behind the opposition's bench and heckle the team “from warm-ups to the final buzzer,” says Dewitt. “They were relentless. There were times when teams would move the bench just to get away from them!”
Dewitt's team made it through to the 1978 Final Four after defeating Elizabeth City State in the quarterfinals. “The crowd was ecstatic. Confetti and toilet paper streamers seemed to be coming from everywhere,” he says. The victory is still one of the highlights of Dewitt's career with the Panthers.
Some of Dewitt's favorite memories are not tangible ones. They are not just a single game, or a particular season. “Jet fumes and bus fumes to this day bring up fond memories of the excitement of road games and the anticipation of game day. Nearly every time I travel, EIU memories bubble up as a result,” he says.
Craig Dewitt earned NCAA Division II All-American honors twice in his EIU career. He was the first EIU player to earn All-Mid-Continent Conference in 1980. He is one of only three men in EIU Career Top 10 for both scoring and rebounding. His EIU career points total 1,426, earning him the rank of 9th. His rebounds total 684 and place him 6th.
Dewitt has returned to campus a few times, most recently for the Men's Basketball 100th Anniversary Celebration. The weekend-long celebration kicked off on Friday, February 26th with the Basketball Fan Fest in McAfee Gym and concluded with the 100 Year Banquet on Saturday, February 27th. Former Panther basketball player and fellow All-Century Team inductee Tom Katsimpalis '52 spoke on behalf of the honored players.
Tom Katsimpalis was the first EIU player to be selected as a National Basketball Association draft pick. In 1952 he was a seventh round pick for the Minneapolis Lakers. Katsimpalis currently ranks seventh in all-time scoring at EIU with 1,538 total points. He was selected three times for first team All-IIAC. At the time of his graduation, Katsimpalis held single game, season, and total career scoring records.
After an entire century, Eastern Illinois University basketball is still going strong. In his speech at the banquet, Tom Katsimpalis spoke about the differences in the game between past and present. Craig Dewitt, too, is optimistic about the program. “EIU has done a great job with the resources it has developed,” he says.
