University of Dayton Athletics

CHRIS HARRIS - Men’s Basketball - 1951-55

An unselfish offensive leader and defensive stopper who would be called a “point guard” in today’s game, Chris Harris played on Flyer basketball teams that were a combined 94-29.  He played in three NITs and was part of teams that reached the finals twice.

Harris was part of coach Tom Blackburn’s fourth recruiting class, one of the best in school history.  With Harris’ selection to the Hall of Fame, he joins classmates John Horan and Jack Sallee in the Hall.  Due to the Korean War, that class was eligible as freshmen.  Harris was in the rotation right away, playing in 23 games in his first season.  He then moved into the starting lineup for his final three seasons.

As a starter, he averaged 3.4 points per game as a sophomore, 6.7 as a junior, and 9.4 as a senior.  But in a class that would already have two 1,000-point scorers, his role was not to score.  Assists and steals were not kept as official statistics until the 1970s, but he would rank among UD’s leaders if they were.  His 13 assists in a 1954 NIT quarterfinal game vs. Saint Louis would be the third-highest single-game mark in UD history.  It is telling that every double-digit scorer he played with is already in the UD Hall of Fame.

Defensively, he had flawless footwork and incredible anticipation.  He always drew the opponents’ toughest assignment, even if it meant matching him up against a forward.  He played all 40 minutes in UD’s very first win against a #1-ranked team (Seton Hall in the 1952-53 season). 

After playing one season in the NBA, Harris returned to Dayton and went into private business.  He was also part of the WHIO Radio broadcast team for UD basketball for seven years.  He is retired and lives in Belleair, Fla. with his wife Barbara.