Red Mihalik
From Hoopedia
Zigmund "Red" Mihalik (September 22, 1916 – September 25, 1996) was an American basketball player and referee. He was born about 60 miles north of Pittsburgh in Ford City, Pennsylvania, and took up refereeing when officials for a high school game failed to show up.
During the 1940s, the 6'1" Mihalik played professionally for the Pittsburgh Ironmen of the Basketball Association of American and the Youngstown Bears of the National Basketball League.
He then embarked upon a long officiating career, working games for the NBA, NCAA, Olympics and still finding time to ref Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) high school games in and around Pittsburgh. He was deemed the best official of the game on all levels in the 1950s by Dell Publications. He was widely considered just that until an on-court knee injury forced him into retirement in 1972.
As a college ref, he officiated in six NCAA Division I Men's Tournament Championship Finals, three NAIA Finals and three National Invitation Tournament (NIT) Finals.
Widely considered one of the best basketball referees in history, Red Mihalik was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1986. In 1996 he became the first game official ever inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame.
