Hoosier Nation lost one of its really good players in the program’s storied history, and by all accounts, a better person yesterday.
Multiple outlets are reporting that former IU forward Eric Anderson passed away at the age of 48. The cause of death has not been disclosed.
The Chicago native attended St. Francis DeSales High School and was named the 1988 Illinois Mr. Basketball.
A 1988 McDonald’s All-American, Anderson came to Bloomington with high expectations and he immediately lived up to them. He was named the 1989 Big 10 Freshman of the Year as part of IU’s Big Ten title team, shooting 54.5% in that freshman campaign.
By the time he was finished at IU, Anderson compiled 1,715 points, good for 11th on the all-time scoring list. He averaged 13.1 points per game for his career, and shot 51.5% from the field overall and 39.6% from three-point range. He is also 8th all-time in rebounds at IU with 825 and 8th in blocked shots with 136.
Sad to hear the passing of former IU great Eric Anderson, I really appreciated how he embraced me coming to IU, communicated after games, him coming back last year to our reunion game and then this June to French Lick was awesome! RIP Big E. Thoughts and Prayers to ALL!
— Arch Miller (@Archie_Miller) December 10, 2018
A 1990 team co-MVP and 1991 first team All Big Ten selection, Anderson was a team leader throughout his four year career at Indiana playing under head coach Bob Knight.
He had perhaps his most high profile stretch of play as his IU career was coming to an end. Anderson was named Most Outstanding Player of 1992 NCAA Tournament’s West Regional, leading Indiana to the Final Four. The Hoosier forward scored 41 points on 15 for 22 shooting in wins over Florida State and UCLA, including 8 of 9 from the free throw line and three made three-pointers in those contests.
At 6-foot-9, Anderson had a game that would be well suited for today’s NBA, with what could be best described as a “stretch four.”
Anderson was with the New York Knicks from 1992 to 1994 and also played professional basketball overseas and in the former Continental Basketball Association for several years.
According to his Linked In page, Anderson was working as a Commercial Account Executive at Fidelity National Title.
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