Hall of Fame Inductees
A revolutionary player in his time, Joe Summa ’71 graduated with 983 career points, second-most at the time in school history, as well as the all-time assist leader (353), a record that stood for over 40 years.
His impact was immediate, as Summa broke five records and led the freshman team in 11 statistical categories in 1967–-68. Breaking through with the varsity team as a sophomore, he averaged 14.4 points per game (second-most for the Cardinals that season) and led the team in assists.
Named a captain heading into his junior year, Wesleyan took a big jump that season as the Cardinals improved from six wins in 1968–-69 up to a 13-5 record in the 1969–-70 campaign. He averaged 17 points per game and dished out 117 assists, including 13 in one game, while he netted what was then a career-high 36 points in a heartbreaking 81-80 home loss to Amherst that would have won Wesleyan the Little Three title.
Using that defeat to the Lord Jeffs as motivation heading into his senior year, Summa led the Cardinals to a 16-4 campaign, which stood as the most wins by a Wesleyan squad in seven years. Summa led the team in scoring in 11 of 20 games played as a senior, averaging 19.5 points per game while dishing out 137 assists, again leading the team for a third straight season.
After a mid-season loss to Williams snapped a seven-game win streak, Summa led the Cardinals on a late-season charge starting with a 22-point effort in front of a packed home crowd as Wesleyan defeated Trinity 83-77. That win sparked a season-ending seven-game unbeaten streak wherein he equaled the scoring record in the Cage held by Jack Sitarz ’70 with 38 points, 29 of which came in the first half of a 97-87 win over Tufts. In the very next game, Summa dropped 35 points in a road win at Trinity.
IAnd in his final game with the Cardinals, Summa dealt Amherst an 89-64 loss on their home floor, securing the Little Three title for the first time since 1958. One year removed from the one-point loss at home to Amherst that cost Wesleyan the Little Three crown, he scored 33 points in the win to secure the title. For all his efforts on the court in his senior year, Summa earned the 1971 Bob Cousy Award, handed to the top collegiate player under six 6-feet playing in New England.
