Jacob (Jake) Mazer

Jacob (Jake) Mazer
Basketball Player

Jake Mazer was born in Grbrinka, Russia and moved with his family to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His spare time was devoted to sports and in his teen years his first love was bicycling. From 1892 to 1900 he was the leading bicycle racer in the state. He eventually turned his attention to basketball where he would practice long hours and developed into an expert player. After a stint in the Spanish-American War, Mazer moved to Detroit and put together a basketball team that was nearly unbeatable. Over a ten-year period averaging over 30 games per year against the best college and club teams, they lost only seven games and won the state championship in 1918. He would retire from basketball but stayed active in sports by becoming president of the Cadillac Athletic Club and taking an active role in the Michigan Amateur Athletic Union (AAU). He also was a member of the American Olympic Committee and chairman of the field events committee for the Annual Police Field Day. Jake Mazer was inducted into the Michigan Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1989 and was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 1967. He passed away on July 26, 1958 at 81 years of age.