In Memoriam: Billy Tindall

Amherst, Mass. -- Billy Tindall, a prolific two-sport athlete at the University of Massachusetts, passed away at age 79. Competing for both the basketball team and the track and field squad from 1965-68, Tindall set both program and Yankee conference records in both disciplines.

A two-time all-Yankee Conference selection in basketball, Tindall led the conference in scoring, averaging 22.7 points per game during the 1968 season. The first player in UMass history to be drafted into the NBA, Tindall was selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the 10th round of the 1968 draft. Tindall ranked second on the UMass career scoring list with 1,277 points upon graduation, a mark that still ranks him in the top 25 on the all-time list. His 41-point performance against Vermont on February 10, 1968 also sits third on program's the all-time single game scoring list.

As a track athlete, Tindall set Yankee Conference and UMass records outdoors in the triple jump in 1966 and 1967 and the high jump in 1968. He also set the indoor high jump mark in 1967 and won Yankee Conference championships in each of those events.

Tindall was inducted into the UMass Athletics Hall of Fame in 1997.

University of Massachusets Athletics

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