Hall of Fame
On the basketball court everyone needs to find his niche. The scorers and the fancy ball handlers tend to get the most attention, while the strong defenders who bring their lunch pails and hard hats and just show up to work day-in and day-out serve as the unsung heroes.
Well everyone is singing for you today Ken Maren, one of the newest members of the Idaho Athletics Hall of Fame.
If you were here with Ken, during the late 1950’s-early 1960’s, you probably remember him by a different name; Moose. The 6-8 center from Milwaukee joined up with the freshman team for the 1958-59 season, but basketball wasn’t his only passion.
“The other sport that I played was baseball. I played freshman year. I had a buddy where I was at that also played baseball. In Milwaukee what else are you going to do? Anyway, he played first and I played shortstop on the team. When we came out here I went to the outfield and pitched. Then sophomore year I decided to stick with basketball.”
Due to NCAA rules about freshmen, Moose wasn’t allowed to play during his first year in Moscow. But not playing leads to more time for development and growth, something this tall, lanky center needed.
“It was great for me, because I was not physically or mentally prepared at that time. Weight training was non-existent. We only played 14 games in high school, then the tournament started. So being able to build up your abilities was non-existent. When I was a junior in high school, I could stand right underneath the basket all game, there was no three-second rule. When I came out to Idaho, none of that was the same. We had the big three-second lane. So my game was non-existent.”
Moose needed a second season to grow and develop, opting for a redshirt year. But when his name was called for the first game the next season, Moose was ready.
“The guy who was supposed to play was also a tackle on the football team, 6-5, 250 pounds. And I was 6-8, getting to be 200 pounds. He got hurt in the last game of football and he never played in his senior year. I was the next guy up, they inserted me into the starting lineup and I never came out.”
He stepped in and played every game the rest of the way, spanning three seasons. After a coaching change following his first season playing, Moose suddenly became a focal point of the team, both offensively and defensively. But for Moose, he preferred one to the other.
“I didn’t want to be the offensive guy. I thought I could do the job on the defensive end, rebounding and being the enforcer on the post. I worked very hard on my footwork, working on screens and pivots. I went on a scouting trip one time, when I was coaching, and I met the coach for Portland and he introduced me to all the other coaches and said ‘this is the best defensive center on the West coast’. For me, that was the best compliment I could receive from anyone.”
Moose would lead the team in rebounding in 1960-61 and 1961-62 while the Vandals battled through the difficult transition into independence. Following his playing days, Moose kept at the hard work, staying on staff as a coach.
“I coached the freshman team in 1962-63 and I helped out on the varsity. The varsity team was one of the best they ever had. Chuck White, who was the all-time leading scorer when he left, he was a senior. Of course Gus Johnson came in from Boise Junior College, and he was the greatest. If he isn’t the best basketball player to ever play here, someone has to be damn good.”
The hard work continued, as Moose moved on to coach high school basketball and teach in Post Falls before moving back to Wisconsin to retire.
Idaho Vandals basketball has produced a number of incredible Hall of Famers over the years, with Ken Maren deservedly joining the ranks in 2016. Welcome to the club, Moose.
