BY MIKE BEACOM
of The Gazette
Jim Menzel is, and always has been left-handed. The one-time popular belief that he was ambidextrous was simply a myth.
The belief came about from Menzel's ventures on the basketball court. It's been said that on some nights when he wasn't able to find his stroke from the outside, the Pacelli prep star would start shooting with his right hand.
Those who've played competitive basketball know that, for a player to master a weak-side layup is one thing; but shooting accurately with your opposite hand is unimaginable.
Today, the modest Menzel shrugs off the lore.
"There were times when I shot right-handed from the free throw line and a few shots from the floor, but it was rare," said Menzel.
One thing that clearly isn't a myth about Menzel is that he was one of the most prolific basketball scorers ever seen in this area.
Said one panelist, "There's been no other basketball player in the county like him. He was a scoring machine."
With only eight-minute quarters and typically a more disciplined offensive approach, high school players aren't supposed to throw down 25 to 30 points a game. But in the early 1960s, Menzel was a whirlwind on the court for the up-tempo Cardinals.
The 6' 3 1/2" forward possessed an uncanny leaping ability and a shooting range that made him a threat to score from virtually everywhere across mid-court.
Menzel consistently launched jump shots from more than 20-feet out routinely in a time when every field goal was worth two points.
"I sure wish they had the 3-point shot back then," said Menzel.
Menzel played four years for Pacelli, earning team Most Valuable Player honors in his junior and senior years. He was also two-time all-conference and its player of the year in his senior season of 1964.
In that senior year, Menzel broke his own conference single-season scoring record with 295 points over the 12 games. He averaged 25.8 points for the season.
"My best shot was my hook," said Menzel. "I could shoot it from 10 feet out, off a quick drive, or a rebound, and never get it blocked."
He was the first player from Pacelli to earn first team all-state parochial school honors and was named to the Associated Press' all-state third team for all state schools. He was also one of 100 high school players recognized as a Coach & Athlete Magazine All-American.
As a team, the Cardinals and coach Norbert Miller, however, were only 14-10 that year.
Menzel helped guide the team far into the1964 Wisconsin Catholic High School state tournament, stopping one game away from the state title game.
In their semifinal game against eventual champion Marinette Central, the Cardinals went into triple overtime before falling 51-39. Menzel and his Pacelli teammates finished the year with a 64-56 win over Milwaukee Marquette in the tournament's third-place game.
"We wanted so bad to beat the best private school in the state, Appleton," said Menzel.
One of his bigger accomplishments in his athletic career was the 94 points he put up in that tournament. Jim Chones tied the mark in 1969 and Nick Van Exel scored 93 in 1989 (Van Exel torched the Milwaukee Bucks for 44 points just last week and currently leads the National Basketball Association in scoring).
Menzel scored 42, 21 and 31 that March weekend.
After graduating from Pacelli, Menzel was recruited by Marquette coach Hank Raymonds. But, the legendary Al McGuire replaced Raymonds late in 1964 and Menzel's opportunity to shine at Marquette was lost. McGuire brought some talent with him from the East Coast to help fill the roster.
"Al let my dad know I would not be playing for him at MU," said Menzel.
Menzel chose Cornell of the Ivy League instead. His father Roy had been named to the All-Eastern team in 1937 and '38 for the University of Pennsylvania.
But Jim's stay out East was not a long one.
Due to Ivy League rules, Menzel wasn't able to play varsity basketball as a freshman. He did play for the freshman team, but transferred to the University of Wisconsin for his sophomore year.
Menzel again transferred the next fall, this time returning to Stevens Point. He played out his final two years of eligibility for coach Bob Krueger as a member of the Wisconsin State University-Stevens Point team.
"In my mind, he was one of the best players we ever had," said Krueger.
In 21 games at Stevens Point, Menzel scored 186 points. As a senior, he averaged 8.3 points and 6.2 rebounds a game.
"I spent most of my time at WSU-SP passing the ball to our monstrous center, Dick Ritzenthaler," said Menzel. "Get it in low to him, and the battles began."
One thing that drew Menzel a lot of attention on the floor in those days was his incomparable ability to jump.
One local basketball enthusiast recalls seeing Menzel soar over his opponents on a thundering dunk in a game against Superior.
"It was Jordanesque," said the fan.
His senior season ended with a broken jaw after taking a punch in a game against conference opponent Platteville.
Menzel also earned a name for himself locally by throwing the baseball.
He pitched for Pacelli four years (two in state playoffs).
"I got away with a good fastball and the left-hander's curve ball," said Menzel.
Later in life, he turned to throwing the rarely seen forkball (now called a splitter) playing semi-professional around the state.
Menzel only played one year of varsity football for Pacelli, but at Madison, he helped his Ogg Hall Skunks flag football squad capture the Big Ten crown. Menzel scored 20 points in a 22-0 win over the University of Minnesota for the championship.
"Skinny guys can play receiver in flag football: we can jump high, and land gracefully."
After his collegiate days were behind him, Menzel remained one of the area's fiercest competitors, continuing to play basketball, softball, raquetball and bike competitively.
He also had coaching and officiating careers.
"I would have seen myself simply as a fighter who worked hard to improve my abilities," said Menzel when asked how he would have summed up his skills on the basketball court. "I learned and got good at throwing, shooting, catching, running, swinging, jumping and sweating."
In 1999, he was rewarded for his efforts by being part of the first group of inductees into Pacelli's Hall of Fame.
Perhaps the most prestigious honor Menzel achieved during his amazing run in the '60s still stands.
In a time when records are lucky to have lasted a decade, Menzel still owns the school record at Pacelli for most career points with 1,333. Three others have scored over 1,000 points for the school since him, but no one has managed to jump past him.
Fitting, because when he played the game, no one could out score or out jump Jim Menzel.