Stockwell defined streak for Belleville

While the boys basketball team at Belleville's Union Academy was piling up wins on the way to its historic 104-game streak, one of its players was compiling numbers that were stunning in their own right.

Jim Stockwell, who played four varsity seasons at Belleville, finished his career with his name plastered through the team's record book, graduating in 1969 with 27 of 29 team highs.

Two of the most impressive marks: 2,108 career points and 1,402 career rebounds.

"He was the streak," former Belleville teammate Greg Golding told the Times in 2006. "Being 6-foot-3, he had good height, agility and the ballhandling skills of a point guard. He could shoot the ball better than anyone I've ever seen."

Over Stockwell's final three seasons at Belleville, the Black Knights went 64-0, winning Section 3 Class D championships in 1967, '68 and '69 under coach Tom Murphy. Union Academy's win streak ended in the '70-'71 season.

Stockwell, who went on to play one season for Jefferson Community College, was named the YMCA's Jefferson County athlete of the year in '69 and was a third-team member on the New York State Scholastic Sports Writers All-State squad. Stockwell also was picked for the '68-'69 Prep All-American Basketball Team. The award was co-sponsored by Coach & Athlete Magazine and the Sunkist Growers Association. Stockwell was one of just four players from New York on the 100-player list of the nation's top performers.

Stockwell, whose single-game scoring high was 45 points, shot 60.1 percent (206-for-343) as a senior.

His statistics, though, could have been even better. Because the Black Knights dominated many opponents, Stockwell often found himself resting on the bench.

"He could've scored 60 or 70 points a night," said another former teammate, Paul Brown, in 2006. "He could've been the state's Pete Maravich."

Stockwell's son, Adam, became a standout basketball player at Belleville Henderson — also eclipsing the 2,000-point mark — before enjoying a fine career at Le Moyne College. Adam Stockwell currently serves as the men's basketball coach at Clarkson University.

Jim Stockwell, 58, owns a milk distribution company and resides in Ellisburg with his wife, Betty. They have two other grown children, daughters Jamie and Carrie.

To read about previous selections to the Times' list of The North Country's greatest 100 Athletes of All Time, log on to www.watertowndailytimes.com