In the late 1950s and ’60s, the boys basketball players at East Chicago Washington were treated like royalty.
And no one was bigger than Ron Divjak.
Divjak, a hard nosed, wiry 6-foot-5 forward, who was the leading scorer on the Senators’ 1960 state championship team, died on Sept. 19 in Colorado from a form of blood cancer, his daughter Kristina Divjak Eschmeyer said.
Divjak, 82, was the quintessential Senator of his time.
His parents had immigrated from Serbia, and Divjak, born in East Chicago in 1940, learned to play basketball in the streets and playgrounds. He’d stay outside until dark, hooping with his buddies.
Even though he was sick for a few years, Divjak’s death still hit hard for his remaining teammates and friends.
– Original Credit: Photo courtesy of the Divjak fam
Frank Kollintzas, who was the manager of the 1960 team, had to say some good words about his friend. Kollintzas, the former Athletic Director at East Chicago Central, fled the country in 2005 after he was convicted of buying votes for former East Chicago Mayor Robert Pastrick. Kollintzas helped secure votes for Pastrick when they paved driveways and made patios for residents in exchange for a Pastrick vote.
Speaking from Greece, where he was watching Sasha Stefanovic, a Crown Point graduate play basketball, Kollintzas said he talked with Divjak for over an hour days before he died. Kollintzas hasn’t spoken publicly since he left Northwest Indiana.
“We reminisced about growing up together, the 1960 team and the journey we had,” he said. “That conversation was a long time coming.”
The 1960 state title, the first for Washington, was validation for the powerhouse that Indiana Hall-of-Fame coach John Barrato had built. Three Indiana All-Stars — Divjak, Bobby Cantrell and Phil Dawkins — led the team. Divjak was selected as Parade All-American
ECW had won regional championships in 1958 and 1959.
Heavily favored Muncie Central, which was ranked No. 1 and undefeated and hadn’t won a game by fewer than 18 points, lost 75-59.
The Senators were loaded with college talent.
Dawkins, Jim Bakus, Darryl Williams, Divjak and Cantrell had scholarships from Purdue, Creighton, Indiana State, Michigan State and Michigan, respectively. Bobby Miles, a sophomore on that team who later coached East Chicago Central, went to Creighton. Divjak tore his ACL as a freshman, according to his daughter Kristina, so he never played at MSU.
The 1960 state title was near the beginning of a run where the Senators won nine straight sectionals, starting in 1958.
Cantrell called him a “mature” guy with a mustache who was athletic and strong.
Divjak was mature.
He was 19 when ECW won the state title. Kristina said her father was hit by a car while riding his bike in sixth grade, and he missed nearly a full year of school.
Cantrell said Divjak wasn’t a great shooter, but he was hard to stop inside of 15 feet.
“If you got him the ball inside, he would find a way to score,” Cantrell said.
Kollintzas called Divjak, who was the captain, the elder statesman. ECW knew it was talented enough to win the state title going into the 1960 season. Divjak was the leader.
“We just had an agenda,” Kollintzas said. “Everybody had their own role. People weren’t envious of each other.”
Miles said playing for Barrato and East Chicago Washington at that time was life-changing.
“I don’t think anyone had a greater experience than what we had,” he said.
He remembers going to downtown Chicago to a fancy restaurant which had Porterhouse steaks on the menu. He didn’t know what it was. School officials opened the cafeteria during sectionals to feed the players roast beef, mashed potatoes and vegetables.
And they had three sets of warmups and three jerseys and a locker room full of sneakers.
“If there was anything we didn’t have and we needed, we just ask Frankie (Kollintzas),” he said. “He’d get it for us.”
Divjak’s legacy rippled beyond basketball.
Divjak wasn’t just a great basketball player.
He was a beloved educator, father and friend to many.
He coached at Whiting and Griffith high schools.
Divjak helped start St. George Serbian Orthodox Church in Schererville, according to his obituary.
He is a three-time inductee into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame — as an individual, as part of the 1960 ECW team and as a coach. He and Kristina are one of the few father-daughter combinations to win state basketball titles. Kristina was a starter for the 1994 Lake Central girls state championship team and played for Northwestern University in college.
“Every Serb in East Chicago is still his friend,” Cantrell said.
Mike Hutton is a freelance columnist for the Post-Tribune. He can be reached on Twitter at @MikeHuttonPT.
