A True Legend
This is the sixth in a series of articles profiling the 2020 Butler County Sports Hall of Fame inductees.BUTLER TWP — His collegiate career was short-lived.His basketball legacy goes on and on — and will officially live forever now that Shawn Bellis is being inducted into the Butler County Sports Hall of Fame.Bellis, a 1994 Butler graduate, is among the all-time Golden Tornado greats on the hardwood and the cornerstone of some of the best years in the program's history.“I played for two great coaches,” Bellis said of Mark Jula and George Abraham. “Coach Jula was defensive-mined. If an offensive play was breaking down, he wanted us to pull the ball back out, reset and run it again.“Coach Abraham was offensive-minded. If a play broke down, he wanted us to be able to play one-on-one basketball, adjust and make it work that way.“But one way their styles were similar ... If you didn't play hard, you didn't play for either one,” Bellis added.A small forward with Butler, Bellis played hard — and played well. He owned the Tornado's career scoring record of 1,466 points, a mark that stood for 25 years before Ethan Morton snapped it last season.Bellis also set a then-school record of 47 points in a game, hitting that total against Freeport. His 614 points scored in a season and 29.2 points per game scoring average were single-season records as well.“I was amazed that scoring record stood for 25 years,” Bellis said. “When you look at all of the great players who have come through Butler, I'm very proud of how long that record stood.”Bellis will be inducted as part of the BCSHOF's annual banquet at 6 p.m. April 25 at the Butler Days Inn.He played on Section 3 championship teams in 1991 and 1992, a WPIAL title team in 1991 and a WPIAL runner-up team in 1993.“We were a confident bunch,” Bellis said. “We believed we could play with anybody. Those were fun times.“We played against some of the best players in the area, too.”One game Bellis fondly remembers was against Shaler and future NBA player Danny Fortson.“They beat us by a few points that night, but I scored 41 points and Fortson scored 40,” Bellis said. “It was a good battle. We were just two big scorers going at it. Those days were a lot of fun.”Bellis went on to Clarion University, where he played for one season. He averaged 13.8 points, five rebounds and three assists per game. He wound up averaging 35.9 minutes per game, most minutes played by any men's basketball player in Clarion history.He was also named PSAC Rookie of the Year.“But school just wasn't for me,” Bellis admitted. “I couldn't stay with it academically. Basketball was never the problem.”Bellis played American Legion baseball for East Butler. He was a center fielder, first baseman and pitched a little bit.But basketball was his game.“I used to shoot some 3's, but I was more of a slasher toward the basket,” he said in describing his game. “My best shot was probably a pull-up jumper from about 15 feet.“You rarely even see anybody take that shot anymore. Ethan Morton does it every now and then, but it's definitely a lost art.”Bellis said he doesn't see many of his former teammates much anymore. He works as a delivery driver for UPS in the Butler area.“A lot of guys have moved away,” he said. “I see Chuck Kreinbucher at some of the Butler games now since his son Charlie plays.“Going into this Hall of Fame means a lot to me. I'm excited about it. I loved those days. They were a big part of my life.”Tickets for the Hall of Fame banquet are $30 in advance, $35 at the door. Tables of eight are $200. Tickets are available at Parker's Appliance in Chicora, Moses Jewelers at the Clearview Mall, The Butler Radio Network in Butler and Saxonburg Drug.
