Terese Allen and Jim Jacobs Recognized as Basketball Legends
Two former Georgia State student athletes were dubbed legends at the Colonial Athletic Association basketball tournaments in March. Jim Jacobs (B.A. '70) and Terese Allen, who set still-standing records as a Lady Panther from 1977-1981, were the first Georgia State inductees to be honored as CAA Legends.
Jacobs, a four-year letterman, set the bar for all who came after him by becoming the first 1,000-point scorer in school history. In 78 career games, the point guard poured in 1,078 points, including a personal best of 37 in one game that stood as a record for six years. He also pitched three years for the Georgia State baseball team.
"I was shocked," says Jacobs of his induction. "It's been a lot of years since I was out on the basketball court. It was quite an honor, and being at the tournament and seeing the CAA operation was quite impressive."
Although Jacobs admits that the Georgia State basketball teams he played on were undersized and "pretty bad," he still has fond memories of his time in a Panther uniform.
Jacobs has spent the past 17 years as an editor for Georgia Sportsman Magazine and has written several books on fishing in the Southeast.
Allen is Georgia State's all-time leading scorer — male or female — with 2,074 career points. She earned All-America selection following the 1979-1980 season and was an integral part of the 1980-1981 team that set the school record for most wins by a women's team (28-5). She returned as an assistant coach from 1994-1997.
"I just had a wonderful career at Georgia State and enjoyed playing there," Allen recalls. "To receive this honor after so many years, it really brought back a lot of fond memories of Georgia State, both as a player and as a coach."
Allen still holds school records for career scoring average (19.4 points per game), single-season points (771) and career field goals (883).
"We didn’t have a three-point line back then — or the small ball," she adds. "I'm willing to pass the torch because that means somebody is doing a great job for Georgia State." After coaching, Allen moved into public school administration and has spent the past four years as principal of Henderson Middle School in DeKalb County, GA.