In conjunction with the 2013 MAAC Basketball Championships at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass., the MAAC has announced the latest class to be inducted in the MAAC Honor Roll, in which honorees will be enshrined in The MAAC Experience exhibit at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Each member institution of the MAAC will have one male and one female of its basketball alumni as part of the 2013 induction class. This year's honorees from Canisius are Hon. Henry Nowak '57 and Gina Castelli '86. A private dinner event will be on Friday, March 8 at the Hall of Fame, where the honorees will be added to The MAAC Experience exhibit and receive special recognition from a Hall of Fame legend. Each honoree will be profiled in the game program for the 2013 MAAC Basketball Championships, and will also be featured in a video display at The MAAC Experience. The honorees will also be recognized at halftime of the #8 vs. #9 men's first round game set for 7:30 p.m. on Friday.

"The MAAC Basketball Hall of Fame Honor Roll is an outstanding way to recognize those former student-athletes whose impace on Canisius College and the game of basketball has stood the test of time," Canisius Director of Athletics Bill Maher said. "Hank Nowak and Gina Castelli had remarkable careers in Canisius Blue and Gold and their contributions to the College have continued to this day. I cannot think of two more worthy alumni to recieve this honor."

Known as "Hammerin' Hank," for his tough and aggressive style of play, Nowak was the driving force behind Canisius' three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 1955-57. A native of Buffalo, N.Y., Nowak scored 1,449 career points and pulled down 880 career rebounds, which still ranks first all-time in Golden Griffin history. A three-year letterwinner in Blue and Gold, he currently ranks eighth all-time in career points, second in career free-throws made (557) and second in career rebounds per game (11.3 per contest). He is one of two Canisius players in school history to play in a record nine NCAA Tournament games, where he averaged 19.4 points per game, highlighted by his 29-point effort in the Griffs' famous four-overtime victory over No. 2 North Carolina State in Madison Square Garden on March 12, 1956.  A Second-Team UPI All-East Region honoree in 1955-56, Nowak was a two-time Queen City Invitational All-Tournament award winner, and he was named the tournament's MVP in 1956-57 when the Griffs beat Cornell and Minnesota to win the event's championship. He was also honored by the NCAA in 1982, when he was named to the NCAA's Silver Anniversary Team.

Castelli scored 1,524 points in her four-year career, leaving as the program as the second all-time leading scorer and currently ranking fifth in the category. Castelli also set program records with 578 assists (currently third), 273 steals (currently tied for fourth) and 682 field goals made (currently second). During Castelli's four years with the Blue and Gold, Canisius posted an 82-34 record, including a trip to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight during the 1982-83 season when Canisius won a program-record 28 games. Castelli was inducted into the Canisius College Athletics Hall of Fame in 1997 and also again in 2012 as a part of the 1982-83 Golden Griffin women's basketball team.

"The Hall of Fame welcomes back the MAAC Men's and Women's Basketball Championships to Springfield," said John Doleva, President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.  "The Hall of Fame represents the best of the best in the game of basketball, and the MAAC's honorees are well represented in the conference exhibition.  We congratulate this year's honorees and welcome them to the Basketball Hall of Fame and to Springfield, Massachusetts for the 2013 MAAC Basketball Championships."

"The tremendous response from the 2012 honorees of families last March, reinforced within the MAAC the value and honor of being associated with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame with this event," Rich Ensor, Commissioner of the MAAC, said.  "The 2013 class of honorees is deep in basketball success, and the conference membership looks forward to their induction in March into the MAAC Basketball Hall of Fame Honor Roll."