Hugh Greer

Hugh S. Greer
Biographical details
Born	August 5, 1904; Suffield, Connecticut, U.S.
Died	January 14, 1963 (aged 58); Storrs, Connecticut, U.S.
Playing career
1926	UConn
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1947–1963	UConn
Head coaching record
Overall	285–112
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
	12 Yankee Conference championships

Hugh Greer (August 5, 1904 – January 14, 1963) was the Connecticut Huskies men's basketball coach from 1946 to 1963.

Biography

Early life and education

Born on August 5, 1904,^[1] in Suffield, Connecticut, Hugh Scott Greer^[1] went to school at Connecticut Agricultural College (CAC, now the University of Connecticut). As a basketball player at CAC, Greer helped lead his school to a New England Conference championship in 1926.

Coaching career

Greer coached basketball at the University of Connecticut (UConn) from 1947 to 1963.^[2] As head coach of the Connecticut Huskies he led UConn to seven NCAA Tournaments and one National Invitation Tournament (NIT) berth, as well as 12 Yankee Conference championships overall and 10 consecutively from the 1950–51 season through the 1959–60 season. He ended his career with a record of 285–112 and a .718 win percentage.^[2] He was the winningest coach in UConn history until Jim Calhoun passed him in 1998.

In 1954, Greer famously led UConn to a 78–77 victory against undefeated Holy Cross, breaking the Crusaders' 47-game home winning streak. (That season, Holy Cross went on to win the 1954 NIT title.) In 1956, Greer led UConn to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16, where the Huskies lost in a close game to Temple.

Greer led UConn until he died of a massive heart attack on January 14, 1963. Assistant coach George Wigton finished out the 1962–63 season and led the Huskies to the 1963 NCAA Tournament. UConn credits the first 10 games of the season to Greer and the rest of the season (including the NCAA Tournament appearance) to Wigton.

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
Connecticut Huskies (Yankee Conference) (1946–1963)
1946–47	Connecticut	12–0^{[Note A]}	5–0^{[Note A]}	2nd
1947–48	Connecticut	17–6	6–1	1st
1948–49	Connecticut	19–6	7–1	1st
1949–50	Connecticut	17–8	5–2	2nd
1950–51	Connecticut	22–4	6–1	1st	NCAA First Round
1951–52	Connecticut	20–7	6–1	1st
1952–53	Connecticut	17–4	5–1	1st
1953–54	Connecticut	22–3	7–0	1st	NCAA First Round
1954–55	Connecticut	20–5	7–0	1st	NIT First Round
1955–56	Connecticut	17–11	6–1	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1956–57	Connecticut	17–8	8–0	1st	NCAA First Round
1957–58	Connecticut	17–10	9–1	1st	NCAA First Round
1958–59	Connecticut	17–7	8–2	1st	NCAA First Round
1959–60	Connecticut	17–9	8–2	1st	NCAA First Round
1960–61	Connecticut	11–13	6–4	3rd
1961–62	Connecticut	16–8	7–3	2nd
1962–63	Connecticut	7–3^{[Note B]}	4–0^{[Note B]}	1st^{[Note B]}
Connecticut:		285–112 (.718)	110–22 (.833)
Total:		285–112 (.718)
National champion Postseason invitational champion Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion Conference tournament champion

Awards

1957: University of Connecticut Distinguished Alumni Award^[3]

Notes

^A. When head coach Blair Gullion left Connecticut in mid-season in 1946, the Huskies had a record of 4–2 overall and 1–1 in the Yankee Conference. Greer moved from assistant coach to the head coach position and led the Huskies for the rest of the 1946–47 season. Connecticut finished the season with an overall record of 16–2 and a record of 6–1 and a second-place finish in the Yankee Conference.

^B. After Greer died in January 1963, assistant coach George Wigton filled in as interim head coach for the rest of the 1962–63 season. Connecticut finished the season with an overall record of 18–7, a record of 9–1 and a first-place finish in the Yankee Conference, and an appearance in the 1963 NCAA Tournament.

References

^ ^a ^b Smith, Laura (August 31, 2018). "Hugh S. Greer Field House". uconn.edu. UConn Library. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
^ ^a ^b Rhoden, William C. (1986-01-17). "UConn Sees Some Gains". New York Times. Under Hugh Greer, who coached from 1947 until he died during the 1963 season, the Huskies went 286–112, a .718 winning percentage...
^ "UCAA - Distinguished Alumni Award". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2008-03-30.

[hughsgreerfieldhouse-1] Smith, Laura (August 31, 2018). "Hugh S. Greer Field House". uconn.edu. UConn Library. Retrieved 18 February 2024.

[nyt19860117-2] Rhoden, William C. (1986-01-17). "UConn Sees Some Gains". New York Times. Under Hugh Greer, who coached from 1947 until he died during the 1963 season, the Huskies went 286–112, a .718 winning percentage...

[3] "UCAA - Distinguished Alumni Award". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2008-03-30.

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