Jim Calhoun

From Hoopedia

James A. Calhoun (born May 10, 1942 in Braintree, Massachusetts) is the head coach of the University of Connecticut's men's basketball team. He has won two national championships, the 1999 and 2004 NCAA titles, as well as the 1988 NIT championship. In 2005, he was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Northeastern Coaching History

Jim Calhoun began his coaching career at Lyme-Old Lyme High School in Old Lyme, Connecticut in 1968 after accepting a sixth grade teaching position in that town over the summer. After finishing 3-16 that season, Calhoun returned to Massachusetts after deciding not to complete the necessary certification paperwork to renew his teaching contract (he was certified in Mass. and working in Conn. only on a temporary certificate). After one season at Westport (Mass.) High, he accepted a position at Dedham High School and began building a very strong program. After completing a 21-1 season in 1972, Calhoun was quickly recruited by Northeastern University in Boston to serve as their new head coach. He took the position in October 1972, and quickly built Northeastern into the dominant power in the ECAC North Atlantic Conference. He also transitioned the team from NCAA Division II to NCAA Division I.

The team advanced to the NCAA Division I Men's Tournament five times under Calhoun. During his final three seasons, Northeastern achieved automatic bids to the NCAA tournament and had a 75-19 record. He received six regional Coach of the Year accolades at Northeastern and remains the institution's all-time winningest coach (248-137). Future Boston Celtics captain Reggie Lewis, who played for Calhoun at Northeastern, was a first-round NBA Draft pick in 1986.

UConn Coaching History

On May 15, 1986, Calhoun was named the head coach at the University of Connecticut. After completing his first season just 9-19, Calhoun led the Huskies to a 20-14 record in 1988 and a bid to National Invitation Tournament. There they defeated Ohio State to win the NIT championship. In 1990, Calhoun was named the consensus National Coach of the Year after leading the Huskies to their first Big East championship, the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, and a 31-6 record in only his fourth year at the helm.

Calhoun won his first NCAA national championship in 1999, as he led UConn to its first-ever Final Four and then championship game victory over Duke in St. Petersburg, Florida. The final score was 77-74 in UConn's favor as future NBA standout Richard "Rip" Hamilton led the team to victory.

Calhoun led the Huskies to another national championship in 2004, at the conclusion of a season that saw UConn start and complete the year as the number one team in the nation. UConn standouts Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon were selected #2 and #3 in the NBA Draft, respectively. Calhoun now holds a 32-9 record with UConn in NCAA tournament play; they have never lost a First Round or Final Four game.

During the Jim Calhoun-era, the UConn Huskies have dominated the Big East Conference with an impressive 222-112 record (.665 winng pct.). The Huskies have won or shared conference titles in 1990,1994,1995,1996,1998,1999,2002, 2005,and 2006. UConn has also won six Big East Tournament championships, the last coming in 2004.

On March 15, 2005 he achieved his 700th win at Gampel Pavilion over Georgetown. His friend and Big East rival coach Jim Boeheim also won his 700th game during the previous week. Later in 2005, Coach Calhoun was honored by induction into the Dr. James Naismith National Basketball Hall of Fame, fittingly, along with Jim Boeheim.

Calhoun was the first coach in NCAA history to have won at least 250 games at two different Division I schools. Eddie Sutton later achieved this same feat.

Calhoun is well known for his stern demeanor and no nonsense approach to running his program. He has earned the nickname "Brubaker" - as his program is similar to the facility run by Robert Redford in the 1980 film.

A total of 20 players Calhoun has coached at UConn have gone on to play in the NBA. They are, from earliest to most recent: Clifford Robinson, Tate George, Chris Smith, Scott Burrell, Kevin Ollie, Donyell Marshall, Donny Marshall, Ray Allen, Travis Knight, Richard Hamilton, Khalid El-Amin, Jake Voskuhl, Caron Butler, Emeka Okafor, Ben Gordon, Charlie Villanueva, Hilton Armstrong, Josh Boone, Denham Brown, Rudy Gay, and Marcus Williams.