bruce hale
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inducted 1986 |
Hired in 1954 to lead the University of Miami basketball program, Coach Bruce Hale went on to become the winningest roundball coach in Hurricane history ! In 13 years at the helm, Hale racked up 220 victories against 112 defeats for a .633 winning percentage.
In the early 1960's, Hale guided the Hurricanes to their first three post season tournament appearances in school history. The 1959-60 squad, led by Miami's first All-American Dick Hickox, qualified for the NCAA Tournament and finished the year with a 23-4 record. Back then, only 16 teams qualified for the Big Dance. The following year, the Hurricanes advanced to the National Invitational Tournament and finished 20-7. The 1962-63 squad, led by the hot shooting scoring briliance of sophomore Rick Barry, became the first team to win a post season game with a 71-70 victory over St. Francis (NY) in the NIT.
Barry, who went on to become UM's only consensus All-American selection in 1965, was the key figure behind Hale's 1964-65 squad which established a new NCAA team scoring record-averaging 98.4 points per game...this in the era before 3-point goals and the shot clock.
Through his 13-year tenure, Hale's only Miami team to post a losing record was his first squad in 1954-55 that ended 9-11. After that season, he posted 12 consecutive winning seasons through 1966-67, and his teams won an average of 16.7 games against just 8.8 losses.
The engineer behind five of the school's first six 20-win seasons, Hale was recognized as one of the nation's leading offensive minded coaches during his years at Miami.
A graduate of the University of Santa Clara, Hale served as an Air Force Captain in World War II, where he was given his coaching start-leading the Wright Air Field Base to the service championship.
Following his stint in the service, Hale spent 10 years in the professional ranks as both a player and coach. As a player for the Chicago Gears in 1945, he was selected to the All-World pro team. The following year, he coached the Chicago squad to the national pro title.
In the early 1960's, Hale guided the Hurricanes to their first three post season tournament appearances in school history. The 1959-60 squad, led by Miami's first All-American Dick Hickox, qualified for the NCAA Tournament and finished the year with a 23-4 record. Back then, only 16 teams qualified for the Big Dance. The following year, the Hurricanes advanced to the National Invitational Tournament and finished 20-7. The 1962-63 squad, led by the hot shooting scoring briliance of sophomore Rick Barry, became the first team to win a post season game with a 71-70 victory over St. Francis (NY) in the NIT.
Barry, who went on to become UM's only consensus All-American selection in 1965, was the key figure behind Hale's 1964-65 squad which established a new NCAA team scoring record-averaging 98.4 points per game...this in the era before 3-point goals and the shot clock.
Through his 13-year tenure, Hale's only Miami team to post a losing record was his first squad in 1954-55 that ended 9-11. After that season, he posted 12 consecutive winning seasons through 1966-67, and his teams won an average of 16.7 games against just 8.8 losses.
The engineer behind five of the school's first six 20-win seasons, Hale was recognized as one of the nation's leading offensive minded coaches during his years at Miami.
A graduate of the University of Santa Clara, Hale served as an Air Force Captain in World War II, where he was given his coaching start-leading the Wright Air Field Base to the service championship.
Following his stint in the service, Hale spent 10 years in the professional ranks as both a player and coach. As a player for the Chicago Gears in 1945, he was selected to the All-World pro team. The following year, he coached the Chicago squad to the national pro title.