This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 9/10/2006.
Henry "Hank" Iba was the first coach to guide teams to back-to-back NCAA Championships, leading Oklahoma A & M (now Oklahoma State) to titles in 1945 and 1946. His A & M teams also won 14 Midwestern Valley crowns. Though most of his career 767 victories resulted from his tenure with the Aggies, Iba also coached at Maryville College and the University of Colorado. Iba is the only coach in basketball history to direct two USA teams to Gold Medals, in 1964 and 1968. He also served as the coach of the USA team that lost the controversial Olympic Final to the USSR in 1972. Iba is a Silver Relief medallion, in fair condition; scratched and chipped on bottom lip and right eyebrow, large chip on tip of nose. One look at Jack Gardner's record indicates that over a 36-year coaching career, he was one of the nation's great basketball minds. In 28 years of coaching at the major college level, Gardner's teams compiled a 486-235 record (67.4 percent). Silver Relief medallion in great condition; light scratch on nose and faint background scratches. Alex Hannum was the first coach in pro basketball to win both an ABA and NBA Championship. He guided the St. Louis Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers to NBA titles in 1958 and 1967, and won the ABA crown with the Oakland Oaks in 1969. He was named Coach of the Year in the NBA (1964) and ABA (1969). Hannum also coached the Wichita Vickers to the AAU National Championship. Known as the "Father of Yugoslavian Basketball," Aleksandar Nikolic coached his National Team to its first medal (Silver) at the 1961 European Championships, and won gold at the 1977 European and 1978 World Championships. As coach for Ignis Varese in the Italian League, Nikolic won three national titles, three European titles, three Italy Cups and two Intercontinental Cups. A great player at Providence College, winning the 1963 NIT, and capturing two NBA Championships with the Boston Celtics, John Thompson's legacy as a coach will be remembered far longer. In 27 seasons at Georgetown, his teams won 596 games, went to the NCAA Final Four in 1982, 1984 and 1985, played in 14 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, made 24 straight post-season appearances, and won seven Big East Tournament titles. Thompson's 1984 squad, led by Patrick Ewing, captured the NCAA Championship. He also coached the USA Olympic Team to a bronze medal in 1988. One of Thompson's most impressive statistics was his 97 percent graduation rate among his four-year players. All are Zinc-Etched medallions. Hannum is in NM condition. Nikolic is in excellent condition; black background slightly chipped on lower left side. Thompson is in good to very good condition; black background chipped above left hear and above right shoulder.