Guy Lewis
Encyclopedia
Guy Vernon Lewis II is a former NCAA
basketball
coach who led the University of Houston
Cougars program for 30 years from 1956-86.
, Lewis played basketball for the University of Houston until his graduation in 1947. He became an assistant coach there in 1953, and head coach in 1956. As a coach, he was known for championing the once-outlawed dunk
, which he characterized as a "high percentage shot", and for clutching a brightly-colored red and white polka dot towel on the bench during games. Lewis was a major force in the racial integration of college athletics in the South during the 1960s, being one of the first major college coaches in the region to actively recruit African-American athletes. His recruitment of Elvin Hayes
and Don Chaney
in 1964 ushered in an era of tremendous success in Cougar basketball. The dominant play of Hayes led the Cougars to two Final Fours and sent shock waves through Southern colleges that realized that they would have to begin recruiting black players if they wanted to compete with integrated teams.
Guy Lewis led the University of Houston Cougars
division I basketball program to 27 straight winning seasons and 14 seasons with 20 or more wins, including 14 trips to the NCAA Tournament
. His Houston teams advanced to the Final Four on five occasions (1967, 1968, 1982–84) and twice advanced to the NCAA Championship Game (1983, 1984). Among the outstanding players who Lewis coached are Elvin Hayes
, Hakeem Olajuwon
, Clyde Drexler
, Otis Birdsong
, Dwight Jones
, Don Chaney
and "Sweet" Lou Dunbar
.
Lewis's UH teams twice played a role in events that helped to popularize college basketball as a spectator sport. In 1968, his underdog, Elvin Hayes-led Cougars upset the undefeated and top-ranked UCLA Bruins in front of more than 50,000 fans at Houston’s Astrodome. This was the first nationally-televised college basketball game, and subsequently became known as the “Game of the Century
”. It marked a watershed in the emerging popularity of college basketball. In the early 1980s, Lewis's Phi Slama Jama teams at UH gained notoriety for their fast-breaking, "above the rim" style of play as well as their overall success. At the height of Phi Slama Jama's notoriety, they suffered a dramatic, last-second loss in the 1983 NCAA Final that became an iconic moment in the history of the sport. Lewis's insistence that his teams play an acrobatic, up-tempo brand of basketball that emphasized dunking
brought this style of play to the fore and helped popularize it amongst younger players.
The Cougars also lost in the 1984 NCAA Final, to the Georgetown Hoyas
led by Patrick Ewing
. Lewis retired from coaching in 1986 at number 20 in all-time NCAA Division I victories, his 592-279 record giving him a .680 career winning percentage. In 1995, the University of Houston modified the official name of the on-campus basketball arena to "Guy V. Lewis Court at Hofheinz Pavilion
" in honor of Lewis, making him a university namesake.
Lewis was hospitalized for a stroke on February 27, 2002. He later recovered, but experienced some lasting effects from the episode. Lewis maintains his residence in the University Oaks subdivision adjacent to the University of Houston, where he has lived since 1959.
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
coach who led the University of Houston
University of Houston
The University of Houston is a state research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. Founded in 1927, it is Texas's third-largest university with nearly 40,000 students. Its campus spans 667 acres in southeast Houston, and was known as University of...
Cougars program for 30 years from 1956-86.
Coaching career
After serving in World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Lewis played basketball for the University of Houston until his graduation in 1947. He became an assistant coach there in 1953, and head coach in 1956. As a coach, he was known for championing the once-outlawed dunk
Slam dunk
A slam dunk is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air and manually powers the ball downward through the basket with one or both hands over the rim. This is considered a normal field goal attempt; if successful it is worth two points. The term "slam dunk" was...
, which he characterized as a "high percentage shot", and for clutching a brightly-colored red and white polka dot towel on the bench during games. Lewis was a major force in the racial integration of college athletics in the South during the 1960s, being one of the first major college coaches in the region to actively recruit African-American athletes. His recruitment of Elvin Hayes
Elvin Hayes
Elvin Ernest Hayes is a retired American basketball player and radio analyst for Houston Cougars men's basketball, where he played college basketball...
and Don Chaney
Don Chaney
Donald Ray Chaney is an American former professional basketball player and coach, most notable for his long stints as a player on the Boston Celtics.-Career as a player:...
in 1964 ushered in an era of tremendous success in Cougar basketball. The dominant play of Hayes led the Cougars to two Final Fours and sent shock waves through Southern colleges that realized that they would have to begin recruiting black players if they wanted to compete with integrated teams.
Guy Lewis led the University of Houston Cougars
Houston Cougars
Houston Cougars is the name given to the sports teams of the University of Houston. Informally, the Houston Cougars have also been referred to as the Coogs, UH, or simply Houston. Houston's nickname was created by early physical education instructor of the university and former head football...
division I basketball program to 27 straight winning seasons and 14 seasons with 20 or more wins, including 14 trips to the NCAA Tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
. His Houston teams advanced to the Final Four on five occasions (1967, 1968, 1982–84) and twice advanced to the NCAA Championship Game (1983, 1984). Among the outstanding players who Lewis coached are Elvin Hayes
Elvin Hayes
Elvin Ernest Hayes is a retired American basketball player and radio analyst for Houston Cougars men's basketball, where he played college basketball...
, Hakeem Olajuwon
Hakeem Olajuwon
Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association for the Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008,...
, Clyde Drexler
Clyde Drexler
Clyde Austin "Clyde The Glide" Drexler is a former National Basketball Association shooting guard and small forward. A ten-time All-Star and member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, the NBA named him one of basketball's fifty greatest players as of 1996. Drexler won an Olympic gold medal in 1992 and...
, Otis Birdsong
Otis Birdsong
Otis Lee Birdsong is an American former professional basketball player. He spent twelve seasons in the NBA and appeared in four NBA All-Star Games....
, Dwight Jones
Dwight Jones
Dwight Elmo Jones is a retired American professional basketball player. A 6'10" forward/center, he was the leading scorer and rebounder on the 1972 Olympic team that lost the controversial gold medal game to the Soviet Union. Jones was ejected from the Gold Medal game after an altercation with a...
, Don Chaney
Don Chaney
Donald Ray Chaney is an American former professional basketball player and coach, most notable for his long stints as a player on the Boston Celtics.-Career as a player:...
and "Sweet" Lou Dunbar
Louis Dunbar
Louis "Sweet Lou" Dunbar is the Director of Player Personnel, and a former 27-year veteran basketball player for the Harlem Globetrotters....
.
Lewis's UH teams twice played a role in events that helped to popularize college basketball as a spectator sport. In 1968, his underdog, Elvin Hayes-led Cougars upset the undefeated and top-ranked UCLA Bruins in front of more than 50,000 fans at Houston’s Astrodome. This was the first nationally-televised college basketball game, and subsequently became known as the “Game of the Century
Game of the Century (college basketball)
The Game of the Century in college basketball was a historical NCAA game between the University of Houston Cougars and the UCLA Bruins played on January 20, 1968 at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. It was the first NCAA regular season game broadcast nationwide in prime time...
”. It marked a watershed in the emerging popularity of college basketball. In the early 1980s, Lewis's Phi Slama Jama teams at UH gained notoriety for their fast-breaking, "above the rim" style of play as well as their overall success. At the height of Phi Slama Jama's notoriety, they suffered a dramatic, last-second loss in the 1983 NCAA Final that became an iconic moment in the history of the sport. Lewis's insistence that his teams play an acrobatic, up-tempo brand of basketball that emphasized dunking
Slam dunk
A slam dunk is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air and manually powers the ball downward through the basket with one or both hands over the rim. This is considered a normal field goal attempt; if successful it is worth two points. The term "slam dunk" was...
brought this style of play to the fore and helped popularize it amongst younger players.
The Cougars also lost in the 1984 NCAA Final, to the Georgetown Hoyas
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
led by Patrick Ewing
Patrick Ewing
Patrick Aloysius Ewing Sr. is a Jamaican-American retired Hall of Fame basketball player and current assistant coach for the National Basketball Association's Orlando Magic. He played most of his career with the NBA's New York Knicks as their starting center and played briefly with the Seattle...
. Lewis retired from coaching in 1986 at number 20 in all-time NCAA Division I victories, his 592-279 record giving him a .680 career winning percentage. In 1995, the University of Houston modified the official name of the on-campus basketball arena to "Guy V. Lewis Court at Hofheinz Pavilion
Hofheinz Pavilion
Guy V. Lewis Court at Hofheinz Pavilion, often known as simply Hofheinz Pavilion, is an 8,500-seat multi-purpose arena on the University of Houston campus in Houston, Texas. Located at 3875 Holman Street, it is home to the University of Houston Cougars men's and women's basketball teams as well as...
" in honor of Lewis, making him a university namesake.
Lewis was hospitalized for a stroke on February 27, 2002. He later recovered, but experienced some lasting effects from the episode. Lewis maintains his residence in the University Oaks subdivision adjacent to the University of Houston, where he has lived since 1959.
Head coaching record
Accomplishments
- 30 years as a head coach
- 592 career wins
- Five NCAA Final FourFinal fourFinal Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
appearances - Two NCAA Final appearances
- Three 30-plus-win seasons
- 4 conference championships
- Produced 10 first round NBA draftNBA DraftThe NBA Draft is an annual event in which the thirty teams from the National Basketball Association can draft players who are eligible and wish to join the league. These players are usually amateur U.S. college basketball players, but international players are also eligible to be drafted...
selections, and 29 NBA players in total - Winning Coach of the Game of the CenturyGame of the Century (college basketball)The Game of the Century in college basketball was a historical NCAA game between the University of Houston Cougars and the UCLA Bruins played on January 20, 1968 at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. It was the first NCAA regular season game broadcast nationwide in prime time...
vs. UCLA in the Astrodome - Named National Coach of the Year in 1968, and again in 1983
- Coach of four Southwest Conference TournamentSouthwest Conference Men's Basketball TournamentThe Southwest Conference was an NCAA athletic conference that existed from 1915 to 1996, and held its postseason basketball tournament, also called the "SWC Classic," starting in 1976.-Tournament champions by year:-Championships by school:- References :...
champions—1978, 1981, 1983 and 1984 - College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007
See also
- 1945–46 Houston Cougars men's basketball team1945–46 Houston Cougars men's basketball teamThe 1945–46 Houston Cougars men's basketball team represented the University of Houston in the college basketball 1945–46 season. It was their inaugural year of season play. The head coach for the Cougars was Alden Pasche, who was serving in his 1st year in that position...
- Guy V. Lewis Court at Hofheinz Pavilion
- NCAA Men's Division I Final Four appearances by coachesNCAA Men's Division I Final Four appearances by coachesThis is a list of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Regional Championships by coach. The current names of the NCAA Tournament regions are the East, Southeast, Southwest, and West...