Charleston, S.C. -- Former College of Charleston men's basketball coach John Kresse, who led the Cougars to the 1983 NAIA National Championship, will be inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame, it was announced on Tuesday.
Kresse, who currently serves as the Special Assistant to the Athletics Director, will be inducted ino the NAIA Hall of Fame on March 15, 2005, at the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship in Kansas City, Missouri.
"The 10 years that I coached in the NAIA consisted of very exciting and competitive basketball," said Kresse, who is also a member of the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame and the New York Catholic High School Athletic Hall of Fame. "There were 22 colleges and universities, all from the state of South Carolina, competing for the privilege of representing our league (NAIA District 6) at the national tournament in Kansas City. I equally share this honor with our assistant coaches, student-athletes and fans who were terrific to work with."
Kresse, who posted a 560-143 (.797) record during his 23-seasons as head coach of the Cougars from 1979-80 to 2001-02, left the NAIA ranks as the winningest active head coach with a winning percentage of .820 after posting a 268-59 record over 10 seasons (1979-80 to 1988-89).
"This is a tremendous honor for John Kresse and the College of Charleston," said College of Charleston Athletics Director Jerry Baker. "John has always and continues to represent the College of Charleston with the highest level of integrity and enthusiasm. He is truly one of the great coaches in basketball history and this is a well deserved honor."
Kresse, who retired on March 12, 2002 after 38 years of coaching on the high school, collegiate and professional levels, also led the Cougars to four NCAA Touranment berths (1994, 1997, 1998, 1999) and two NIT appearances (1994, 1995).
Here's a year-by-year breakdown of Kresse's coaching career with the Cougars:
Year: Record District 6 Tourn. NAIA Tourn.
1979-80: 17-11 0-1 --
1980-81: 25-5 1-1 --
1981-82: 25-5 2-1 --
1982-83: 33-5 4-0 5-0 NAIA National Champions, NAIA District 6 Champions
1983-84: 25-7 2-1 --
1984-85: 30-4 3-0 2-1 NAIA District 6 Champions
1985-86: 26-9 3-0 2-1 NAIA District 6 Champions
1986-87: 31-2 3-0 1-1 NAIA District 6 Champions
1987-88: 30-5 3-0 4-1 NAIA District 6 Champions, Third Place NAIA Tournament
1988-89: 26-6 3-0 1-1 NAIA District 6 Champions
1989-90: 19-8 NCAA Compliance Season (Played NCAA Division I Schedule)
1990-91: 15-12 NCAA Compliance Season (Played NCAA Division I Schedule)
1991-92: 19-8 First Season of NCAA Division I Competition
1992-93: 19-8 Defeated No. 8 Georgia Tech, 84-67, on January 16, 2993
1993-94: 24-4 Trans America Champions, NCAA Tournament at-large berth
1994-95: 23-6 Trans America Champions, NIT
1995-96: 25-4 Trans America Champions, NIT (First round win at Tennessee, 55-49)
1996-97: 29-3 Trans America Champions, NCAA Tournament (First round win over Maryland, 75-66), Final ranking 16th by AP
1997-98: 24-6 Trans America Champions, NCAA Tournament
1998-99: 28-3 Southern Conference Champions, NCAA Tournament, Final ranking 16th by AP
1999-00: 24-6 Southern Conference South Division Champions
2000-01: 22-7 Southern Conference South Division Champions
2001-02: 21-9 Southern Conference South Division Champions
Totals: 560-143 (.797)
NAIA Totals: 268-59 (.820); NAIA District 6 Tournament Record: 24-4 (.857); NAIA National Tournament Record: 15-5 (.750). NAIA Seasons in bold italics.
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