Ken Loeffler
Kenneth D. Loeffler (April 14, 1902 – January 1, 1975) was an American collegiate and professional basketball coach. He was mostly known for guiding the La Salle Explorers men's basketball team to the 1952 National Invitation Tournament and 1954 NCAA Basketball Tournament titles.
 Loeffler from the 1956 Aggieland | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 14, 1902 |
| Died | January 1, 1975 (aged 72) Rumson, New Jersey |
| Playing career | |
| 1920–1924 | Penn State |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1928–1935 | Geneva |
| 1935–1942 | Yale |
| 1945–1946 | Denver |
| 1946–1948 | St. Louis Bombers |
| 1948–1949 | Providence Steamrollers |
| 1949–1955 | La Salle |
| 1955–1957 | Texas A&M |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 320–213 (college) 79–90 (professional) |
| Tournaments | 9–1 (NCAA) 5–3 (NIT) 4–6 (BAA playoffs) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| NCAA (1954) 2 NCAA Final Four (1954, 1955) NIT (1952) | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 1964 (profile) | |
| College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 | |
After earning a Bachelor's degree at Pennsylvania State University (1920–24) and a short pro basketball career (1924–29), the Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania native began his collegiate coaching career at Geneva College (1928–35). In 1935 he became basketball head coach at Yale University, and also assistant coach to the football and baseball varsity. In seven years at Yale Loeffler put up a 61–82 record. During World War II he served in the U.S. Air Force.
After the war Loeffler began coaching pro teams in the Basketball Association of America. First the St. Louis Bombers (1946–48), then the Providence Steamrollers (1948–49). In 1949 he returned to the college ranks when he became head coach at La Salle. With players like future Hall of Famer Tom Gola, Loeffler's La Salle teams went on to dominate college basketball over half a decade in the early 1950s. In six seasons at La Salle, Loeffler led the Explorers to a post-season appearance in every single season. Under Loeffler, La Salle made four trips to the NIT (before it was considered "second-rate") and two visits to the NCAA Tournament. In 1955 Loeffler moved on to become the head coach at Texas A&M College, a post he held until 1957.
On October 1, 1964, Loeffler was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He died on January 1, 1975, of an apparent heart attack, in Rumson, New Jersey.[1]
Head coaching record
College
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geneva Covenanters (Independent) (1928–1935) | |||||||||
| 1928–29 | Geneva | 14–5 | |||||||
| 1929–30 | Geneva | 10–9 | |||||||
| 1930–31 | Geneva | 13–10 | |||||||
| 1931–32 | Geneva | 14–7 | |||||||
| 1932–33 | Geneva | 13–6 | |||||||
| 1933–34 | Geneva | 13–9 | |||||||
| 1934–35 | Geneva | 16–7 | |||||||
| Geneva: | 93–53 (.637) | ||||||||
| Yale Bulldogs (Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League) (1935–1942) | |||||||||
| 1935–36 | Yale | 8–16 | 6–6 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1936–37 | Yale | 12–8 | 7–5 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1937–38 | Yale | 7–12 | 3–9 | 7th | |||||
| 1938–39 | Yale | 4–16 | 3–9 | 6th | |||||
| 1939–40 | Yale | 13–6 | 7–5 | T–3rd | |||||
| 1940–41 | Yale | 10–12 | 4–8 | T–4th | |||||
| 1941–42 | Yale | 7–12 | 3–9 | 6th | |||||
| Yale: | 61–82 (.427) | 33–51 (.393) | |||||||
| Denver Pioneers (Mountain States Conference) (1945–1946) | |||||||||
| 1945–46 | Denver | 9–15 | 1–11 | 7th | |||||
| Denver: | 9–15 (.375) | 1–11 (.083) | |||||||
| La Salle Explorers (Independent) (1949–1955) | |||||||||
| 1949–50 | La Salle | 21–4 | NIT Quarterfinal | ||||||
| 1950–51 | La Salle | 22–7 | NIT First Round | ||||||
| 1951–52 | La Salle | 24–5 | NIT Champion | ||||||
| 1952–53 | La Salle | 25–3 | NIT Quarterfinal | ||||||
| 1953–54 | La Salle | 26–4 | NCAA Champion | ||||||
| 1954–55 | La Salle | 26–5 | NCAA Runner-up | ||||||
| La Salle: | 144–28 (.837) | ||||||||
| Texas A&M Aggies (Southwest Conference) (1955–1957) | |||||||||
| 1955–56 | Texas A&M | 6–18 | 3–9 | T–5th | |||||
| 1956–57 | Texas A&M | 7–17 | 3–9 | T–6th | |||||
| Texas A&M: | 13–35 (.271) | 6–18 (.250) | |||||||
| Total: | 320–213 (.600) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
Professional basketball
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SLB | 1946–47 | 61 | 38 | 23 | .623 | 2nd in Western | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | Lost in League Quarterfinals |
| SLB | 1947–48 | 48 | 29 | 19 | .604 | 1st in Western | 7 | 3 | 4 | .429 | Lost in League Semifinals |
| PRO | 1948–49 | 60 | 12 | 48 | .200 | 6th in Eastern | - | - | - | - | Missed Playoffs |
| Career | 169 | 79 | 90 | .467 | 10 | 4 | 6 | .400 |
See also
- List of NCAA Division I Men's Final Four appearances by coach
References
- "Ken Loeffler, Who Led LaSalle To Basketball Titles, Dies at 72". The New York Times. January 3, 1975. Retrieved July 6, 2018.