Hugh Scott Greer (August 5, 1904 – January 14, 1963) was an American men's

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

coach. Known as the "Father of Connecticut Basketball," he was the head coach of the UConn Huskies men's basketball team from 1947 to 1963. He developed the program into a regional powerhouse, winning 12

Yankee Conference The Yankee Conference was a collegiate sports conference in the eastern United States. From 1947 to 1976, it sponsored competition in many sports, but was a football-only league from mid-1976 until its dissolution in 1996. It is essentially the a ...

titles and making seven NCAA tournament appearances during his 17 seasons. Most notably, the Huskies won 10 consecutive conference championships from 1951 to 1960, which was the longest streak of any program in

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

history at the time and remains the fourth-longest streak as of 2025. With 286 wins and a .719 winning percentage, Greer spent more than three decades as the all-time winningest coach in UConn men's basketball history until he was surpassed by Jim Calhoun in 1999.

Biography

Early life and education

Born on August 5, 1904, in Suffield,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, Greer graduated from Suffield Academy before attending Connecticut Agricultural College (CAC), now the University of Connecticut. As a basketball player at CAC, Greer helped lead the team to a New England Conference championship in 1926.

High school coaching years

Greer began his coaching career with the Manchester High School boys' basketball team, followed by a four-year stint at Glastonbury High School. In 1937, he was named head coach at Ellsworth Memorial High School in South Windsor, Connecticut, where he became the school's all-time winningest coach and led the team to five CIAC boys' basketball state tournament championships. He compiled an overall record of 186–16 between 1937 and 1946, which included a 67-game win streak — the longest on record for any New England team at the time.

University of Connecticut

Greer was hired by the University of Connecticut in 1946 as an assistant coach in the men's basketball program, coaching the freshman team. However, six games into the year, head coach Blair Gullion abruptly resigned to accept a position at Washington University, and the school named Greer head coach of the varsity team for the remainder of the 1946–47 season. The Huskies finished with a perfect 12–0 record under Greer, and the school selected him as the permanent head coach. During his 17 seasons as head coach, Greer led Connecticut to its first

title in 1948, first NCAA tournament appearance in 1951, first NIT appearance in 1955 and first NCAA tournament win in 1956. With his 1953–54 team, he famously coached UConn to a 78–77 victory against undefeated Holy Cross, breaking the Crusaders' 47-game home winning streak. (That season, Holy Cross went on to win the 1954 NIT title.) The Huskies were 10 games into the 1962–63 season when Greer unexpectedly died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

on January 14, 1963, at the age of 58. Assistant coach George Wigton finished out the year as interim head coach and led the Huskies to the 1963 NCAA tournament.

Head coaching record

Awards

*1957: Connecticut Sports Writer’s Alliance Gold Key Award *1957: University of Connecticut Distinguished Alumni Award *1985: Connecticut High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame *2003: New England Basketball Hall of Fame

Notes

: When head coach Blair Gullion left Connecticut in mid-season in 1946, the Huskies had a record of 4–2 overall and 1–1 in the

. Greer moved from assistant coach to the head coach position and led the Huskies for the rest of the 1946–47 season. Connecticut finished the season with an overall record of 16–2 and a record of 6–1 and a second-place finish in the Yankee Conference. : After Greer died in January 1963, assistant coach George Wigton filled in as interim head coach for the rest of the 1962–63 season. Connecticut finished the season with an overall record of 18–7, a record of 9–1 and a first-place finish in the Yankee Conference, and an appearance in the 1963 NCAA Tournament.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greer, Hugh 1904 births 1963 deaths American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Connecticut Basketball players from Connecticut People from Suffield, Connecticut UConn Huskies athletic directors UConn Huskies men's basketball coaches UConn Huskies men's basketball players