Henry W. "Moe" Iba (born May 31, 1939) is an American former
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
coach. He served as the head men's basketball coach at Memphis State University, now known as the
University of Memphis
The University of Memphis (Memphis) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students.
The university maintains the Herff Col ...
, from 1966 to 1970,
Nebraska
Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...
from 1980 to 1986, and
Texas Christian University (TCU) from 1987 to 1994, compiling a career
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 record of 239–244. Iba graduated from
Oklahoma State University
Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...
in 1962. He played basketball there under his father,
Henry Iba, the
Hall of Fame
A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
coach who developed the
motion offense.
Coaching career
Texas Western
After college, Iba got his first job as the freshman assistant coach at Texas Western College of the University of Texas, now known as
University of Texas at El Paso
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public university, public research university in El Paso, Texas, United States. Founded in 1913 as the State School of Mines and Metallurgy, it is the third oldest academic component of the Univers ...
(UTEP), under
Don Haskins. He was at Texas Western during the
1965–66 basketball season when Texas Western won the
1966 NCAA University Division basketball tournament. This achievement was depicted in the film ''
Glory Road'' and Iba was portrayed on screen by
Evan Jones.
Memphis
After the 1966 season, Iba was hired as head coach at Memphis State University, now known as the
University of Memphis
The University of Memphis (Memphis) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students.
The university maintains the Herff Col ...
, replacing
Dean Ehlers. He recruited
Larry Finch and
Ronnie Robinson, two local Memphis legends, to come to Memphis State. Iba was, however, let go after a 6–20 season in 1969–70 and never got to coach them on a collegiate level, but left his mark on the program when
Gene Bartow took those recruits and went to the
NCAA championship game in 1973.
Nebraska
After leaving Memphis State, Moe got a position as an assistant coach at the
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the M ...
. He was named acting head coach when
Joe Cipriano became ill with cancer. He replaced Cipriano in 1980 and was head coach at Nebraska until 1986. Iba's teams there played in three
National Invitation Tournament
The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) is an annual men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Since 2023, all rounds of the tournament are played at various sites across the country whi ...
s and made one
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as March Madness, or The Big Dance, is a single-elimination tournament played in the United States to determine the men's college basketball national champion of the NCAA Division I, Di ...
bid, the first NCAA appearance in the program's history.
TCU
Iba was an assistant at
Drake University
Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. The University offers over 140 undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, education, Legal education, law, and pharmacy. Drake U ...
in 1986–87 and was then hired as the head coach at
Texas Christian University (TCU), where he stayed until 1994.
Head coaching record
References
1939 births
Living people
American men's basketball players
Basketball coaches from Oklahoma
Basketball players from Oklahoma
College men's basketball head coaches in the United States
Guards (basketball)
Drake Bulldogs men's basketball coaches
Memphis Tigers men's basketball coaches
Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball coaches
Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball players
People from Stillwater, Oklahoma
TCU Horned Frogs men's basketball coaches
UTEP Miners men's basketball coaches
20th-century American sportsmen
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