Athletics The Scholar-Athlete

Habegger a Hall of Famer

Photo courtesy of the SPU Archives

Les Habegger

A man whose name is synonymous with Seattle Pacific basketball is now part of a Hall of Fame in a state that is synonymous with the game of basketball.

Les Habegger, who coached the Falcons for 17 seasons and guided them to six NCAA Tournament appearances, including the 1965 Elite Eight, was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame on March 26 in Newcastle, Indiana.

Habegger came to Seattle Pacific in 1955 as an assistant coach to Ken Foreman. He became head coach in 1957, and his Falcon teams went on to win 267 games, helping elevate the program into a West Coast power. His final record before he left to join the Seattle SuperSonics coaching staff in 1974 was 267–170, the most for any men’s basketball coach in school history.

Today, Habegger resides in Gilbert, Arizona.