UBC men’s basketball coach Kevin Hanson is now the winningest coach in Canada West history.
The Seaquam Secondary alum scored his 314th regular season victory on Thursday night as the Thunderbirds defeated the visiting Trinity Western Spartans 109-102.
“Even games like this, it may not have been the prettiest basketball but you’ve got to celebrate the wins when you get them. This is a hard gig and winning basketball games is a tough thing and anything can happen,” Hanson said in a post-game video posted to the UBC Thunderbirds Twitter page.
With the win, Hanson surpasses the mark set by former Alberta Golden Bears coach Don Horwood, who lead the University of Alberta men’s basketball team from 1983 to 2009.
“It’s very special. A lot of great memories obviously in this gym and a lot of great games,” Hanson said. “[Assistant coach] Vern Knopp being 20 years with us … [the] people that have been here through the whole journey are him and my wife and our daughter, so it was very special they were all here tonight.”
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🀠MBB | @UBCCoachHanson on his record setting 314th @CanadaWest regular season win Thursday night @CanBball @BasketballBC @USPORTSca pic.twitter.com/cDPvIDFMM2
— UBC Thunderbirds / @UBCTBirds (@ubctbirds) January 10, 2020
After graduating from North Delta’s Seaquam Secondary, Hanson went on to play for the Langara College Falcons and was named a CCAA All-Canadian for the Falcons in 1984. He later played for UBC, then served as an assistant coach at Langara in 1987.
Over his nine-year run as the Falcons’ head coach, Hanson netted five BCCAA league titles and two CCAA national championships.
Hanson moved to UBC in 2000, and entered this seasons holding the best regular season winning percentage in Canada West for active coaches at .765.
“It’s been a great ride so far and I want it to continue for many more years. It’s a lot of fun and challenging moments, but you know, you wake up the next day and you try harder and try to make things better, and it’s really an intrinsically rewarding night and … a very, very special night for me, and in the gym that I played in and coached in,” he said.
Along with Hanson’s family, several former players were on hand to cheer the T-Birds on Thursday night and congratulate their former coach on his latest achievement.
“People define success in a lot of different ways, but we try to build everyday and the friendships that you have on the court … in the end we are a family and it means a lot having [alumni] coming back here, making a special effort to be here,” Hanson said. “Those meaningful relationships, those’ll be friendships for life, and I think that’s one of the rewarding things about this job is those friendships that last a lifetime.”
SEE ALSO: Langara College names $25,000 scholarship named for Seaquam alum Kevin Hanson
🀠MBB | Coach Hanson makes history with his 314th career @CanadaWest regular season win as the 'Birds down the @TWUSpartans 109-102 Thursday night at War Memorial Gym
📸 @RichLamPhoto
Recap: https://t.co/5gUtQ1lqHS pic.twitter.com/ic91aHu3qh
— UBC Thunderbirds / @UBCTBirds (@ubctbirds) January 10, 2020
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