Jim Harding (c. 1927-2000)
Teams coached: Loyola (LA) Wolf Pack, Gannon Golden Knights, La Salle Explorers, Minnesota Pipers, Detroit Mercy Titans
Loyola (LA) record: 16-9 (.640)
Gannon record: 57-14 (.803)
La Salle record: 20-8 (.714)
Detroit Mercy record: 55-45 (.550)
Overall record^: 148-76 (.661)
Career Accomplishments:
- NCAA National Championships: 0
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 2 (1958, 1968)
- NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen: 0
- NIT Championships: 0
- NIT Appearances: 0
- Middle Atlantic Regular Season Champion: 1 (1968)
Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):
1969-1973 | Detroit Mercy |
1968-1969 | Minnesota Pipers |
1967-1968 | La Salle |
1963-1966 | Gannon |
1957-1958 | Loyola (LA) |
Jim Harding Facts
- James F. Harding
- Born c. 1927
- Died June 3, 2000
- Hometown: Clinton, Iowa
- Alma Mater: University of Iowa (BA, 1949 & MA)
- An all-state high school basketball and football star in Iowa, Harding played both sports, the former for head coach Pops Harrison at Iowa
- Briefly played professional basketball for the ABA’s Wilkes-Barre team after graduating from Iowa
- Spent several years as head coach at Marquette University HS in Milwaukee, WI, going 56-9 overall winning a state championship in 1954
- First collegiate coaching job was a one-year stint at then-Division I Loyola (LA) in New Orleans
- Harding went 16-9 and led the Wolf Pack to the D-I NCAA Tournament in 1958
- Hired in 1963 to be the head basketball coach and athletic director at Gannon University in Erie, PA
- Went 57-14 overall in three seasons on the court, winning 20 games in two of those
- Inducted into the Gannon Athletic Hall of Fame in 1986
- Moved back to Milwaukee to work in the private sector in 1966 but also spent time as a scout and television commentator
- Served as head coach at La Salle for one year, winning the 1968 Middle Atlantic title and getting back to the NCAA Tournament
- Left to be the head coach of the ABA’s Minnesota Pipers; served in that capacity for about half of their lone season in Minnesota (1968-69), going 20-13 overall at the helm
- Returned to college after that season, spending four years as the head coach at Detroit Mercy
- After going 7-18 in his first year, Harding led the Titans to 18 wins in year three – one of their best seasons ever at that time
- Finished his tenure at UDM with an overall record of 55-45; resigned in 1973
- From 1975-80, Harding served as the athletic director at at UW-Milwaukee
Jim Harding Coaching Tree
- Fran Dunphy (La Salle, Temple, Penn)
- Lefty Ervin (La Salle)
- Steve Vacendak (Winthrop, Greensboro College)
^ overall record includes head coaching positions at the NCAA level only