Phil Tollestrup

{{Infobox basketball biography

| name = Phil Tollestrup

| image =

| caption =

| height_ft = 6 | height_in = 6

| weight_lbs = 220

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1949|10|21|mf=y}}

| birth_place = Raymond, Alberta, Canada

| death_date =

| high_school = Raymond High School
(Raymond, Alberta)

| college =

BYU (1968–72)
University of Lethbridge (1972–73)

| draft_year = 1973

| draft_round = 20

| draft_pick = 211

| draft_team = Buffalo Braves

| career_start =

| career_end =

| career_position = Forward

| career_number =

| years1 = 1973-74

| team1 = Saski Baskonia (Spain)

| years2 =

| team2 =

| cyears1 = 1978-80

| cteam1 = McMaster University

| cyears2 = 2004-07

| cteam2 = Lethbridge College

| highlights =

Fourth overall scorer in 1976 Summer Olympics
FIBA World Championship North / South American All-Star (1974)
First Team CIAU All-Canadian (1973)
University of Lethbridge Male Athlete of the Year (1973)
Canada West First Team All-Star (1973)

}}

Phil Tollestrup (born October 12, 1949) is a former Canadian basketball player and Olympian. Among his accomplishments, he was the fourth overall scorer in the 1976 Summer Olympics (21.3 ppg),{{cite web |title=Event Standings |url=https://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/event/p/sid/2939/_/1976_Olympic_Games_Tournament_for_Men/index.html |website=FIBA Archive |access-date=11 February 2024 |ref=1976_oly_results}} where Canada competed for the bronze medal;{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://olympics.com/en/athletes/philip-tollestrup |website=International Olympic Committee |access-date=11 February 2024 |ref=int_oly_comm}}{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://olympic.ca/team-canada/phil-tollestrup/ |website=Canadian Olympic Committee |access-date=11 February 2024 |ref=can_oly_comm}}{{cite web |title=Reflecting on when Karl Tilleman, Eli Pasquale, and Their Fellow Canadian University Teammates Took a Shot at Ruling the Basketball World |url=https://somerspoint.com/2023/04/24/reflecting-karl-tilleman-fellow-canadian-university-teammates-took-shot-ruling-basketball-world/ |website=Somers Point News |access-date=11 February 2024 |ref=somers_point}} was drafted in the NBA by the Buffalo Braves in 1973;{{cite web |title=#40 Phil Tollestrup |url=https://byucougars.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/season/1971-1972/player/phil-tollestrup |website=BYU Cougars |access-date=11 February 2024 |ref=byu_profile}}{{cite web |title=Los Angeles Clippers Draft Picks |url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/LAC/draft.html |website=Basketball Reference |access-date=11 February 2024 |ref=bask_ref_nba}}{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Phil-Tollestrup-75492/ |website=Draft Express |access-date=11 February 2024 |ref=draft_express}} was a First Team CIAU All-Canadian (1973);{{cite web |title=Men's Basketball All-Canadian Teams |url=https://usports.ca/uploads/cis/Awards/All-Canadians/2019-20/Men_s_Basketball_All_Canadians.pdf |website=U Sports |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=ciau_all_can}}{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://tribute.plannedlegacy.com/TributeLethbridge/application/profile_detail.html?id=274 |website=Lethbridge Sports Hall of Fame |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=leth_hof}}{{cite news |title=Hall of Fame Inductees |url=https://digitallibrary.uleth.ca/digital/api/collection/publications/id/18010/download |access-date=12 February 2024 |work=The Meliorist |issue=35 |date=28 March 2002 |ref=uol_hol_art}} was the University of Lethbridge's Male Athlete of the Year (1973);{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030711045812/http://horns.uleth.ca/halloffame2/2002/tollestrup.cfm |website=University of Lethbridge Athletics |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=uol_hof}}{{cite web |title=Lethbridge's Olympians |url=https://lethbridgesportcouncil.ca/news/lethbridges-past-olympians |website=Lethbridge Sports Council |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=leth_sports_council}} and was a First Team Canada West All-Star.{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://usportshoops.ca/history/person.php?Person=tollestrup-phil |website=U Sports Hoops |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=u_sports_hoops}}

International career

Tollestrup played for the Canadian men's national basketball team from 1971 to 1979. This included representing Canada in the 1976 Olympics.{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup--Athlete |url=https://assets-global.website-files.com/5d3752ecc5e950deedb7ab2b/5fbf089971cad91341a63fab_1438008267_hof_philtollestrup.pdf |website=Canada Basketball Hall of Fame |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=cb_hof}}{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://albertasportshallmembers.ca/home/profiles/284 |website=Alberta Sports Hall of Fame |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=alb_hof}} Tollestrup played well in these Olympics, being the tournament's fourth overall leading scorer with 21.3 ppg. The '76 Olympics were also noteworthy in that Canada competed for the bronze medal and finished fourth overall, one of only three times in the past 80 years in which Canada has competed for an Olympic medal in basketball.

Tollestrup also represented Canada in three Pan American Games (1971, 1975, 1979), the 1972 Pre-Olympic Tournament,{{cite web |title=Canada |url=https://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/team/p/sid/2956/tid/257/_/1972_Pre_Olympic_Basketball_Tournament/index.html |website=FIBA Archive |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=1972_pre_oly}} the 1973 World Student Games and the 1974 FIBA World Championships.{{cite web |title=Canada |url=https://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/team/p/sid/2908/tid/257/_/1974_World_Championship_for_Men/index.html |website=FIBA Archive |access-date=12 February 2024 |ref=1974_fiba_champ}} Tollestrup played well in these tournaments as well: in the 1974 World Championships, he was selected as a North / South American All-Star and was Canada's third-leading scorer with 13.3 ppg. In the 1972 Pre-Olympic tournament, he was Canada's second-leading scorer with 19.3 ppg.

Professional

Tollestrup was drafted by the Buffalo Braves in the 20th round as the 211th overall pick in the 1973 NBA draft.{{cite web |title=Phil Tollestrup |url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/t/tolleph01.html |website=Basketball Reference |access-date=15 February 2024 |ref=bask_ref_profile}} In the 1973–74 season, Tollestrup played professionally in the Spanish first division for Saski Baskonia.

University

In high school, Tollestrup led Raymond High School to win two provincial championships (1967, 1968). He was also named provincial MVP.

He played at BYU the following four years (1968–72). At BYU, he played on the conference championship team.

Tollestrup played his final year (1972–73) at the University of Lethbridge.

This was the University of Lethbridge's inaugural year in basketball. In this year, he established intercollegiate scoring records when he averaged 26.4 ppg. He was named a First Team All-Canadian, a Canada West First Team All-Star and as the University of Lethbridge's Male Athlete of the Year. In this year, he also led the Pronghorns to the Canada West championship game.

Coaching career

Tollestrup coached McMaster University from 1978 to 1980. He then coached at the high school level in Milk River, Stirling and Magrath in Alberta, Canada. He then coached the Lethbridge College Kodiaks from 2004 to 2007.

Post-career Awards

Tollestrup has been inducted into the Canada Basketball Hall of Fame (1991), the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame (1984), the City of Lethbridge Sports Hall of Fame (2011), the University of Lethbridge Sports Hall of Fame and the City of Raymond Sports Hall of Fame,. Additionally, the 1976 Canadian men's national team of which Tollestrup was a member was inducted into the Canada Basketball Hall of Fame.{{cite web |title=1976 Senior Men’s Olympic Team – Team |url=https://assets-global.website-files.com/5d3752ecc5e950deedb7ab2b/5fc00be0c53fa048e7bec54d_hof_1976_smnt.pdf |website=Canada Basketball Hall of Fame |access-date=15 February 2024 |ref=cb_hof_team}}