Riley Wallace

{{short description|American retired basketball coach (born 1941)}}

{{Infobox college coach

| name = Riley Wallace

| image =

| alt =

| caption =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1941|10|25}}

| birth_place = Alton, Illinois, U.S.

| death_date =

| death_place =

| player_years1 = 1960–1963

| player_team1 = Centenary

| player_positions = Forward

| coach_years1 = 1964–1966

| coach_team1 = Litchfield HS (assistant)

| coach_years2 = 1966–1971

| coach_team2 = Litchfield HS

| coach_years3 = 1971–1976

| coach_team3 = Centenary (assistant)

| coach_years4 = 1976–1978

| coach_team4 = Centenary

| coach_years5 = 1978–1984

| coach_team5 = Hawaii (assoc. HC)

| coach_years6 = 1984–1987

| coach_team6 = Seminole JC

| coach_years7 = 1987–2007

| coach_team7 = Hawaii

| admin_years1 = 1976–1978

| admin_team1 = Centenary

| overall_record = 349–262 (NCAA Division I)
68–36 (junior college)
69–59 (high school)

| bowl_record =

| tournament_record = 0–3 (NCAA Division I)
8–6 (NIT)

| championships = 3 WAC tournament (1994, 2001, 2002)
WAC regular season (2002)
WAC Pacific division (1997)

| awards = 3x WAC Coach of the Year (1989, 1997, 2002)

| coaching_records =

}}

Robert Riley Wallace (born October 25, 1941) is an American retired basketball coach. He spent most of his career coaching college basketball, and was the head coach of the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors men's team from 1987 through 2007.

Early life and college playing career

Born in Alton, Illinois, Wallace graduated from Jersey Community High School in Jerseyville, Illinois in 1959.{{cite web|url=http://hawaiiathletics.com/coach_bio.html?pid=8&coachid=29|title=Riley Wallace|publisher=University of Hawaii at Manoa|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060614114053/http://hawaiiathletics.com/coach_bio.html?pid=8&coachid=29|archivedate=June 14, 2006|accessdate=May 13, 2015}} After high school, Wallace attended Centenary College of Louisiana and started at forward all three years on the Centenary Gentlemen varsity basketball team from 1960 to 1963.{{cite web|title=The Life of Riley|url=http://www.coachrileywallace.com/life.html|website=CoachRileyWallace.com|accessdate=May 13, 2015|date=2008}} Wallace led Centenary in field goal percentage with at least 8 attempts per game (.450) as a sophomore in 1960–61 and rebounding (222 n the season, 8.5 per game) as a junior in 1961–62.[http://www.gocentenary.com/media/2014-15/men%27s%20basketball/MBB%20Record%20Book-through1314.pdf Centenary record book], pp. 17-18.

Wallace graduated from Centenary in 1964 with a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education.{{cite web|last1=Kaneshiro|first1=Jason|title=Road trip takes UH's Wallace back|url=http://archives.starbulletin.com/2005/02/08/sports/story1.html|website=Honolulu Star-Bulletin|accessdate=May 13, 2015|date=February 8, 2005}}[http://uihistories.library.illinois.edu/cgi-bin/rview_browsepdf?REPOSID=8&ID=8123&pagenum=105 University of Illinois Board of Trustees Minutes]. September 18, 1970. p. 106.

Coaching career

After graduating from Centenary, Wallace became an assistant basketball coach at Litchfield High School in Litchfield, Illinois under Larry Little. Wallace was also track and field head coach at Litchfield High from 1964 to 1967. In 1966, Wallace became head coach and would lead Litchfield for five seasons with a 69–59 record and the 1970 regional title.{{cite web|title=Litchfield - Boys Basketball|url=http://www.ihsa.org/data/school/records/sum1229.htm|publisher=Illinois High School Association|accessdate=May 13, 2015}} Wallace completed a Master of Education degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign College of Education in 1968.[http://www.mocavo.com/Centenary-College-of-Louisiana-Catalogue-1970-1971-Volume-1970-1971/999979/111 Centenary College of Louisiana Catalogue, 1970-1971], p. 109.

In 1971, Wallace returned to Centenary College to be assistant basketball coach, again under Larry Little. He became head basketball coach and athletic director in 1976, then resigned midway in the 1977–78 season to be associate head coach at Hawaii, again under Little. Wallace remained in this position until 1984.

From 1984 to 1987, Wallace was head coach at Seminole Junior College in Seminole, Oklahoma and left with a 68–36 record, including consecutive 26–10 seasons.

After coaching at Seminole JC, Wallace returned to Hawaii to be head coach. When Wallace took over the program in 1987, it had suffered through four straight losing seasons, including a combined 11–43 mark during the latter two years. He guided Hawaii to nine of its 12 all-time postseason appearances, including a school-record streak of four straight from 2001 to 2004. The Warriors appeared in the NCAA Tournament three times under Wallace and were invited to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) on six occasions. Prior to his arrival, the program had just one NCAA appearance and two trips to the NIT.

Wallace announced his resignation following the end of the 2006–07 season on December 29, 2006.{{cite web|last1=Kaneshiro|first1=Jason|title=Wallace makes it official|url=http://archives.starbulletin.com/2006/12/30/sports/story01.html|website=Honolulu Star-Bulletin|accessdate=May 13, 2015|date=December 30, 2006}}

Head coaching record

=College=

{{CBB yearly record start | type =coach | conference = | postseason= }}

{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead

| name =Centenary Gentlemen

| conference=NCAA Division I Independent

| startyear =1976

| endyear =1978

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1976–77

| name = Centenary

| overall = 11–19

| conference =

| confstanding =

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1977–78

| name = Centenary

| overall = 4–8*

| conference =

| confstanding =

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record subtotal

| name = Centenary

| overall = 15–27

| confrecord =

}}

{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead

| name =Hawaii Rainbow Warriors

| conference=Western Athletic Conference

| startyear =1987

| endyear =2007

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1987–88

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 4–25

| conference = 2–14

| confstanding = 9th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1988–89

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 17–13

| conference = 9–7

| confstanding = 4th

| postseason = NIT first round

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1989–90

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 25–10

| conference = 10–6

| confstanding = T–3rd

| postseason = NIT Quarterfinals

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1990–91

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 16–13

| conference = 7–9

| confstanding = T–5th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1991–92

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 16–12

| conference = 9–7

| confstanding = T–4th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1992–93

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 12–16

| conference = 7–11

| confstanding = T–7th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| championship = conference tournament

| season = 1993–94

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 18–15

| conference = 11–7

| confstanding = 4th

| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1994–95

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 16–13

| conference = 8–10

| confstanding = 6th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1995–96

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 10–18

| conference = 7–11

| confstanding = 8th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| championship = division

| season = 1996–97

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 21–8

| conference = 12–4

| confstanding = T–1st (Pacific)

| postseason = NIT second round

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1997–98

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 21–9

| conference = 8–6

| confstanding = 4th (Pacific)

| postseason = NIT Quarterfinals

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1998–99

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 6–20

| conference = 3–11

| confstanding = 7th (Pacific)

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 1999–2000

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 17–12

| conference = 5–9

| confstanding = 6th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| championship = conference tournament

| season = 2000–01

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 17–14

| conference = 8–8

| confstanding = T–5th

| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| championship = confboth

| season = 2001–02

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 27–6

| conference = 15–3

| confstanding = T–1st

| postseason = NCAA Division I Round of 64

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 2002–03

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 19–12

| conference = 9–9

| confstanding = T–6th

| postseason = NIT second round

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 2003–04

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 21–12

| conference = 11–7

| confstanding = 5th

| postseason = NIT Quarterfinals

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 2004–05

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 16–13

| conference = 7–11

| confstanding = 7th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 2005–06

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 17–11

| conference = 10–6

| confstanding = T–4th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| season = 2006–07

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 18–13

| conference = 8–8

| confstanding = T–5th

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record subtotal

| name = Hawaii

| overall = 334–265

| confrecord = 166–164

}}

{{CBB yearly record end

| overall = 349–292

}}

*Resigned in January 1978 to become associate head coach at Hawaii.

=Junior college=

{{CBB yearly record start | type =coach | conference = | postseason= }}

{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead

| name =Seminole (OK) Trojans

| conference=Bi-State Conference

| startyear =1984

| endyear =1987

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| championship =

| season = 1984–85

| name = Seminole (OK)

| overall = 26–10{{cite web|last1=Munn|first1=Scott|title=Seminole Taller, Off to Faster Start|url=http://newsok.com/seminole-taller-off-to-faster-start/article/2130184|website=The Oklahoman|accessdate=May 13, 2015|date=December 5, 1985}}

| conference =

| confstanding =

| postseason =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| championship =

| season = 1985–86

| name = Seminole (OK)

| overall = 26–10

| conference =

| confstanding =

| postseason =