Hawai‘i basketball has thrived under the leadership of 14-year head coach Riley Wallace. The winningest coach in UH basketball history, Wallace has taken the program to new heights. Last season, his team captivated the state with a dramatic run at the Western Athletic Conference Tournament and advanced to its second NCAA Tournament under his reign.
Considered the "Dean of WAC Coaches," Wallace has guided the program to six postseason appearances since 1987, one conference regular season title and two WAC Tournament crowns. Last season he earned his 200th victory at Hawai‘i, becoming the first coach to do so at the Manoa campus. His record at UH stands at 216-198 (.522) while his 16-year career mark is 231-225 (.507).
In the 14 years that Wallace has headed the program, the Rainbow Warriors have posted three 20-win seasons and have appeared in four WAC Tournament title games. His 1993-94 squad ran the table at the WAC Tournament defeating host Brigham Young in a nationally televised game on ESPN.
But it wasn’t until 1996 when his program gained national recognition. Behind the "Dynamic Duo" of Anthony "AC" Carter and Alika Smith, the team won 21 games in consecutive seasons and earned the program’s first national ranking since 1973. The 1996-97 team captured the program’s first WAC regular season title, tying for first in the Pacific Division. The 1997-98 squad jumped out to an 11-1 record including victories over Indiana, Nebraska, and No. 2 Kansas. But those two squads failed to reach the Big Dance, instead receiving invitations to the National Invitational Tournament. In 1998, the team came within one victory of reaching the NIT semifinals.
In all, Wallace and his ’Bows made four appearances in the NIT (1989, 1990, 1997, 1998). He earned WAC Coach of the Year honors in 1989 and 1997. Wallace became the winningest coach on Dec. 30, 1994, when Hawai‘i upset nationally ranked Cincinnati, 75-66 in the Rainbow Classic. The win gave Wallace his 114th coaching victory, surpassing legendary coach Red Rocha.
A native of Illinois, Wallace entered the coaching profession as an assistant to long-time UH head coach Larry Little at Litchfield (Ill.) High School. In addition to serving as a basketball assistant, Wallace headed the track program for three years (1964-67).
But the dream of becoming a head coach at a Division I program lured Wallace back to his alma mater, Centenary, in Shreveport, La., to begin his college coaching resume. After earning his master’s degree in education from Illinois, he coached at Centenary for nine seasons under three different head coaches. During his stay, Wallace recruited former Boston Celtic center Robert Parish and helped the team to a national ranking.
In 1976, Wallace assumed the dual role of athletics director and head coach but after two seasons left to take the associate coaching position at Hawai‘i under Little. He stayed from 1978 to ’84 before taking a three-year leave to coach Seminole Junior College. Wallace compiled a 68-36 record at Seminole including back-to-back 26-10 seasons.
In May 1987, Wallace returned to Hawai‘i to become the program’s 17th head coach replacing Frank Arnold.
At Centenary, Wallace lettered in basketball for three years (1959-62) and was named team captain in his junior and senior seasons. He was selected the Most Valuable Player in the Gulf South Classic in 1962 and still ranks among Centenary’s all-time leaders in scoring and rebounding.
Wallace was born on Oct. 25, 1941, in Alton, Ill. He is a 1959 graduate of Jerseyville High School in Illinois.
During the offseason, Wallace enjoys golfing and spending time with his wife, Joan. They have two children, Rob and Kim. On Sept. 11, 1998, Kim and her husband, Chad, had the family’s first grandchild, Jackson Riley Haynes.