Bloomington South’s J.R. Holmes was one of two Indiana honorees given the John Wooden Legacy Coaching Award by the National High School Basketball Coaches Association.
Also honored was former Scottsburg and Southwestern (Hanover) girls’ coach Donna Cheatham. Both were nominated by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.
According to a press release from the IBCA, the award honors scholastic basketball coaches from around the country who are educators and have achieved excellence on the floor, in the classroom and in the community that further embody the characteristics and legacy of the late John Wooden. The criteria for the award are rooted in the ideals of education, longevity, character, service and excellence.
Holmes is the state’s all-time leader in boys’ basketball victories with a 911-372 record over 54 seasons, the last 42 at South, where his is 768-254. He became the first to reach the 900-victory plateau on Dec. 15, 2023.
That record includes 18 conference championships, 22 sectional, eight regional and two semistate titles and Class 4A state championships in 2009 and 2011. He’s coached 10 Indiana All-Stars and two Mr. Basketballs, Jordan Hulls (2009) and Anthony Leal (2020).
Holmes was also 30-14 mark in two seasons at Tunnelton (1970-72) and 113-104 in 10 seasons at Mitchell (1972-82). He has posted 17 seasons of 20 or more victories in a season, including seven consecutive seasons from 2014-15 through 2020-21. His teams have captured 10 Conference Indiana championships.
Holmes, 77, is a 1965 graduate of Needmore High School, where he earned 16 varsity letters in four sports, and of Indiana State (1969). He was inducted in the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame and the Monroe County Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.
Among other national awards, he was named USA Today’s National Coach of the Year in 2009 and was recognized with the national Wilson/Outstanding High School Coach Award from the National Association of Basketball Coaches in 2021.
1-2-3, MVC honors for South’s Hickman
South grad Connor Hickman, now a junior at Bradley, picked up three Missouri Valley Conference honors.
He was named All-Conference Third Team, to the MVC’s Most Improved Team and also earned Academic All-Conference honors.
Hickman was not named to a team in the Preseason Poll but finished 15th in points per game (14.1), 10th in field goal percentage (.455), seventh in 3-point field goals per game (2.3), eighth in assist/turnover ratio (1.8), 11th in steals (1.3) and 16th in minutes played (32.5). He was second on the team in points in conference play with 15 per game and a .410 three-point percentage.
Hickman holds a 3.64 GPA as a Management/Leadership major and was one of six players named Academic All-MVC.
North’s Lillis All-Conference again
Bloomington North grad and Grinnell senior Erin Lillis made her impact felt during a stellar career with the Grinnell College women’s basketball team. Lillis, the 2022 Midwest League Newcomer of the Year, has been named to the All-Midwest League’s first team for the second year in a row. She was a second-teamer as a sophomore. Lillis ranked among the league leaders in several categories and was tops in MWC competition in both points (16.8 per game) and free throw percentage (81.5 percent). She was second in assists (4.0 per game) and fourth in both steals per game (2.4) and assist/turnover ratio (1.1).
Lillis piled up 1,172 points, No. 7 all time in school history. Her 17.5 career average is No. 3 and her 78.2% on free throws is No. 6.
Hirt named top region coach
Bloomington North grad Maureen Hirt has Denison’s women’s basketball team headed in the right direction and was named the D3hoops.com Region 7 Coach of the Year.
Hirt led the Big Red to a 20-7 overall record and a mark of 10-4 in the North Coast Athletic Conference, which was good for fourth. That’s Denison’s most wins in a season since 2015-16 and was its best finish in the league standings since 2019-20. It also made its first appearance in the NCAC semifinals in four years.
More All-Academic honors
Edgewood’s Coleman Sater, a junior at Hanover, and South’s Brooke Grinstead, a junior at Franklin, were named Academic All-Conference by the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference.
South’s Kristen Ridner, a junior at IU Kokomo, earned the same honor for women’s basketball in the River States Conference.
Contact Jim Gordillo at jgordillo@heraldt.com and follow on X @JimGordillo.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bloomington South’s Holmes earns national basketball coaching award
