EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (Blugolds.com) - The formal naming of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire's Zorn Arena basketball court in honor of former Blugold men's head basketball coach Ken Anderson will take place Feb. 4 during halftime of the university's men's 5 p.m. basketball game against UW-River Falls.
Anderson — himself a 1955 UW-Eau Claire graduate and former Blugold athlete — and numerous men's basketball alumni will attend the game during which Chancellor Brian Levin-Stankevich will formally name the court for the former coach, who led the UW-Eau Claire men's basketball program from 1968-95.
During Anderson's tenure as head coach, the Blugolds garnered 14 conference titles and competed in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics tournament 15 times. Anderson compiled a career win-loss record of 631-152, a winning percentage of .806. Anderson's 631 wins ranks first in conference history, while his winning percentage is third behind only former UW-Platteville coach (and current UW-Madison coach) Bo Ryan and current UW-Stevens Point coach Bob Semling (also a UW-Eau Claire alumnus). The next closest number of wins is 440.
A group of men's basketball alumni worked for more than two years to make the court naming a reality. Following a men's basketball alumni reunion in 2009, Todd Oehrlein and Tim Valentyn, former Blugold basketball players, shepherded the idea to honor Anderson through the university's procedure for naming facilities, and a core group of alumni and friends spearheaded a fundraising campaign. Private gifts of more than $100,000 have been pledged thus far. The funds will be used to support improvements to Zorn Arena; complete the remodeling of the Gold Room, a multipurpose room in the facility; and serve other needs and projects for men's basketball. (See related news release for more details.)
The court-naming event is part of Men's Basketball Alumni Day at UW-Eau Claire, which also includes an alumni social at 7 p.m. following the men's game against UW-River Falls. Reservations are required for the social and can be made by calling 715-836-3266 or sending email to alumni@uwec.edu.
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