Mel Hankinson

Mel Hankinson (born January 10, 1943) is an American former basketball coach and author. He served as the head men's basketball coach at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania (1970–1973), Roanoke College (1973–1977), Delta State University (1977–1983), Samford University (1985–1987), The Master's College—now known as The Master's University (1988–1993), and Liberty University (1998–2002). Hankinson has written a number of books and starred in videos on techniques for coaching basketball.

Mel Hankinson

Biographical details
Born	(1943-01-10) January 10, 1943 (age 81)
Playing career
1961–1965	Indiana State (PA)
Position(s)	Guard
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1970–1973	Slippery Rock
1973–1977	Roanoke
1977–1983	Delta State
1985–1987	Samford
1988–1993	The Master's
1993–1998	West Virginia (assistant)
1998–2002	Liberty
Head coaching record
Overall	361–353
Tournaments	3–2 (NAIA) 1–1 (NCAA Division II)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Mason–Dixon (1974) PSAC Western Division (1972)

Hankinson spent over three decades coaching at the collegiate level. He came to his highest profile position as head coach on April 8, 1998 at Liberty University after three years as the top assistant at West Virginia University.^[1]

Hankinson began his collegiate career as a head coach at Slippery Rock University, where he spent three seasons highlighted by capturing the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division title in 1972. For that season he was named NAIA District 18 Coach of the Year.^[2] Then the following year, Hankinson led the Rockets to the NAIA National Semifinals where the school recorded a fourth-place finish. He holds a master's degree from Indiana State University^[3]

Playing career

Hankinson was a star player at Indiana State College—now known as Indiana University of Pennsylvania. The 59 points he scored on February 26, 1965 against Parsons still stands as a school and Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference record today.^[4]

Books by Hankinson

• Progressions for Teaching Basketball—Mel Hankinson, Cleveland, MS (1979) ISBN 978-0-9606492-0-4
• Basketball Basketball Basketball Co-Authored by Margaret Wade—Delta State University, Cleveland, MS (1980) ISBN 978-9-99705-405-0
• Bench Coaching - Offensive Strategy—Championship Books, Ames, IA (1983) 60 pgs. ISBN 978-0-89279-062-3
• How to Teach Match-Up Zone—Educational Products Publishing Co. (1986) 68 pgs.
• Motivation—S.N. (1987) 24 pgs.
• Bench Coaching - Defensive Strategy—Championship Books, Ames, IA (1993) 131 pgs. ISBN 1-56404-053-4
• The Numbered Motion Offense—Championship Books, Ames, IA (1993) 110 pgs. ISBN 978-1-56404-052-7

Head coaching record

Statistics overview

Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
Slippery Rock (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) (1970–1973)
1970–71	Slippery Rock	10–15	2–6	5th (Western)
1971–72	Slippery Rock	17–7	6–2	T–1st (Western)
1972–73	Slippery Rock	23–7	6–4	T–2nd (Western)	NAIA Division Fourth Place
Slippery Rock:		50–29	14–12
Roanoke Maroons (Mason–Dixon Conference) (1973–1977)
1973–74	Roanoke	24–6	10–0	1st	NCAA Division II Regional Third Place
1974–75	Roanoke	14–13
1975–76	Roanoke	6–20
1976–77	Roanoke	4–23
Roanoke:		48–62
Delta State Statesmen (Gulf South Conference) (1977–1983)
1977–78	Delta State	12–13	7–8	5th
1978–79	Delta State	13–13	7–8	T–5th
1979–80	Delta State	19–7	7–5	T–3rd
1980–81	Delta State	15–13	4–8	T–5th
1981–82	Delta State	18–9	8–4	3rd
1982–83	Delta State	13–15	3–11	8th
Delta State:		90–70	36–44
Samford Bulldogs (Trans America Athletic Conference) (1984–1987)
1984–85	Samford	18–12	7–7	T–5th
1985–86	Samford	16–13	8–6	2nd
1986–87	Samford	4–22	1–17	10th
Samford:		38–47	16–30
The Master's Mustangs () (1988–1993)
1988–89	The Master's	20–13
1989–90	The Master's	20–13
1990–91	The Master's	20–14
1991–92	The Master's	20–14
1992–93	The Master's	19–14
Masters:		99–68
Liberty Flames (Big South Conference) (1998–2002)
1998–99	Liberty	4–23	0–10	6th
1999–00	Liberty	14–14	4–10	7th
2000–01	Liberty	13–15	5–9	6th
2001–02	Liberty	5–25	2–12	8th
Liberty:		36–77	11–41
Total:		361–353
National champion         Postseason invitational champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion       Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion       Conference tournament champion

References

1. "2006-2007 Liberty Mens Basketball Media Guide, p. 109" (PDF). Retrieved March 9, 2008.^{[permanent dead link]}
2. "The Rocket, March 14, 1972, p. 5". Retrieved March 10, 2008.^{[permanent dead link]}
3. . Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2016-08-23.
4. . Archived from the original on 2008-05-14. Retrieved March 9, 2008.