Bob Houbregs
(1932-2014)
Hall of Fame Induction: 1987
Card Shown:
2006-07 Upper Deck
Chronology Signature Decades
Position: C/PF
Height: 6’7″
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Bob Houbregs was a Canadian-born basketball player who excelled at the University of Washington from 1949-1953. While there, Bob was a three-time all-Pacific Coast Conference selection and he led the Huskies into the NCAA tournament in two of his three college seasons. Washington reached the Final Four in 1953 and Houbregs was the tournament’s leading scorer. One of the best college basketball players in the early 1950s, Bob was known for his right-handed hook shot and helping to bring attention to West Coast basketball. He played for five seasons in the NBA and later became the general manager of the Seattle SuperSonics.
Awards and Honors
- In 1952-1-52 Houbregs was named NCAA AP All-America Second Team and in 1952-53 he was honored with NCAA AP All-America First Team recognition.
- In 1952-53 Bob was named the Helms Foundation Player of the Year, joining a long and prestigious list of the college basketball players of the year that the Helms Foundation recognized between 1904 and 1979.
- Houbregs was named to the 1953 NCAA All-Tournament Team as he led the Huskies to the Final Four, where they lost to Kansas 79-53. Washington then rebounded to win the third-place game behind 42 points by Houbregs, who was playing his last college game. During the tournament, Bob averaged an incredible 34.8 points per game to lead all scorers that year.
- From 1950-51 through 1952-53, Bob led Washington to three Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) North titles. During those three seasons Houbregs led Washington to a 77-15 overall record. He only played three seasons at UW because at the time freshman were not allowed to compete in NCAA college basketball.
- Houbregs number 25 jersey was the first jersey ever retired by the University of Washington. Since then basketball players Brandon Roy and Isaiah Thomas have also had their numbers retired at UW.
Points of Interest
- Bob was chosen by the Milwaukee Hawks with the second pick in the first round of the 1953 NBA Draft.
- Houbregs played in a total of 281 NBA games over a five-year career. He suited up for the Milwaukee Hawks, Baltimore Bullets, Boston Celtics, the Fort Wayne Pistons, and the Detroit Pistons.
- Bob finished his NBA career with averages of 9.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game.
- Sixty-one years after his college basketball career ended, in 2014, Houbregs still held the record for the top three highest-scoring games in University of Washington history. His top-scoring game was on January 10, 1953 when he scored 49 points.
- In addition to his enshrinement at the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Bob has also been inducted into the Husky Hall of Fame in 1979 and the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.
Statistics
Bob Houbregs Statistics
provided by Basketball-Reference.com