Colorado University Athletics
Former Basketball Coach Lee Passes Away At Age 96
April 01, 2013 | Men's Basketball
Former Colorado head men's basketball coach H.B. "Bebe" Lee, who guided the Buffaloes to the 1955 NCAA Final Four, passed away peacefully Sunday night at a hospice facility in Southport, N.C. He was 96.
Lee took over a Colorado program struggling to just get its feet wet in the Big Seven Conference and kick started a highly competitive run for Buffaloes basketball that spanned the better part of two decades. He spent six seasons at Colorado (1950-56) with a record of 63-74, but 51-38 over his final four campaigns which included two NCAA appearances (1954 & '55) and the team's first two Big Seven Conference titles.
"He was the ultimate gentleman, always a gentleman, on and off the court," said Burdie Haldorson, CU's All-American center on the 1955 squad. "He was very interested in all of us, on and off the court as well. He was a great man to play for. He got the team ready to play during the week and just directed things from the bench during the game, much like Mike Krzyzewski. That's why I like Duke so much, Mike coaches like Bebe did."Â
Lee stepped into an extremely difficult situation at Colorado, taking over a program that was just 14-22 in its first three years of the Big Seven Conference. His first three teams finished seventh twice and fourth once (in 1951-52), but he was beginning to set the stage for future success.
"He conducted coaching sitting down," said Jim Jochems, a three-year letterwinner that played for Lee in 1955-56. "He didn't walk along the court, he had a rolled up program like John Wooden had, and he really worked the refs, but did so with respect. He was poetry in motion; he was a step or two ahead of his peers, a wonderful strategist."
Lee led Colorado to a last-to-first place turn around in 1953-54, guiding the Buffaloes to a share of their first ever Big Seven basketball title. Colorado was picked to participate in its fourth NCAA Tournament and first in nearly a decade. The Buffaloes dropped both of their West Regional games in Stillwater, Okla.
In 1954-55, Colorado had its most successful season to date, finishing 19-6 and winning the Big Seven title outright at 11-1. The Buffaloes defeated Tulsa and Bradley in the West Regional in Manhattan, Kan., to advance to the 1955 Final Four in Kansas City. CU fell to eventual champion San Francisco in the semifinals and defeated Big Ten Conference champion Iowa in the consolation to finish No. 3 in the nation.
Shortly before the end of the 1955-56 season, Lee announced he would resign to take the athletic director position at Big Seven rival Kansas State. He finished out the season with the Buffaloes, leading them to a 11-10 record, 7-5 in the Big Seven, including a win over Phog Allen's Kansas Jayhawks in his final game as head coach.
 "He was a terrific recruiter," Jochems said. "I overheard my parents talking after he left our house.  My dad was in charge of 30 salesmen, and I heard him say, 'I wish I had one salesman as good as him' Just a very nice man and a wonderful coach. We hated to see him leave."Â
Lee was born Dec. 3, 1916 in Dallas, but grew up in California, graduating from Hollywood High School where he lettered in basketball and baseball. He went on to play basketball at Stanford where he helped the "Indians" as they were known at the time, win three-straight Pacific Coast Conference championships from 1936-38. President of the Stanford student body during his senior year, Lee received his degree in education in 1938. Lee stayed at Stanford for three years as an assistant before accepting the head job at Utah State in 1941.
After his Utah state team won its first game of the 1941 season, he was called into the Navy. Upon his return, he coached Utah State in 1946-47 before leaving the coaching field for three years during which he was engaged in private business in San Francisco and Salt Lake City.
He returned to coaching in 1949, leading the Colorado A&M (now Colorado State) program for one season before heading to Colorado for the 1950-51 campaign.
Lee spent 12 years as athletic director at Kansas State before starting his own company, Video Theaters Inc, in 1968. He was later the Vice President of Hughes Sports Network and served a short stint as a consultant for the New Mexico Athletic Department. Lee lived in Albuquerque, along with his second wife, Jean, for 26 years before moving to Houston. After Jean died in 2009, Lee moved near his family in North Carolina.
He is survived by two daughters, Vicki of Southport, N.C., and Barbara of Wilmington, N.C., two grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. He preceded in death by his wife Jean and one son, Gary, who passed away in 1987.
