Al Barbre (born October 13, 1942) is an American former
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
coach. He has coached men's and women's basketball at the high school and college level. He served as an assistant coach for the
Stephen F. Austin
Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas,Hatch (1999), p. 43. he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization ...
and
Lamar men's basketball teams. At Stephen F. Austin, the Lumberjacks won 29 straight games in the 1969–70 season.
[ He took over as the ]Lamar Lady Cardinals basketball
The Lamar Lady Cardinals basketball team represents Lamar University in NCAA Division I women's basketball competition. The team plays in the 10,080 seat Montagne Center. After one season in the Western Athletic Conference, Lamar rejoined the S ...
head coach prior to the 1987–88 season. As head coach for the Lady Cardinals, his team's results improved each year. His 1990–91 team qualified for the 1991 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament
The 1991 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 13 and ended on March 31. The tournament featured 48 teams. The Final Four event was hosted by the University of New Orleans, and held at the Lakefront Arena in New Orleans. The ...
and defeated Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, LSU
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
, and Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
before losing to the eventual tournament champion finalist, Virginia Cavaliers
The Virginia Cavaliers, also known as ''Wahoos'' or ''Hoos'', are the athletic teams representing the University of Virginia, located in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers compete at the NCAA Division I level ( FBS for football), in the Atlantic C ...
, in the Elite Eight round. In addition to his coaching skills, he was a good recruiter.[
At 29–4, his 1990–91 team holds the Lamar Lady Cardinals record for most wins in a season. The 1991 NCAA regional tournament game held on the Lady Cardinals' home court, the Montagne Center, against the LSU Lady Tigers set a Montagne Center attendance record for a women's basketball game with 9,143 fans in attendance.
]
Honors and probation
As head coach for the Lady Cardinals, Al Barbe was named American South Conference Co-coach of the Year in 1988 and 1989. In 1991, he was named American South Conference Coach of the Year and Converse District VI Coach of the Year.
Following an NCAA investigation, all wins for the 1990–91 season were vacated due to violations by the program. In addition, the program was placed on two years' probation and the number of allowed scholarships was reduced during the probation period. Al Barbre resigned as head coach.
Head coaching record
* 1990–91 wins vacated by the NCAA
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barbre, Al
1942 births
Living people
High school basketball coaches in Texas
Lamar Cardinals basketball coaches
Lamar Lady Cardinals basketball coaches
Lon Morris College alumni
Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks basketball coaches
Stephen F. Austin State University alumni
American women's basketball coaches