Tom Andreasen's son Bobby and his wife Rebecca, along with one of their daughters, greet Carson High players on the newly dedicated court Friday night.
Yes, Tom Andreasen coached the Carson High boys basketball team to the 1975 state title, one of just many of his accomplishments in his athletic, coaching and teacher career.
But that’s not why the court at Carson High’s Morse Burley Gym has been named in his honor. Retired Carson High administrator Carl Henry described best why Andreasen was honored during the official ceremony dedicating Tom Andreasen Court on Friday night between the varsity girls and boys basketball games.
“He was truly the nicest and funniest man we’ve ever known,” said Henry about Andreasen, who died in December, 2015 of cancer at 71.
Andreasen’s family, widow Sharon and children Bob, Shari and Amber were all presented plaques by one of Andreasen’s former players, Mike Longero, to commemorate the occasion. All three of Andreasen’s children played basketball at CHS and Bob and Shari also followed in their father’s footsteps, becoming coaches themselves.
Longero, who played on Andreasen’s 1975 state title team and went on to play for the University of Nevada, was one of several players on hand along with numerous friends, family and colleagues.
Henry had the pleasure of serving as the public address announcer for CHS basketball games for 20 years during Andreasen’s time at the school. He talked about Andreasen’s numerous accomplishments and also his dedication to special needs students.
Bob, a 1992 CHS graduate, spent 15 years as an assistant and associate head coach at Chico State, Sierra College and San Diego City College.
“Walking along the hallways of this building sure brings back a lot of memories,” Bob said. “This is where my dad gave me my foundation and made me a man.
“I don’t think anybody spent more time in this gym shooting jump shots than me. I spent a lot of time in these hallways and this gym when I was in high school.”
Bob called his father his mentor and best friend. “It would have meant a lot to him because of what this school meant to him,” said Bob about the court being named in his father’s honor.
It was good to see “a lot of friends I haven’t seen in a long time,” Bob also said.
Andreasen graduated from Storey County High School in 1962. He went on to play basketball at Nevada.
At Virginia City, Andreasen played all four years on the varsity boys basketball team, helping the Muckers win the state title in 1959 and 1962. As a coach at Virginia City, he led the Muckers to the 1972 state title.
The next year he went to Carson and led the Senators to three straight state tournament appearances from 1973 to 1975, culminating with the 1975 state title. Andreasen was inducted into the NIAA Hall of Fame in 2002.
Andreasen was also the co-director of the state basketball tournament through the 1980s and early 1990s and went onto become the athletic director at CHS.
Congressman Mark Amodei, who played for Andreasen on the 1975 state title team, played an integral role in getting the court to be named in Andreasen’s honor.
