A milestone victory. Former players watch Hodgson girls basketball coach's 300th win
The impact of Chris Jones’ 20 years as girls basketball coach at Hodgson Vo-Tech could be seen in the bleachers across from the home team’s bench on Monday night.
More than a dozen former players had come to watch Hodgson’s game against MOT Charter, hoping to celebrate a special moment.
The Silver Eagles delivered, rolling past MOT Charter 60-22 for Jones’ 300th career coaching victory.
“I’ve always had his back. I’ve always been supporting him,” said 2019 Hodgson graduate Treasure Baskerville, now a senior majoring in kinesiology at Delaware State. “I’ve rooted for him ever since I graduated. It’s good to come back.”
Hodgson (2-1) scored the first 9 points and never looked back. After the game, there were plenty of speeches, balloons, photos and hugs to salute the man who got his first win with the Silver Eagles in 2004.
“We could be here all night if I thanked everybody,” Jones said. “… The girls that I’ve had today and yesterday made it all worth it. They’ve made me look good for 20 years.”
Hodgson has been a consistent winner under Jones, racking up 13 conference championships between Blue Hen Flight A and B. He considers the Silver Eagles’ biggest win to be a 39-38 upset of Middletown to reach the DIAA semifinals in 2008.
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“He helps us be better players. He helps us just get motivated to want to play,” said senior Thailys Torres, who scored 16 points in the milestone win. “… He really lifts your self-esteem.”
The Brooklyn native developed his coaching style from following the great New York Knicks teams of the 1970s.
“They showed me how to play the game, and play the team game,” Jones said. “That’s the kind of game I try to teach the girls.”
He can be stern, but there has been plenty of humor along the way.
“One time, we were in a serious meeting and coach had a Tic Tac in his mouth and it flew out,” Baskerville said. “Everybody started cracking up.”
Jones has no plans to retire soon, but Monday was a time to look back and remember about 30 former players who went on to play in college – plus dozens more who thrived in careers following their vo-tech education.
“I’ve kind of mellowed out a little bit as a coach,” he said. “But that’s because I’m a grandpa now.”
Contact Brad Myers at bmyers@delawareonline.com. Follow on X (aka Twitter): @BradMyersTNJ
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Hodgson girls basketball coach Chris Jones gets 300th career win
