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Los Angeles – Loyola Marymount University will honor the late basketball great Hank Gathers – who led the nation in scoring and rebounding during his junior year as an LMU Lion, propelling the team to new heights – by constructing a statue in his likeness, Athletic Director Craig Pintens announced.
 
LMU plans to unveil the statue in Spring 2020, in front of Gersten Pavilion. The timing coincides with the 30^thanniversary of the Lions' pivotal 1989-90 basketball season, in which the team overcame Gathers' tragic collapse and death during a conference playoff game to launch an inspired run deep into the NCAA tournament.
 
"We are thankful to Loyola Marymount University for resurrecting Hank and bringing him back to campus," said Derrick Gathers, brother of Hank. "It is very special to our family and we are honored that the statue will have a permanent home at LMU."
 
The statue will be created by the Fine Art Studio of Rotblatt-Amrany, the firm behind many other notable statues, including Michael Jordan at the United Center in Chicago, David Beckham at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, and several at Staples Center in Los Angeles including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
 
As a junior, Gathers led the nation in scoring and rebounding, with 32.7 points and 13.7 rebounds per game, becoming only the second player to lead the NCAA in both categories in the same season. He is the leading scorer in LMU school history, with 2,490 points; the career leader in scoring average at LMU, with 28.0 points per game; and his career 985 rebounds grabbed is second-most in program history. Gathers helped lead the Lions to two WCC Championships and two NCAA tournament appearances. 
 
"The story of Hank Gathers and the 1989-90 LMU basketball team is one the of the greatest in sports history," Pintens said. "Hank has an extraordinary player, a formidable opponent and a fierce competitor who elevated LMU basketball to unprecedented heights. We also celebrate who Hank was off the court – dedicated to his family, loyal to his teammates and committed to his education at LMU. We are pleased to partner with the Gathers family to honor Hank's enduring legacy with a statue, so that all who visit the bluff may be inspired by the indelible mark he left on LMU."
 
The project will be funded entirely with private donations. To learn more about the statue and Gathers' legacy, go to hank44.lmu.edu.

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