Barry Hinson’s contract to last through 2020

SIU coach Barry Hinson reacts during the Salukis’ 74-70 win over Texas Southern on Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016, at SIU Arena. (Jacob Wiegand | @jawiegandphoto)

By Bill Lukitsch

SIU men’s basketball coach Barry Hinson will continue to lead the Salukis for an additional two years, a spokesman for university athletics said Tuesday.

The coach signed a two-year contract extension in September that will last through the 2019-20 season, said Tom Weber, associate director of Saluki Athletics media services. The extension preserves the terms of his previous contract agreement.

Hinson receives a $350,000 salary plus bonus incentives, making him the highest-paid employee on the university’s Carbondale campus.

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In March, Hinson was named Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year for the first time in his career after going 22-10 last season. He is the first SIU coach to receive the award since Chris Lowery in the 2006-07 season.

Hinson has accrued a 67-72 record in his five years at Southern.

SIU coach Barry Hinson reacts to a play Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016, during the Salukis’ 85-64 win over the Missouri Southern Lions at the SIU Arena. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)

The terms of his contract awarded him a $5,000 incentive bonus for winning the Coach of the Year title and an additional $10,000 for winning more than 20 games last season.

Weber said an agreement in principle for the contract extension was made in the spring, allowing Hinson to tell recruits of an impending extension for the current season.

“The summer is a critical recruiting time and the ability to tell recruits that you have a long-term contract is certainly helpful in recruiting,” Weber said.

Asked why there was no public release of information about the contract extension, Weber said the university and department policy is not to publicly release information regarding employment decisions unless inquiries are made.

The first inquiry of Hinson’s contract was made Tuesday by Southern Illinoisan sports reporter Todd Hefferman, Weber said.

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Saluki coach Barry Hinson calls a play Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016, during SIU’s 85-64 win over the Missouri Southern Lions at the SIU Arena. (Ryan Michalesko | @photosbylesko)

The basketball coach’s job was called into question in March when five players announced they would transfer to different universities at the end of the semester. Some of those players said they wanted to play at higher levels in different settings.

“People that call for my job, they’re calling for a lot of peoples’ jobs,” Hinson said at the time. “I’m not a quick fix. I never have been and I never will be. The only heat I feel is the heat I put on myself.”

Hinson was named as SIU’s 13th head coach in 2012 after leaving a job on the athletics staff at the University of Kansas. He came to the university with nine seasons’ coaching experience at Missouri State. His last contract extension was awarded in 2016 for a one-year term.

Campus editor Bill Lukitsch can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @lukitsbill.

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