Jim Schlekeway - Inducted 2023

With one of the most successful sports resumes in South Dakota, Jim Schlekeway’s accolades span many years as an outstanding player and long-time coach. He was a four-year starter, three-time first-team All-Stater, and High School All-American basketball player at Britton. He averaged over 20 points per game throughout high school with 1,900 career points and helped Britton win a State B consolation championship. In addition to basketball, he was a multi-sport star, earning All-State honors in football his senior year and fifth place in the shot put at the State A Track & Field Meet.

Schlekeway continued his athletic career at Northern State, earning 10 collegiate letters in basketball, football, and track & field. As a basketball standout, he scored 1,864 career points with a high of 49 points in a single game. He was the SDIC scoring leader, averaging 28 and 29 points per game in his junior and senior years.  In 2010 Schlekeway was named one of the 10 best basketball players in history at Northern State.

The love of sports became a lifetime career for Schlekeway, as he went on to teach and coach for 43 years, four at Sioux Falls O’Gorman, two at Bloomington, MN, seven at Todd County, and thirty at Mobridge. He coached three sports each year for all but four years of his career. When he retired, he was the fifth-winningest South Dakota basketball coach with 501 wins. Schlekeway was also one of the state’s all-time greatest amateur basketball players after college. He is a member of several Halls of Fame.