• 1996 GPAC Coach of the Year
• 1997 GPAC Coach of the Year
• 1998 GPAC Coach of the Year
The ninth head coach in program history, James Hillis guided the University of Regina Cougars for a total of 19 seasons during a career which spanned from 1994 to 2013.
Hillis set program records for coaching wins and longevity, registering 53 GPAC victories and 122 Canada West wins for a total of 175 regular season wins. His Cougar squads also won a total of 28 postseason contests and 11 best-of-three playoff series under Hillis, including Great Plains Division championships and Canada West Final Four appearances in 2003, 2005, and 2006.
Hillis coached three All-Canadians at the U of R, including Kevin Gilroy who earned first-team honours in both 1997 and 1998. Dale Holmes was a second-team All-Canadian in 1999 while Brenan Schwartz also earned that award in 2003. Holmes was also the GPAC Player of the Year in 1999, while the Cougars piled up a total of 23 conference all-star selections during the Hillis era.
Hillis also coached Brandon University for one season, guiding the Bobcats to a 14-4 GPAC record and an appearance in the CIAU Championship to earn his first of four GPAC Coach of the Year awards. His other coaching accomplishments included serving as an assistant coach under Jay Triano with the Canadian National Team in 1999 and also winning a bronze medal with Team Saskatchewan at the 2005 Canada Summer Games in Regina.
As a player, Hillis was a high-scoring guard for the Cougars during the mid-1980s. He played for five seasons, scoring a total of 886 points and averaging 11.1 points per game over his career. His best season came in 1986-87, when he scored 295 points and averaged 18.4 points per game. Hillis, who played all five seasons under head coach Ken Murray, was a two-time GPAC all-star.
