 Anderson was considered one of the most innovative coaches of his era and served a combined 24 seasons as head men's basketball coach at Drake University (1946–1948), Bradley University (1948–1954), Michigan State University (1954–1965) and Hiram Scott College (1965–1970).Anderson twice led his Bradley teams to the NCAA Finals (1950 and 1954).His 1950 team also finished as the NIT runner-up.