Coaches' Corner

In Remembrance

The National Association of Basketball Coaches is not always made immediately aware of the passing of former coaches. Please contact us if we are omitting a recent death.

Dick Fick, 50, passed away ?, 2003. Fick, one-time Morehead State men's basketball coach, had been a part-time assistant at the University of Saint Francis for the past two seasons. Fick spent six years as head coach at Morehead State and also fulfilled assistant coaching stints at Valparaiso for seven seasons and Creighton for six seasons.

Don Phillips, 85, passed away March 10, 2003. Phillips, a former coach and athletics administrator at Shepherd, served as head men's basketball coach from 1949-51.

John "Whack" Hyder, 90, passed away Feb. 9, 2003. Hyder, the second winningest basketball coach at Georgia Tech, compiled a 292-271 (.519) record in 22 seasons from 1952-73. Hyder led Georgia Tech to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1960 and also took the Yellow Jackets to the NIT twice. He was twice chosen as SEC coach of the year. Hyder's most famous victory was Jan. 8, 1955, when Tech snapped Kentucky's 129-game home winning streak with a 59-58 win. In 1946, he was hired by Tech as assistant basketball coach under Roy McArthur.

Basil Hayden, 103, passed away Jan. 9, 2003. Hayden, a former basketball player and coach at Kentucky, posted a 3-13 (.187) mark in 1927 - his only season as head coach. He competed on the team from 1920 to 1922. Hayden's jersey is among the 41 that hang in Rupp Arena to honor outstanding former players, coaches, announcers and managers.

Richard Regan, 72, passed away Dec. 24, 2002. Regan, a former basketball player, coach and administrator at Seton Hall, compiled a 10-year record of 112-131 (.460) from 1961-70. As a player, he helped Seton Hall capture the NIT championship in 1953. Following his coaching career, Regan was named athletics director in 1971.

Abe Lemons, 79, passed away Sept. 2, 2002. Lemons compiled an overall record of 597-344 (.634) in 34 seasons at Oklahoma City (1956-73, 1984-90), Texas-Pan American (1974-76) and Texas(1977-82. He was named NABC Coach of the Year in 1978 after guiding Texas to the NIT crown. His teams made eight NCAA Tournament appearances including consecutive Regional showings by Oklahoma City in 1956 and 1957. In 1987, Lemons coached Oklahoma City to a 34-1 record. He served as NABC President during the 1976-77 season.

Hubert Clemmons, 77, passed away July 5, 2002. Clemmons compiled a 21-year record of 296-217 (.577) at Arkansas-Pine Bluff (formally AM&N College) from 1957 to 1977. Clemmons was named NAIA District 30 Coach of the Year in 1967 after leading the Golden Lions to a 24-7 record and a SWAC championship. As athletic director at UAPB, he is credited with bringing the athletic program back to good standing from NAIA death penalty sanctions.

Bobby Roberts, 74, passed away June 22, 2002. Roberts compiled an 8-year record of 82-116 (.414) at Clemson, from 1963 to 1970. Roberts came to Clemson in 1959 as an assistant on Press Maravich's varsity staff and the coach of the freshman squad. During those four seasons, he posted a 50-20 (.714) mark with the freshman team. The highlight of Roberts' tenure at Clemson was the 1966-67 season when he led the Tigers to a 17-8 record, the most wins by a Clemson team over the first 63 years of the program. That record included a streak of seven consecutive ACC wins, which still stands today.

Bob Meccage, 45, passed away May 17, 2002. Meccage was an assistant coach at Trinity (Tex.) for the past three years.

Lee Hutto, 85, passed away March 21, 2002. Hutto was an assistant at Hendrix from 1946-56. After a stint as head coach at Henderson State, Hutto became head men's basketball coach at Hendrix in 1963.

Don Odle, 81, passed away March 7, 2002. Odle, a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, coached at Taylor (Ind.) for 32 seasons beginning in 1947 winning 468 games. In 1960, he was tapped to coach Taiwan's national team during the Olympics. A pioneer in Christian sports evangelism, Odle founded Venture for Victory in the 1952. The program took all-star college basketball players on tours of countries, including Japan, Korea and Vietnam.

Edward Martin, 75, passed away Feb. 25, 2002. Martin served as head coach at Tennessee State from 1968 to 1985 and led the program to a 301-143 mark. He also was head coach at South Carolina State where he went 501-253 in 27 seasons. He completed his coaching career with four seasons as an assistant on C.M. Newton's staff at Vanderbilt. Martin is a member of the Halls of Fame at North Carolina A&T, South Carolina State and Tennessee State, as well as the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.

Gene Sullivan, 70, passed away Feb. 21, 2002. He compiled a 10-year record of 149-114 (.567) at Loyola (Ill.) from 1980 to 1989. Sullivan is the third-winningest coach in Loyola history behind only George Ireland and Leonard Sachs. He was twice named Midwestern Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year (1983 and 1985). In 1984-85, Sullivan guided the Ramblers to their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1963, advancing all the way to the Sweet Sixteen.

Dennis Getzlaff, 52, passed away Feb. 13, 2002. From 1988-2000, Getzlaff served as head coach at Concordia (Minn.) posting 142 victories. Five times in 12 years his teams advanced to the NAIA playoffs. Prior to his college career, Getzlaff was a successful high school coach in Kansas, where two of his teams won state basketball championships. He is a member of the Kansas Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame.

Ed Jucker, 85, passed away Feb. 2, 2002. Jucker compiled a 266-109 (.709) career record in 17 seasons at King’s Point, (26-4 .867 from 1946-47), Rensselaer, (1949-53), Cincinnati (113-28 .801 from 1961-65) and Rollins (81-42 .659 from 1973-77). He led Cincinnati to consecutive NCAA national championships in 1961 and 1962. His 1963 squad lost the NCAA title game in overtime but came away with an 11-1 (.917) three-year postseason run giving Jucker the best winning percentage in NCAA tournament history. He was named NABC Coach of the Year in 1963. Jucker later coached the NBA's Cincinnati Royals for two seasons then finished his career at Rollins with two NCAA Division II Tournament appearances.

Reed Green, 90, passed away Feb. 1, 2002. Green led Southern Mississippi for six seasons starting in 1936 going 24-37. Green is in the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and the Southern Mississippi Hall of Fame. Southern Mississippi's basketball stadium - Green Coliseum - bears his name.

Fred Taylor, 77, passed away Jan. 6, 2002. From 1959 through 1976, Taylor compiled a 297-158 (.653) career mark at Ohio State including seven Big Ten titles during his 18 year coaching tenure. In 1960, he guided the Buckeyes to the NCAA crown which was the first of three successive national title game appearances. Taylor directed Ohio State to a fourth Final Four in 1968. In five NCAA Tournaments his teams posted a 14-4 (.778) record. He was named NABC Coach of the Year in 1961 and 1962. Taylor, who served as NABC President during the 1972-73 season, is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Willie Little passed away Jan. 6, 2002. He compiled a 5-year record of 66-52 (.559) at Illinois-Chicago from 1983-87. Little was coaching Kennedy-King College in a junior-college tournament in Missouri at the time of his death. Prior to his head coaching stint, Little served as an assistant coach at UIC under Tom Meyer. During his tenure, Little was named the Mid-Continent Conference coach of the year in 1984 as he led UIC to the conference championship and a school-record, 22 victories.

Al LoBalbo, 82, passed away Jan. 5, 2002. LoBalbo compiled a 128-142 (.474) record at Fairleigh Dickinson from 1969 to 1980. Prior to arriving at FDU, he had a brief stint as an assistant coach with the NBA's Buffalo Braves and also served as an assistant coach at Army from 1967 to 1969. After leaving Fairleigh Dickinson, LoBalbo joined Lou Carnesecca's staff at St. John's and stayed there until retiring in 1996.

Larry Costello, 70, passed away Dec. 11, 2001. Costello, who guided the Milwaukee Bucks to the NBA Championship in 1971, was a six-time NBA All-Star during 12 seasons as a player with the Philadelphia Warriors, Syracuse Nationals and Philadelphia 76ers, retired in 1968. Later that year, he was named head coach of the expansion Bucks, a position he held for nine seasons. During his tenure in Milwaukee, Costello accrued a record of 410-264 in the regular season, as well as an impressive 37-23 record - and two NBA Finals appearances - in the postseason. His all-time coaching record of 430-300, which includes a one-year tenure (1978-79) with the Chicago Bulls, gives him a .589 winning percentage, a mark exceeded by only 11 coaches in NBA history. In 1980, Costello went to Utica College, which was making the transition from NCAA Division III to Division I basketball. He had only one winning season there, and retired in 1987. Costello was 77-106 at Utica.

Bob Burkholder, 75, passed away Dec. 10, 2001. Burkholder was a former basketball player and assistant coach at Ohio State. He earned three letters from 1948 to 1950 and served as an assistant with the program from 1965 to 1976 in charge of scouting and recruiting. He also coached basketball at Muskingum from 1955 to 1965.

Dave Dutton, 45, passed away Oct. 29, 2001. Dutton had guided Shenandoah from 1988 to 2000.

Verl "Jiggs" Westergard, 79, passed away Oct. 4, 2001. Westergard coached Texas Lutheran basketball from 1959 to 1987.

Thomas Folliard, 61, passed away Sept. 29, 2001. Folliard guided programs at Florida Tech, Bryant and Stonehill. From 1978 through 1984 he compiled a 102-68 record at Stonehill winning three conference titles and leading three teams to the NCAA Tournament. Folliard closed out his coaching career at Florida Tech where he guided his team to a school-best 25-2 mark and Sweet 16 appearance in 1990.

George Ireland, 88, passed away Sept. 14, 2001. In 24 seasons at Loyola (Ill.), Ireland led the school to a 318-255 (.555) record from 1952-1975. In 1963, he directed Loyola to the NCAA national championship with a 29-2 mark. His teams won seven NCAA Tournament games in four postseason appearances.

David Jacobs, 58, passed away July 7, 2001. Jacobs won over 300 games at Whittier from 1971-95. He was named NABC Coach of the Year in the West Region four times while winning seven SCIAC titles during his career. Jacobs served as chairman of the Division III Men's Basketball Committee and the Nominating Committee. In 2002, he was honored posthumously with the NABC Outstanding Service Award. The basketball court at Whittier is named after Jacobs.

David Wells, 50, passed away July 2, 2001. Wells was head men's basketball coach at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps for 25 years, Wells' record was 324-292, which included 15 winning seasons and six SCIAC titles. In 1998, Wells was honored by Division III coaches with the the NABC Outstanding Service Award.

John Stallworth, 70, died May 18, 2001. Stallworth served as an assistant coach at New Jersey City from 1982 to 2000.

John Lotz, 64, passed away May 5, 2001. Lotz compiled a 7-year record of 83-89 (.487) at Florida from 1974 through 1980. He also served eight years as an assistant on Dean Smith's staff at North Carolina.

Ralph Miller, 82, passed away May 15, 2001. Miller was a Hall of Fame men's college basketball coach in 38 seasons at Oregon State (342-198 .633 in 19 seasons from 1971-89), Iowa (95-51 .651 in 6 seasons from 1965-70) and Wichita State (220-133 .623 in 13 seasons from 1952-64). His 657 career victories place him 17th on the Div. I all-time list. Miller won four Pac-10 titles at OSU and made eight NCAA tournament appearances in 19 seasons from 1971-89. His 1981 Beavers' team was ranked No. 1 for nine weeks. The court at OSU is named after him. Miller won two Big Ten titles at Iowa and one Missouri Valley Conference title at Wichita State. He was named NABC Coach of the Year in 1981. Miller was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1988.

James Boyce, 64, passed away April 28, 2001. Boyce compiled a 7-year record of 84-96 (.467) at Eastern Michigan from 1980 to 1986. He also worked as an assistant at Michigan and Detroit.

Al McGuire, 72, passed away Jan. 26, 2001. McGuire compiled a 405-143 (.739) overall record in 20 seasons. He coached at Marquette from 1965-77, leading the teams to 11 consecutive postseason bids and amassing a 296-79 (.789) record. McGuire guided Belmont Abbey from 1958-64, compiling a 109-64 (.630) mark. He coached Marquette to 1970 NIT title. McGuire concluded his career by directing Marquette to the 1977 NCAA crown. McGuire was named Coach of the Year by AP, UPI and the USBWA in 1971 and was named NABC Coach of the Year in 1974. He was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992.

Joe Donovan, 78, passed away Jan. 7, 2001. Donovan was a former head coach at New Paltz State.

Howard MacAdam, 76, passed away Dec. 24, 2000. MacAdam coached at Buffalo State from 1961 until 1985.

Jack Horenberger, 87, passed away Dec. 1, 2000. Horenberger compiled a 21-year record of 264-212 (.555) at Illinois Wesleyan from 1945 to 1965.

John Kissel, 58, passed away Oct. 26, 2000. Kissel guided the Hilbert basketball program from 1971 to 1991.

Bill Sudeck, 74, passed away Aug. 23, 2000. Sudeck coached 29 years at Case Western Reserve and eight years at Case Institute of Technology. In 1998, Sudeck was honored with the NABC Outstanding Service Award.

Steve Belko, 84, passed away May 12, 2000. Belko was head basketball coach at Idaho State (then Idaho State College) from 1951 to 1956. He also guided the Oregon program from 1956 to 1971. Belko served as Big Sky Conference commissioner from 1977 to 1981.

Robert "Rah Rah" Scott, 42, passed away May 9, 2000. Scott, a former All-Southeastern Conference player at Alabama had been an assistant on coach Mark Gottried’s Crimson Tide staff since 1998. He formerly was an assistant at Alabama-Birmingham for three seasons after directing West End High School to a state championship.

Bill Musselman, 59, passed away May 5, 2000. Musselman served as head coach at South Alabama, Minnesota and Ashland compiling a record of 233-84 as a college coach. He had been a head coach in four pro leagues -- the NBA, Continental Basketball Association, American Basketball Association and Western Basketball Association. His career record in the pros is 603-426, and he won four consecutive CBA championships.

Jack Gardner, 90, passed away April 9, 2000. Gardner compiled a 486-235 (674) record in 28 seasons overall. At Utah from 1954-71, he went 339-154 (.688) and won seven conference titles. Gardner had two coaching stints Kansas State from 1940-42 and 1947-53, winning three Big Seven titles. He went 147-81 (.645) there, losing to Kentucky in the 1951 NCAA championship game. Gardner was the only coach to take two schools to the NCAA Final Four two different times. Before he retired in 1971, he ranked third among active coaches for career victories. Utah reached the national semifinals twice under Gardner, losing in 1961 to Cincinnati and in 1966 to Texas Western. He was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1984.

Dick Harp, 81, passed away March 18, 2000. at the age of 81. Harp was a former player, assistant coach and head coach at Kansas. He took over for the legendary Phog Allen in 1956 and compiled a 121-82 career record over eight seasons winning two conference titles and making two NCAA tournament appearances. Harp was one of a handful of men to appear as a player and a head coach in an NCAA championship game and the only one to do it with the same team.

Joe Mullaney, 75, passed away March 8, 2000. Mullaney coached Providence from 1955-1969 and again from 1981-1985, ending with a 319-164 record. He guided the Friars to nine consecutive 20-win seasons. Mullaney captured NIT championships in 1961 and 1963 and guided teams to three NCAA tournament appearances. Mullaney, who also coached at the professional level with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Bernard "Peck" Hickman, 88, passed away Feb. 19, 2000. Hickman compiled a 443-183 (.708) career record in 23 seasons at Louisville from 1945-67. He coached the Cardinals to the NIT title in 1956 with a 26-3 mark. Five times Hickman guided Louisville to the NCAA Tournament including a Final Four appearance in 1959. He later hired Hall of Fame coach Denny Crum.

Ernie Calverley, who starred as a basketball player for the University of Rhode Island and later coached the Rams to the NCAA tournament, died Monday after a brief illness. He was 79. Calverley was best known as the player who hit "the shot heard round the world," a buzzer-beating heave from beyond midcourt at Madison Square Garden that tied Rhode Island's first-round game against Bowling Green in the 1946 NIT. Rhode Island went on to win the game in overtime, eventually losing to Kentucky in the championship game. Calverley led the nation in scoring in 1943-44, averaging 26.7 points as Rhode Island led the country at 78.8 points per game. He was the MVP of the 1946 NIT and was selected to the NIT's 50-year team. He compiled a 139-114 record as coach of the Rams from 1958-68, taking them to the NCAA tournament in 1961 and 1966. He retired as an associate athletic director at the school in 1985. Calverley was inducted into the University of Rhode Island, Rhode Island and New England sports halls of fame.