Current:Home > NewsLongtime Maryland coach, Basketball Hall of Famer Lefty Driesell dies at 92-InfoLens
Longtime Maryland coach, Basketball Hall of Famer Lefty Driesell dies at 92
View Date:2024-12-23 16:04:06
Basketball Hall of Fame coach Lefty Driesell died Saturday at the age of 92, his family told the Baltimore Sun.
Driesell won 786 games with Davidson (1960-1969), Maryland (1969-1986), James Madison (1988-1997) and Georgia State (1997-2003) and was inducted into basketball's Hall of Fame in 2018.
Driesell spent 17 seasons at Maryland, leading the Terrapins to eight NCAA tournament appearances and the 1972 NIT championship. His 348 wins in College Park are second in program history behind Gary Williams, who led Maryland to a 2002 national championship.
Maryland hadn't reached the NCAA tournament for 11 years before Driesell was hired, and he famously said his new program was the "UCLA of the East."
Driesell is often credited with inventing the "Midnight Madness" tradition in college basketball, with fans turning up to see the team's first practice of the season.
"Lefty Driesell was a transcendent figure in college basketball and the man who put Maryland basketball on the map," Maryland athletic director Damon Evans said in a statement on Saturday. "A Hall of Famer, Lefty was an innovator, a man who was ahead of his time from his coaching on the court to his marketing off the court. From starting Midnight Madness to nationally-televised games with sold out Cole Field House crowds, Lefty did it all."
Driesell was forced out in 1986 after the death of Len Bias, the No. 2 overall draft pick that year who died after a cocaine-induced heart attack. He was reassigned to an administrative job at Maryland after his ousting but returned to coaching two years later at James Madison.
Maryland had seven first-round picks during Driesell's tenure: Bias, Tom McMillen, Len Elmore, John Lucas, Brad Davis, Albert King and Buck Williams.
“His contributions to the game go way beyond wins and losses, and he won a lot,” former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said when Driesell made the Hall of Fame. “It’s an honor he’s deserved for a long time.”
“The man was one of the best that ever did it," longtime Georgetown coach John Thompson said in 2012.
Contributing: Associated Press
veryGood! (92)
Related
- Will Reeve, son of Christopher Reeve, gets engaged to girlfriend Amanda Dubin
- Nevada caucuses kick off: Trump expected to sweep Republican delegates after Haley loses symbolic primary
- MLB spring training schedule 2024: First games, report dates for every team
- Tucker Carlson, the fired Fox News star, makes bid for relevance with Putin interview
- Round 2 in the Trump-vs-Mexico matchup looks ominous for Mexico
- Nevada Republicans wait in long lines in order to caucus for Donald Trump, who is expected to win
- The race for George Santos’ congressional seat could offer clues to how suburbs will vote this year
- Have a story about your sibling? Share it with us!
- 'Heretic' spoilers! Hugh Grant spills on his horror villain's fears and fate
- Millions could place legal bets on the Super Bowl. Just not in California or Missouri
Ranking
- NCT DREAM enters the 'DREAMSCAPE': Members on new album, its concept and songwriting
- 2024 NBA trade deadline predictions: Sixers, Lakers make moves; Warriors stick it out
- Inert 1,000-pound bomb from World War II era dug up near Florida airport
- Oscars to introduce its first new category since 2001
- Today Reveals Hoda Kotb's Replacement
- US wildlife service considering endangered status for tiny snail near Nevada lithium mine
- Nevada caucuses kick off: Trump expected to sweep Republican delegates after Haley loses symbolic primary
- Special counsel Robert Hur has completed report on Biden's handling of classified documents, Garland says
Recommendation
-
Kirk Herbstreit berates LSU fans throwing trash vs Alabama: 'Enough is enough, clowns'
-
NBA trade grades: Lakers get a D-; Knicks surprise with an A
-
Longtime GOP Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington state says she will not seek reelection
-
Oklahoma grand jury indicts barbecue restaurant owner over deal with state parks agency
-
Social media star squirrel euthanized after being taken from home tests negative for rabies
-
Famous women made some surprise appearances this week. Were you paying attention?
-
2024 NFL Honors awards: Texans sweep top rookie honors with C.J. Stroud, Will Anderson Jr.
-
Snoop Dogg and Master P sue Walmart and Post for trying to sabotage its cereal