George King

George King (1928-2006)

Teams coached: Morris Harvey Golden Eagles, West Virginia Mountaineers, Purdue Boilermakers
Morris Harvey record: 12-12 (.500)
West Virginia record: 102-43 (.703)
Purdue record: 109-64 (.630)
Overall record: 223-119 (.652)

Career Accomplishments:

• NCAA National Championships:  0  (Runner-up in 1969)
• NCAA Tournament Appearances:  4  (1962, 1963, 1965, 1969)
• NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen:  2  (1963, 1969)
• NCAA Tournament Final Four:  1  (1969)
• NIT Championships:  0
• NIT Appearances:  1  (1971)
• Big Ten Regular Season Champion:  1  (1969)
• SoCon Regular Season Champion:  3  (1961, 1962, 1963)
• SoCon Tournament Champion:  3  (1962, 1963, 1965)

Awards:

• SoCon Coach of the Year:  1  (1961)

Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):

1965-1972	Purdue
1960-1965	West Virginia
1957-1960	West Virginia (asst)
1956-1957	Morris Harvey

George King Facts

• George Smith King, Jr.
• Born August 16, 1928
• Died October 5, 2006
• Hometown: Charleston, West Virginia
• Alma Mater: Morris Harvey College (BA, 1950) / West Virginia University (MA, 1957)
• Played at Morris Harvey (now Univ of Charleston) in WV, leading the team to four D-II NCAA Tournaments
  • Twice named West Virginia’s Amateur Athlete of the Year (1949 & 1950)
• Drafted in the 8th round of the 1950 NBA Draft (89th overall) by the Chicago Stags
  • Played for the Phillips 66ers of the NIBL and the Syracuse Nationals and Cincinnati Royals of the NBA
  • Helped led the Nationals to victory in the 1955 NBA Championships
• Started his coaching career at his alma mater, Morris Harvey, going 12-12 in one season
• First arrived at West Virginia as an assistant to Fred Schaus, then took over as head coach in 1960
  • Went 102-43 in five seasons, winning three SoCon titles and three SoCon Tournaments
• Left WVU for Purdue in 1965, coaching the Boilermakers for seven seasons
  • Was 109-64 during his tenure, reaching one NCAA Tournament and one NIT
  • His 1968-69 squad, led by future HOFer Rick Mount, won the Big Ten and finished as NCAA Runner-up
  • Became athletic director at Purdue in 1971, stepping away from coaching in 1972 to be AD full-time
  • Retired from Purdue in 1992 after 26 years at the school, 21 as athletic director
• Inducted into the Charleston Athletic HOF (1985) and the Purdue Athletic HOF (2001)
• Died in 2006 at the age of 78; survived by wife, Jeanne, their five children, eighteen grandchildren and nine great grandchildren

George King Coaching Tree

• Gale Catlett (West Virginia, Cincinnati)
• Billy Keller (Indianapolis)
• Dave Schellhase (Minnesota State-Moorhead, Indiana State)
• Joe Sexson (Butler)

 

^ overall record includes head coaching positions at both the NCAA Division I and Division II levels