Crum, a Wooden disciple who thrived at Louisville, dies

Denny Crum, who won two NCAA men’s basketball titles at Louisville in a Hall of Fame coaching career, died Tuesday. He was 86.

The school announced Crum’s death in a release. Crum had battled an extended illness.

Crum retired in 2001 after 30 seasons at Louisville with 675 wins and national championships in 1980 and 1986.

He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in May 1994, with the legendary John Wooden, his college coach at UCLA and longtime mentor, at his side.

UCLA mourned Crum in a news release that noted his 1990 induction into its athletics Hall of Fame and achievements as a Bruins player and assistant coach.

A native of San Fernando,

Crum played guard for two seasons at Pierce Junior College before transferring to UCLA in 1956.

He briefly served as a graduate assistant to Wooden before coaching Pierce in the mid-1960s. Wooden hired Crum as his assistant and chief recruiter in 1968, and the Bruins went 86-4 and won three NCAA titles before Crum was hired as Louisville’s coach in 1971.

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