Former Cal men’s basketball coach Pete Newell died Monday at the age of 93. Newell led the Golden Bears to the 1959 NCAA title.

He coached at California from 1954-60, earning four conference titles in addition to the national championship. He was named National Coach of the Year in 1960 and finished his coaching career with a 119-44 record. He was athletics director at California from 1960-68.

“We’ve lost one of the true coaching legends of our time,” Director of Athletics Sandy Barbour said. “Pete Newell was not only a coaching icon, but he was an example to all of us of what an incredible impact our coaches and educators can have on our young men and young women. He was a gentleman, a leader and a teacher. All of us in the Golden Bear family have heavy hearts today. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

Newell coached the 1960 gold medal Olympic team featuring Darrall Imhoff, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West. The court at California was renamed “Pete Newell Court” in 1987, and a statue of Newell was installed in the Haas Pavilion Club Room in Fall 2006. He was inducted into the Cal Athletic Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was one of only a few coaches to win an NIT title (with San Francisco in 1949), NCAA title and Olympic gold medal.

Newell was a member of the Division I Men's Basketball Committee from 1962-68, a period NCAA Senior Vice President Tom Jernstedt  called the group's "formative years."

"He was one of the most widely respected individuals I've known in my tenure with the NCAA," Jernstedt said. "He was respected as an individual, a coach, a teacher, and an advisor and counselor to  many, whether they be student-athletes, coaches, administrators or his fellow man. He was always willing to assist and wanted to do things the right way."

Jernstedt said Newell was a great teacher, instilling in his players a loyalty to each other and a bond that he nurtured continually.

"I think he spent a lifetime trying to improve the game of basketball, building it and teaching it," Jernstedt said.

He was especially known for his work with larger players and provided instruction at an event that came to be known informally as “Pete Newell’s Big Man Camp.” In 2001, he opened a similar camp for women.

A student-athlete at Loyola Marymount, Newell coached first at San Francisco and then Michigan State. After his collegiate career ended in 1968, Newell worked in administration with the Los Angeles Lakers and other NBA teams.

The National Association of Basketball Coaches named its Big Man Award in his honor.

There will be a special tribute before tonight’s California-San Francisco game at Haas Pavilion.