By of the

Clyde Rusk spent a couple of a seasons volunteering at Marquette University and a couple more coaching at Nicolet after he retired from Milwaukee Washington, but the Purgolders would forever remain dear to him

It was under his watch that the school's boys basketball team first rose to prominence in the state. Years, and in some cases decades, after he left the bench Rusk would return to the school to watch a game or talk with the team. He loved it and they loved having him.

"You'd walk into Washington and they would just treat him so great," Rusk's son Brian said. "Everybody there would be so good to him. I'm so grateful for that."

Clyde Rusk, who led Washington to state titles in 1985 and '87, died of natural causes Sunday morning. He was 92.

He passed at the assisted living facility on the city's northwest side that he lived in for the past six years. He was preceded in death by his wife of 62 years, Dorothy, and is survived by their five children, Bob, Brian, Mary, Katie and Connie.

His funeral is scheduled for Saturday at Wauwatosa Presbyterian Church. The visitation begins at 1 p.m. The service starts at 3 p.m.

"He engaged people and got to know people and was interested in people," Brian Rusk said. "He just got to know so many people at his assisted living (facility). He was running ping-pong leagues and bean bag toss leagues at his nursing home. He was still teaching and coaching."

Rusk's coaching career spanned more than 40 years. In fact, he had almost 20 years under belt when he arrived at Washington in 1968.

After playing and graduating from Beloit College, he coached four seasons in Marengo, Ill., then spent 11 more at West Allis Hale where he took the Huskies to state in 1956. From Hale, he went to Lawrence University in Appleton and coached five seasons.

When he returned to the high school ranks, he joined a rookie coaching class in the City Conference that included two other state coaching hall of famers, Win Parkinson of Tech and Ray Rozek of Madison.

"Anybody you talk to that ever played for him would have nothing but admiration for him," Parkinson said. "He was very passionate about the game. He certainly never cheated anybody that played for him. He put his heart and soul into everything he did."

Like all good coaches, Rusk's teams played fundamentally sound ball. His teams did that while pressing, playing tough man-to-man defense and pushing the tempo.

The school's '85 and '87 state titles came with the help of two of the best players the school ever produced: point guard Brian Garner, who played at Iowa, and forward Trevor Powell, who played at Marquette. Other standouts during Rusk's tenure included Dean Marquardt, who played at Marquette, Marc Mitchell, who played at UW-Milwaukee and Billy Ross, the captain of the 1985 team.

"He made us believe," Powell said. "I think in the time I was there we had like 70 wins and six losses. We really believed that we could do it."

Rusk's state titles were won, 56-54, in overtime over Racine Horlick in 1985 and, 44-41, in double overtime over Fond du Lac in 1987. The Fond du Lac final was just the second double overtime title game in state history. The Purgolders shot 69.6% that night, a mark that is still the highest for any state tournament game.

"It was all because of Coach Rusk," Garner said. "He taught us the fundamentals of basketball."

The players also remember their coach teaching the facts of life. A number of Rusk's players stayed in contact with him over the years.

Former Washington athletic director and baseball coach Jim Hughes, who spent eight years as Rusk's assistant, recalled how Rusk helped his players find colleges.

Powell told the story of when he was home after playing overseas and Rusk called him and implored him to save his money. Powell got the message and talked to a financial planner.

Garner put Rusk in the same class as his father in terms of their influence.

"He gave the plan and I followed the plan and script as a (high school) sophomore and went 72-6 and to college and to (play professionally) and everything," Garner said. "To this day, I give it to him and my dad."

They'll have all their memories.

For Powell, it's the thought of a man in his mid-60s try to be the keep up with teenagers, something Powell has grown to appreciate with the passage of each year. For Parkinson, it's the Sunday night chats he and Rusk would have about hoops during their heyday. For Hughes, it was the bird's-eye view he had of Rusk chatting with Bob Knight and realizing the Indiana coach knew Rusk by his first name.

"We were golf partners and he was golfing nine holes when he was 89 years old," Hughes said. "He stayed fit. He thought that was important, and it was important to be an honest person. I think he was a man of integrity. I don't know anybody who didn't like him."