UNDER THE BANNER
What's Going On In and Around Black College Sports
NOTED COACH SUCCUMBS: Former Howard University and Delaware State University head men's
basketball coach Marshall
Emery, who retained a respected place as a knowledgeable basketball
person after his retirement from coaching, died suddenly Thursday (June
22) after working a basketball camp in South Bend, Indiana.
Emery, 74, boarded a shuttle bus to an airport in Chicago after participating in a camp for Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey. He was found dead from an apparent heart attack after the shuttle arrived.
Emery most recently served as a consultant, assisted in the evaluation of referees and the selection of all-tournament teams for the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference Basketball Tournament. He was a fixture on the black college basketball circuit and because of his relationship with a number of coaches from around the country, often worked camps as an instructor and counselor.
A native of New Haven, Conn., Emery played at Winston-Salem State University for late basketball coaching icon Clarence "Big House" Gaines. He also ran track at the school. He was living in Petersburg, Va. where funeral services were held Wednesday at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church.
Emery left as a high school coach in Winston-Salem and eventually became head coach at Howard in 1966. He stayed at Howard until 1975 leading the Bison to their first CIAA Tournament berths in the late 1960s. He led Howard to the finals of the first two MEAC Basketball Tournaments held at Duke University in 1972, losing to North Carolina A&T both years. He became head coach at Delaware State in 1976 a position he held until 1978. He also served a three-year stint at DSU from 1985-88. He went 48-106 over his five years at DSU and was named MEAC coach of the year in 1977-78 when the Hornets went 10-15 after winning just two games the season before.
He also led Caesar Rodney High School in Dover to the 1984 Delaware state boys high school basketball championship. Emery will be inducted posthumously into the C.E. "Big House" Gaines Athletic Hall of Fame at Winston-Salem State this fall.
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