Ex-DePaul player, coach Joey Meyer dies at 74

CHICAGO — Joey Meyer, who played at DePaul and coached the Blue Demons to seven NCAA tournament appearances in 13 seasons, has died. He was 74.

Meyer died Friday in the Chicago suburb of Hinsdale, surrounded by family, DePaul said in a release. The school did not provide any further information.

Joey Meyer played for his father, Ray, for three seasons from 1968 to 1971, averaging 16.4 points in 75 games for DePaul. The guard was selected by the Buffalo Braves in the 18th round of the 1971 NBA draft, but never appeared in a league game.

Meyer served as an assistant for his father for 11 seasons before taking over when Ray retired after coaching DePaul from 1942 to 1984.

Joey Meyer got the Blue Demons into the NCAA tourney in each of his first five seasons. They reached the Sweet 16 in 1986 and 1987.

Meyer went 231-158 in his 13 seasons as DePaul’s head coach. Some of Meyer’s top players included Rod Strickland, David Booth and Tom Kleinschmidt.

Following his time at DePaul, the Chicago native coached in the NBA’s developmental league and worked as a regional scout for the LA Clippers.