Lee Rose, who ushered USF's men's basketball into a modern era that included an on-campus arena and the program's first three postseason bids, has passed away in Charlotte, N.C. He was 85.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Rose, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2015, was in a wheelchair after suffering spinal-cord damage due to a fall, according to his wife Eleanor, his primary caretaker.
Rose, who had taken Charlotte (1977) and Purdue (1980) to the Final Four, rocked the basketball world when he accepted a job with the fledgling USF Bulls, a program heading into its 10th season that was living a gypsy-like existence (utilizing five different "home courts'' in one season).