Walt Milroy, legendary Ingraham High boys basketball coach, dies at 103
By Scott Hanson
Seattle Times staff reporter
Walt Milroy, the legendary longtime Ingraham High School boys basketball coach whose crowning achievement was a perfect season in 1968-69, died Friday.
He was 103.
Milroy was the winningest boys high-school basketball coach in the city’s history (since surpassed) when he quit coaching Ingraham in 1980, with a record of 278-159.
The highlight of his career was the 1968-69 team that finished off a 23-0 season with a 39-38 victory over Hoquiam in the state title game.
The Rams used a full-court press defense that was ahead of its time, creating turnovers and easy baskets.
“I got to experience a magic moment with him, which was a state championship, and I think anyone who was ever 18 years of age knows that that’s the pinnacle of human achievement,” said Gov. Jay Inslee, who played on that championship team. “He was kind of the reason that happened because he pretty much took an average group and developed the full-court press, which was suffocating and allowed us to go 23-0 with not a lot of talent.”
Milroy remembered that season vividly and loved to talk about it, even after turning 100. The season before, Ingraham was 15-6 and missed the state tournament.