Home Official News Releases Maury John’s widow dies

Maury John’s widow dies

Jean John, widow of former Drake men’s head basketball coach Maury John, died Wednesday night after a long illness.

Visitation will be at 9:30 a.m. Saturday with the funeral at 11 a.m. at Campus Baptist Church, located on US Highway 30, just east of the I-35 exit to Nevada. 

She is survived by her sons, John John of West Des Moines and Maurice John Jr. of Louisville, Ky.

Maury John was the winningest basketball coach in Drake history, constructing a 211-131 record from 1958-71. He was named the national coach of the year in 1969 by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association after guiding Drake to a then school-record 26-5 mark including a third-place finish in the 1969 NCAA Tournament.

John also guided Drake teams to three other post-season tournaments: the 1964 NIT as well as the championship of the 1970 and 1971 NCAA Midwest Regional Tournaments.

The four-time Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year was inducted posthumously into the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame in 2000.