News
Basketball Tip-Off Luncheon - November 07, 2007
The first frost of the fall is right around the corner, and with that nip in the air comes the promise of round ball excitement on the hardwood. To kick off the season, the Bartlesville Sports Commission and the 66 Federal Credit Union are sponsoring the sixth annual Basketball Tip-Off Luncheon on Monday, November 12, 2007 at 11:30 a.m. This year’s guest speaker will be the legendary Tulsa 66ers Head Coach, Joey Meyer.
Recognized as one of the most successful college basketball coaches in the nation, Joey Meyer served as head coach for the DePaul Blue Demons for 13 seasons (1984-1997), posting a 231-158 record, including six 20-win seasons, seven NCAA Tournament appearances, and three NIT bids. He was named CBS Chevrolet Coach of the Year in 1987 and won the Great Midwest Conference regular season championship in 1991-92.
Meyer brings a wealth of NBA D-League head coaching experience to Tulsa’s basketball operations department, having coached in the league since its inception of the Asheville Altitude.
In 2004, Meyer took the Altitude to its first playoff appearance and guided Asheville to a league-best 28-18 (.609) finish on the way to the organization’s first regular and postseason championship. Remarkably, with only one player returning from the previous championship roster, Meyer led the Altitude back to the postseason championship in 2005, becoming the only coach in league history to achieve the honor.
In 2005, Meyer led the Tulsa 66ers to a .500 record, winning seven of the last eight games of the regular season.
An excellent teacher of the game, Meyer has had eight players called up on ten different occasions from the D-League to the NBA, including Jason Hart, who signed a multi-year NBA contract with the Charlotte Bobcats in 2004 and John Lucas III, who signed a multi-year NBA contract with the Houston Rockets in 2006.
A member of the basketball coaching profession for over 32 years, Meyer continues to be a well-known figure in the basketball community, selected most recently as an assistant for the USA World Championship Qualifying Team that competed from Aug. 24-Sept. 4, 2005 in the Dominican Republic. Meyer, along with former NBA great Dennis Johnson, head coach of the Austin Toros, assisted USA Basketball head coach Mo McHone.
The son of the late Hall of Fame coach Ray Meyer, Joey competed for four seasons with the Blue Demons (1968-71) scoring 1,233 career points and serving as co-captain during his senior season. He followed his father’s career path, serving as the freshman head coach from 1971-1972 and the junior varsity head coach from 1972-73. After serving as an assistant coach on his father’s DePaul staff for 11 years, Meyer took over the head coaching reins in 1984.
Prior to his arrival to the D-League, Meyer coached the Chicago Skyliners of the ABA 2000 to a league-best 29-11 record en route to a Western Conference Championship.
Meyer and his wife Barbara are the parents of one son, Brian, 25.
ConocoPhillips will host the luncheon in the Adams Building Auditorium, 411 S. Keeler, in downtown Bartlesville. Seating is limited and tickets can be purchased by contacting the Bartlesville Sports Commission at 336-8708 or by contacting Sara Pannell, Business Development Manager for the 66 Federal Credit Union, at 337-7609. Tickets are $20.00 each and all proceeds from the event benefit Bartlesville youth athletics.