Longtime Navy basketball coach

Ben Carnevale, 92, the longtime Navy basketball coach who later headed the U.S. Olympic Basketball Committee, died Tuesday, the U.S. Naval Academy announced, without giving a cause of death. He had been living in Williamsburg, Va.

Born Bernard Louis Carnevale on Oct. 30, 1915, in Raritan, N.J., he played for New York University and was a member of the 1935 national championship team. He also played in the first National Invitation Tournament in Madison Square Garden in 1938.

He played professionally with the Jersey Reds of the American Basketball League. He served in the Navy during World War II and was awarded the Purple Heart.

In 1944, he became coach at the University of North Carolina. The Tar Heels went 52-11 in his two seasons and played in the NCAA national title game in 1946, losing 43-40 to Oklahoma A&M.;

He took over at Navy in 1946 and over the next 20 seasons became the school’s winningest basketball coach. The Midshipmen went 257-160 and made six postseason tournaments under Carnevale, despite not allowing players to be taller than 6 feet 5.

He was athletic director for NYU from 1966-72 and at William & Mary from 1972-82.

He was the chairman of the U.S. Olympic Basketball Committee from 1964-68 and was a committee member for 20 years.

He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass., in 1970.