THE SIDELINES : Ex-Marshall Coach Johnson Dies

Former Marshall University basketball Coach Ellis T. Johnson, who was Adolph Rupp’s first All-American at Kentucky as a player, has died after a long illness. He was 79.

The Ashland, Ky., native died Sunday at Cabell Huntington Hospital. He had been confined to a wheelchair for years after suffering a stroke.

Johnson coached at Marshall from 1963 to ‘69, compiling a 68-80 record, including a 20-8 mark in 1966-67 when the Thundering Herd advanced to the semifinals of the National Invitation Tournament.