BOZEMAN — Roger Craft, who guided Montana State to the first men’s basketball championship in Big Sky Conference history and was later named to the school’s athletic hall of fame, passed away on Sept. 8. He was 90.
Craft was born in Garden City, Kansas, on May, 30, 1934. He played college basketball at Kansas State from 1952-55. He arrived at Montana State in 1960 as the head coach of the freshman team and also served as an assistant under varsity head coach Dobbie Lambert.
He took the reins of the varsity team for the 1962-63 season. The following year Craft guided MSU to a 16-9 record and the first men’s basketball title in the history of the Big Sky, which began competition in 1963.
Craft also guided the Bobcats to a Big Sky co-championship in 1966-67, which they shared with Gonzaga. That year MSU went on to win the All-College Tournament in Oklahoma City.
Craft was at MSU from 1960-69, and was named the Big Sky coach of the year for the 1963-64 season. His overall record at Montana State was 92-83. Prior to his arrival in Bozeman, Craft spent time as an assistant coach at Kansas State under Tex Winter.
He later entered private business, and was inducted into the MSU hall of fame in 2005. According to his obituary, Craft passed away in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, following an extended illness.
