EASTON, Pa. -- Lafayette College mourns the loss of Harold "Hal" Wissel, who passed away on Feb. 10 at the age of 86.

Wissel served as Lafayette's men's basketball coach from 1967-71 and is credited with recruiting many of the members of the Leopards' 1972 NIT team (coached by Tom Davis). Wissel also coached in the 1972 NIT after departing for Fordham University where he spent 1971-76 on the sidelines.

Prior to his arrival at Lafayette, the New Rochelle, N.Y. native coached at Trenton State (1964-67). Wissel spent one season as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks (1976-77) before taking over at Florida Southern in 1977.  He led the program to four straight trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament and three straight berths in the Division II Final Four (1980-82). Florida Southern won the NCAA Division II National Championship in 1981, earning him NABC National Division II Coach of the Year honors. Collegiate coaching stops at Charlotte (1982-85) and Springfield (1986-90) also followed.

Following his time at Springfield, Wissel spent 14 years coaching as an assistant in NBA with four franchises over the next 17 years: the Milwaukee Bucks, New Jersey Nets, Memphis Grizzlies and Golden State Warriors.