Legendary Houston-area coach Ronnie Courtney to retire

Ronnie Courtney, best known for back-to-back state titles at Willowridge and coaching Texas Southern, is retiring – hard to believe, even for those close to him.

HOUSTON, Texas -- Houston is a hotbed for basketball talent at the high school level and that includes the coaches.

This past season was the final one for a man who has done and seen it all.

Ronnie Courtney, best known for back-to-back state titles at Willowridge and coaching Texas Southern, is retiring – hard to believe, even for those close to him.

For 37 years, Courtney has grown accustomed to the sounds of the hardwood as a coach. But the atmosphere of exciting high school basketball will soon be a thing of the past.

Still, it’s a coaching career that’s hard to forget.

“It’s been a rewarding career, one that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world,” Courtney says.

“I just can’t think of anything else at this level that I can do that says, ‘come back and keep doing it.’”

He finishes with 545 career wins. Courtney was the 2001 National Coach of the Year.

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