Omar M. "Bud" Browning (October 5, 1911 – September 11, 1978) was an American

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. In 1948, he became the United States' second

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

men's basketball head coach. Browning led 1948 USA team to a final record of 8–0, en route to a gold medal at the 1948 Summer Olympics basketball tournament, in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Browning became the winning-est coach in AAU tournament history, when his teams won AAU championships in 1962 and 1963. He performed as a player in the AAU from 1935 to 1943, but achieved his greatest fame as a coach for the

Phillips 66ers The Phillips 66ers (also known as the Oilers) were an amateur basketball team located in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and sponsored and run by the Phillips Petroleum Company. The 66ers were a national phenomenon that grew from a small-town team to an ...

, leading them to five consecutive AAU national titles from 1944 to 1948, and to two more titles in 1962 and 1963. Browning first achieved name recognition in the AAU in 1935, when he helped lead the Southern Kansas Stage Lines win the national championship over the

McPherson Oil Refiners The McPherson Globe Refiners were an amateur basketball team in the 1930s. The Refiners contributed six members to the 1936 United States men's Olympic basketball team, the first team to win the Olympic gold medal. History Due to an oil discov ...

, 45–26. He was selected for the AAU All-American (all-star) team. The following year, playing for the Santa Fe Trailways team of Kansas City, he again was named All-American helping to take Santa Fe to third place over the Hutchinson Western Transits, 35–33. The following year, Browning was recruited by the Phillips 66ers, who after a lapse of several years, reconstituted a new team to compete in the 1937 AAU championship. Browning joined such players as

Joe Fortenberry Joe Cephis Fortenberry (April 1, 1911 – June 3, 1993) was an American basketball player who competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics. He was a captain of the American basketball team, which won the gold medal in the first Olympics to include basket ...

Jack Ragland Jack Williamson Ragland (October 9, 1913 – June 14, 1996) was an American basketball player who competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics. He was part of the American basketball team, which won the gold medal. He played two matches includi ...

Chuck Hyatt Charles D. Hyatt Jr. (February 28, 1908 – May 8, 1978) was a collegiate basketball player in the late 1920s. The Syracuse, New York native played three seasons at University of Pittsburgh under coach Clifford Carlson (1927–30). An exception ...

, and Tom Pickell. The next two years the team took second in the national tournament, losing to the Denver Safeway Stores both times in the title game. Finally, in 1940, Browning played on his second national championship team, as the Phillips 66ers took their first AAU title, beating their nemesis the Denver team, now known as the Nuggets, in the title game, 39–36. In 1941, he played on the Phillips 66ers third place team, and in 1942 on the second place team. In 1943, Browning helped the Phillips 66ers win their second national AAU title. The following year, he was named

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

for the 66ers, and went on to an even more famous career as a coach. After winning five consecutive titles as first player-coach and then coach of the Phillips 66ers, in 1948 he became the United States's second Olympic men's basketball coach. Browning led the team to a final record of 8–0 en route to a gold medal in the 1948 Olympics in London, England. Browning retired from coaching after 1948, but came back and coached the Phillips 66ers for one year in 1954. The team was not a factor in the AAU tournament. Browning returned to coaching the Phillips 66ers in 1959. Browning also coached the Phillips 66ers in the

National Alliance of Basketball Leagues The National Alliance of Basketball Leagues (NABL) (founded 1961) is the descendant of the industrial-based basketball clubs that formed into the National Basketball League (NBL) in the early 1930s. History Origins in the 1930s The league was ...

, and led them to two more AAU championships, in 1962 and 1963. In 1957 Browning was named to the Helms Amateur Basketball Hall of Fame.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Browning, Bud 1911 births 1978 deaths All-American college men's basketball players American Olympic coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Oklahoma Basketball players from Oklahoma Forwards (basketball) Guards (basketball) Oklahoma Sooners football players Oklahoma Sooners men's basketball players Phillips 66ers players Player-coaches Sportspeople from Enid, Oklahoma Sportspeople from Fort Collins, Colorado Sportspeople from Lawton, Oklahoma United States men's national basketball team coaches