UT Martin Men's Basketball Coach, Anthony Stewart Dies Suddenly at Age 50

Men’s Basketball coach Anthony Stewart has sadly passed away at the age of 50. The news was confirmed by The University of Tennessee where the late star worked as a basketball coach.

On Sunday, November 15, 2020, Anthony Stewart died at the age of 50. His sudden death came as the men’s basketball team at The University of Tennessee (UT) was set to open its season later in the month.

Stewart passed on as he was preparing to enter his fifth season; helming the UT Martin Skyhawks program. Kurt McGuffin, the Skyhawks athletic director, had this to say about the late coach’s death:

"We are stunned to hear this tragic news."

McGuffin went on to pay tribute to Stewart describing him as “a true leader to every one of the young men he coached.” The athletic director recalled how the late star had put emphasis on the meaning of a college degree.

He was described as someone who had instilled professionalism in the students who were athletes. McGuffin concluded his statement by asking for privacy as they continue mourning the loss.

In 2014, Stewart began his role as the associate head coach in the UT Martin program. He worked with the head coach, Heath Schroyer, leading the Skyhawks to ninety-four victories.

From 2014 until 2017, the school had three 20-win campaigns. This was the very first time that a UT team had impressively won at least twenty games in three consecutive seasons.

From 2016 to 2017, Stewart was the collegiate head coach of the Skyhawks. He led them to twenty-two victories earning the school a record for the most wins in one single season.

UT Martin won its first-ever Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) West division championship before moving on to the OVC Tournament championship game. They also proceeded to the championships for the second consecutive year.

The team had fourteen home wins, which were the most, from 1987 until 1988. Under the late basketball coach’s leadership, they also won ten non-conference matches, which were the most victories in that category for the school’s history.

Anthony Stewart’s cause of death wasn’t yet revealed to the public.

Stewart was one of twenty-one finalists for the 2017 Ben Jobe National Coach of the Year Award. His twenty-two wins were the third-highest total of the 29 first-year head coaches in Division I basketball.

The late coach’s cause of death wasn’t yet revealed to the public. According to “Stadium's” basketball analyst, Jeff Goodman, it didn’t seem Stewart passed on from the novel coronavirus disease as he’d tested negative for it on November 9, 2020.

Another person in the sporting world who recently died at the age of 27 is former UL football receiver, Al Riles. His mother, Deidra Riles, confirmed that her son had been shot and killed on November 7, 2020, in Fort Worth, Texas.