Red Rocha, the 12th basketball coach in University of Hawaii history, died today at his home in Oregon, according to UH officials.He was 86.

Rocha was best known in Hawaii as the coach of the “;Fabulous Five”; in the early 1970s.With that team of Dwight Holiday, Jerome Freeman, John Penebacker, Al Davis, and Bob Nash, Rocha guided the Rainbow Warriors to their best two-year record in school history (47-8) and first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1972.

He coached the Rainbow Warriors for 10 seasons (1963-73), succeeding Al Saake and getting replaced by Bruce O’Neil. He finished with an overall record of 112-136, putting him second all-time in wins to Riley Wallace.

“;I wouldn’t consider him second to anyone as a coach, especially with the basketball program,”; said Artie Wilson, who played on one of the “;Fab Five”; teams and now does color commentary for UH basketball broadcasts on KFVE. “;I think what Red was able to do with the teams that he had was far greater than anyone else. Red was able to bring a lot of personalities and talent together, and give them a basic game plan, and was smart enough and wise enough to allow guys to play, and not over-coach and over-emphasize things. He gave you a basic game plan, he gave you a structure, and he wanted you to go out and play and play hard. And if you did that you’d have success, and that’s pretty much what I remember Red being.”;

The Hilo High alum was Hawaii's first local-born NBA player. After transferring out of UH and playing collegiately at Oregon State, Rocha's 10-year pro career included two NBA All-Star games. He went on to coach in the league for three years, going 65-88 with the Detroit Pistons before his UH coaching tenure.

Rocha founded the inaugural Rainbow Classic in the 1964-65 season along with Chuck Leahey. He was inducted into the UH Sports Circle of Honor in 1986.