Coaches

Chuck Buescher

Year Inducted: 2001

Category: Coaches

Schools / Organizations: (Peoria) Central High School
(Peoria) Manual High School
Washington (IL) High School
Bradley University

Biography: Chuck Buescher exemplifies the tradition of great high school basketball coaches who have flourished in Peoria-area high schools. Buescher spent 39 years in coaching, three as an assistant at (Peoria) Manual High School, one as head coach at Washington (IL) High School, 10 in two stints as an assistant at Bradley University and 25 at Peoria High School (Central).  As a head coach, Buescher compiled a 546-196 record. His 2002-03 and 2003-04 teams led by future NBA player Shaun Livingston won IHSA Class AA state titles with a combined 2-year record of 62-3. His teams won 21 regional titles – including 18 straight to finish his career – and a pair of runner-up state finishes, including the unforgettable 59-57 triple-overtime loss to East St. Louis Lincoln in the 1989 AA title game.  Buescher produced 17 teams which posted 20 wins, including nine straight from 1986-87 through 1994-95. The 1989 runnerup went 32-1 and was one of three teams to win 30 games. Central also won seven conference titles.  Buescher coached in the 1989 Kentucky Derby Festival Game at Louisville and in 1993 coached the Class AA North in the IBCA All-Star Game.   Players such as Livingston, 2000 Big Ten Player of The Year A.J. Guyton (Indiana) and Tony Wysinger (Illinois) and Ivan Stone (Lamar), Chris Reynolds (Indiana), Mike Hughes (Nebraska), Beau Smith (Louisville) and Marcellus Sommerville (Iowa and Bradley) tend to stand out in Buescher’s memory.  Buescher went back to Bradley as an assistant in 2004-05 and was part of the team’s Sweet 16 NCAA tournament run in 2005-06. The graduate of East Peoria High School lettered in basketball and baseball at Bradley and is a member of the Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame.