Updated Jun 4, 2010 10:39 PM ET
Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden passed away at 6:45 p.m. PT Friday evening at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center of natural causes. He was 99.
With his signature rolled-up game program in hand, Wooden led the Bruins to 10 NCAA championships, including an unmatched streak of seven in a row from 1967 to 1973.
Over 27 years, he won 620 games, including 88 straight during one historic stretch, and coached many of the game's greatest players - including Bill Walton and Lew Alcindor.
As a coach, he was groundbreaking trendsetter who demanded his players be in great condition so they could play an up-tempo style not well-known on the West Coast at the time.
But the Wizard's legacy extended well beyond that.
He was the master of the simple one- or two-sentence homily, instructive little messages best presented in his famous ``Pyramid of Success,'' which remains must-read material, not only for fellow coaches but for anyone in a leadership position in American business.
Former UCLA player and current Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love addressed Wooden's passing.
``There isn't one thing that stuck out to me other than being able to call him on a regular basis, and knowing him on a personal level," Love said. "I met a lot of important people at UCLA through him who will be connections for the rest of my life. Coach Wooden will always be remembered as the greatest, in every sense of the word."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.