Milbank's Sussex, three others slated to join SDBCA Hall of Shrine

Coaches Boyd Sussex of Milbank and Bob Sittig of Baltic, official Gary Frankenstein of Huron and contributed Bryan Brewer Sr. of Pine Ridge are slated to be inducted into the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association (SDBCA) Hall of Shrine this month.

The four will be honored at upcoming state high school basketball tournaments scheduled for March 9-11 and 16-18.

Here are the biographies of the inductees:

Boyd Sussex

Sussex graduated from Hope (N.D.) High School in 1971 and attended Valley City (N.D.) State University, graduating in 1975 with a double major in physical education and history.

Sussex was involved in coaching for 33 years, including 31 as a head boys basketball coach. He coached 12 years in North Dakota (four at Glenburn, seven at Fessenden and one at Garrison) and his final 19 years at Milbank. In North Dakota, he was also involved in coaching football and track and spent one year as a head girls basketball and also served as an athletic director. His teams at Fessenden won four district and four conference championships.

At Milbank, Sussex guided the Bulldogs to 11 district and six Northeast Conference championships as well as six state Class A tournaments, including the 2005 state championship. He also served an assistant football coach for 18 years and the last nine years as the athletic director.

At the time of his retirement in 2006 as a head basketball coach, Sussex was 10th on the state's coaching victory ladder with a record of 443-247. This still ranks him in the top 20. His Milbank record was 275-136.

For more than 20 years, Sussex ran the Milbank Basketball School that attracted hundreds of players from northeast South Dakota and western Minnesota. He served as a region director of the SDBCA, a three-time recipient of regional Coach of the Year as well as regional Athletic Director of the Year. In 2020, he was awarded the South Dakota High School Activities Association's Distinguished Service Award.

Boyd and Kathy, his wife of 47 years, live on Big Stone Lake. Their son Jackson’s family includes his wife Val and children Baker (7) and Lauren (5).

Bob Sittig

Bob Sittig attended K-12th school in Baltic and and after graduating from Augustana College, he began a lengthy teaching and coaching career at Baltic during which he coached basketball for 35 consecutive years at some level.

Sittig served as the assistant boys basketball coach for 14 years and was named South Dakota Assistant Boys Basketball Coach of the Year in 1994. He later spent 17 years as the school's head girls basketball coach and led the Bulldogs to an overall record of 299-96.

His girls basketball teams won nine conference championships, 10 district championships, seven region championships and state Class B titles in 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001 and 2003. Baltic teams under his guidance also finished third in the State B tournament in 1997 and sixth in 2004.

Baltic's 1996 team set, and still holds, the national girls’ basketball record for field-goal shooting percentage in a season. Sittig was named South Dakota Girls Basketball Coach of the Year in 1995 and 2001, SDBCA Region Girls Coach of the Year in 1989, 1995, and 2001 and Augustana Alumni Coach of the Year in 1996.

Gary Frankenstein

Frankenstein worked as a basketball official for 35 years, officiating more than 2,500 varsity basketball games. That number included more than 50 district and 40 region tournament games. He worked in 14 state tournaments and served as an alternate official five times.

Named the Girls Basketball Official of the Year in 1988, Frankenstein also served on the South Dakota High School Activities Association's Sports Officials Advisory committee from 2002-04.

Bryan Brewer, Sr.

Brewer was born in Pine Ridge and is a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. His Lakota name "Ohiyaku" means returns victoriously. He is a 1965 graduate of Pine Ridge High School, United States Navy veteran and a graduate of Black Hills State University.

Brewer is the founder of the Lakota National Invitational, director of the LNI Basketball Tournament and also serves on the LNI Board of Directors. He spent his career in education as a teacher, coach, principal, Dean of Students and Athletic Director.

The first Native American to sit on the South Dakota High School Association's Board of Directors (2004-09), he received the SDHSAA Distinguished Service Award in both 2009 and 2011. In 2010, Brewer was inducted into the Lakota Nation Basketball Hall of Fame.

After retiring from education, Brewer was elected president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe in 2012-2014. In 2018, the South Dakota High School Coaches Association created the Bryan Brewer "Spirit of Influence Award" and in 2022, he was inducted into the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame.

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on Twitter @PO_Sports.

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Four men to be inducted at upcoming 2023 state basketball tourneys.