Former Libertyville High Basketball Star Dies Following Fall at College

A former Libertyville basketball star, who gained national attention after tossing up an impressive game-winning shot in 2013, died on Christmas Day after falling from a balcony at his Missouri college, the Daily Herald reports.

Jack Lipp, a freshman at the University of Missouri - Columbia, fell 15 feet onto a driveway from the balcony while at a party at about 2:30 a.m. on Dec. 23, the Daily Herald reports. Lipp, 19, died on Christmas Day at the University of Missouri Health Care Center.

There were about 100 people at the party in Columbia but no witnesses to the fall have come forward, according to the Daily Herald. Mike Novak, a resident at the home, told the Columbia Missourian the railing was broken at the residence and “considered unsafe.”

Lipp is a graduate of Libertyville High School where he played basketball and golf. He received all-conference honors and was remembered by former classmates as a kind-hearted jokester who was a “basketball fanatic,” according to the Libertyville Review.

An amazing game-winning shot by Lipp garnered national attention in 2013. The shot made a “Sports Center Top 10” highlight reel, according to the Libertyville Review.

Lipp was playing for his travel team, the 17U Rising Stars Elite Red, when he sank the shot to give his team a 60-57 win over Waukegan. You can watch the YouTube video of the shot below.

Family funeral services will be held at 3 p.m. on Monday at McMurrough Funeral Chapel, 101 Park Place in Libertyville. A public visitation will be held from 4 to 8 p.m. at the funeral chapel, according to Lipp’s obituary.