Billie Moore, pictured second right in 2012, who coached the first United States Olympic women’s basketball team to silver at Montreal 1976, has died aged 79 ©Getty Images

Billie Moore, who coached the first United States Olympic women's basketball team to silver at the Montreal 1976 Games, has died aged 79.

Moore led a team that included future Basketball Hall of Famers Lusia Harris, Pat Summitt - then Pat Head - Nancy Lieberman and Ann Meyers to second place thanks to a 3-2 record in a round-robin tournament.

The Soviet Union took gold with a perfect 5-0 record, extending an undefeated run in major international play dating back to 1958.

Moore died of complications from a lengthy battle with multiple myeloma, a blood cancer, according to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where she coached from 1977 to 1993.

The UCLA Bruins won a national title in 1978 under Moore' guidance.

While coaching Cal State Fullerton, Moore became an assistant coach for the US national women's team in the early 1970s and was then elevated to head coach in time to guide their Olympic debut.

She was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999.