Loras Director of Athletics Denise Udelhofen announced on Thursday, April 14, that Chris Martin has been selected as the next head coach in Loras men’s basketball history.
“First of all, I want to thank Director of Athletics Denise Udelhofen, President Jim Collins and the entire Loras staff for accepting me to be a part of the Duhawk family,” Martin said. “It is an amazing opportunity for myself and my family, and I couldn’t be more honored and humbled to lead this men’s basketball program forward.”
“Through getting to know this group of student-athletes, their eagerness and abilities are poised for success,” Martin added. “I can already tell in my short time with them that they are an extremely hard working and dedicated group of student-athletes and most importantly, upstanding young men. I expect bright things from this group in the near future.”
Martin becomes the 23rd head coach in Loras’ history, which dates back to 1909. He comes to Dubuque after helping spearhead the program turnaround at Elmhurst College. Martin’s first season at Loras will be his seventh as a coach, spending five as an assistant at Elmhurst and one as the head coach of the Bayer Leverkusen Giants in Germany.
“I am thrilled to name Chris Martin our next men’s basketball head coach at Loras College,” Udelhofen said. “His enthusiasm for being a Duhawk is infectious and energizing. He is regarded as a tenacious and relentless recruiter who cares for his team on and off the court. He will bring to our men’s basketball program integrity, passion and a clear vision to how we will move forward in a positive direction.”
As an assistant coach for the past five seasons, Martin helped take an Elmhurst team that went 14-36 in the two seasons prior to his arrival to a 42-15 record over the last two seasons, which includes a No. 2 ranking in the D3hoops.com poll this past season. Martin’s Bluejays finished the season ranked 18th after advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. For the first time in Elmhurst history, the Bluejays qualified for the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons. While at Elmhurst, Martin helped coach Kyle Wuest, a two-time D3hoops.com All-Region selection.
“I’ve known Chris for 15 years both when I was recruiting him as a player and as a head coach and I couldn’t be happier for him,” Elmhurst Men’s Basketball Coach John Baines said. “Loras hired a great coach and a strong recruiter in Chris and he’s ready to be a head coach at the Division III level. Much of our success at Elmhurst over the past seasons is due to Chris’ ability to recruit and assemble a winning program.”
Martin inherits a program that went 53-74 over the previous five seasons, qualifying for the Iowa Conference Tournament twice. Last season, the Duhawks went 13-13, finishing with an 8-6 record in conference play, but were defeated in the first round of the conference tournament for the second time in as many trips over the past three seasons. Next season, Loras returns seven players who averaged more than 10 minutes per game in 2015, three of which were above 20 minutes per contest.
“I want to thank Director of Athletics Denise Udelhofen for allowing Justin VanWambeke and myself to be a part of the hiring process and allowing us to have this great leadership experience,” junior Danny Quinn said. “I also want to thank President Collins for being involved and showing his support for the program. Coach Martin’s energy, passion and competitiveness immediately connected with our team and we are very excited to have him as our coach and lead the men’s basketball program moving forward.”
Prior to coaching at Elmhurst, Martin was an elite player for the Bluejays, closing out his collegiate career as a two-time D3hoops.com All-American. He was the first player in Elmhurst history to earn three CCIW All-Conference First Team honors. Martin finished his Bluejay career with 1,736 points, a mark which ranks second in school history.
During Martin’s senior season, Elmhurst went 18–7 overall as he led the team in scoring (441 points/17.6 points per game) and field goal percentage (.512). In 11 of the Bluejays 25 games, Martin led the team in scoring, including a 38-point performance, which was the highest mark scored by any Elmhurst student-athlete that season. Martin graduated from Elmhurst in 2005 with bachelor’s degrees in business administration and management. He completed his graduate program from the University of Southwest in Hobbs, N.M. with a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction.
After graduating from Elmhurst, Martin spent three seasons playing professional basketball in Luxembourg and Germany. After his final season as a player, Martin accepted the role as head coach of the Bayer Leverkusen Giants and guided his team to the playoffs in his only season.
The Chris Martin era at Loras College will officially begin on May 1, 2016. Over the next two weeks, however, Martin will make regular appearances on campus in an effort to connect with his new roster and the Loras community. At a date and time to be announced later, the Loras Athletic Department will host a community gathering to officially welcome Martin and his family.
http://duhawks.com/news/2016/4/14/chris-martin-tabbed-as-loras-head-mens-basketball-coach.aspx
Photo Courtesy Loras Athletics
