Following-up on something that I mentioned in the DAILY DIRT II earlier this afternoon. Wisconsin Green Bay assistant Zach Malvik has officially been named as the new head coach at D3 Wisconsin Eau Claire. Here’s the statement from UWEC announcing the move:
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Director of Athletics Jason Verdugo has announced the hiring of Zach Malvik as the Blugolds’ new head men’s basketball coach. Malvik will serve as the 11th head coach in program history.
“My family and I could not be more thrilled to be joining the Blugold community and we look forward to the challenge of restoring the program’s winning tradition,” Malvik said. “I am incredibly humbled and honored to be chosen to lead this program and am sincerely grateful to Athletic Director Jason Verdugo, Chancellor Jim Schmidt, and the rest of the hiring committee for entrusting me to do so. I cannot wait to get to Eau Claire and start putting in the work to build a program the players, campus, and community can get excited about.”
Malvik joins UW-Eau Claire after one season as an assistant coach at NCAA Division I Green Bay, where he helped the Phoenix pull off one of the most impressive single-season turnarounds in all of college basketball this year. Green Bay posted a 3-29 record in the 2022-23 season, but under the guidance of a new coaching staff which included Malvik, the Phoenix went 18-14 this winter and contended for the Horizon League title.
Prior to his time at Green Bay, Malvik spent nine seasons coaching at Winona State, his alma mater. Malvik served as the Warriors’ associate head coach from 2019-22 and was an assistant coach from 2014-19. He also coached one season at St. Mary’s University in Minnesota in 2013-14.
In addition to his coaching experience, Malvik has an extensive background in the game as a championship-caliber player. He starred on the 2005-06 Winona State team that won the NCAA Division II national championship and was a key cog for the Warriors as they won a Division II record 57 straight games and appeared in back-to-back national championship games across 2006 and 2007. Malvik was an All-American in 2007 and ranks third on Winona State’s all-time scoring list with 1,971 career points.
After playing at Winona State, Malvik spent three seasons playing professionally with the Kilsyth Cobras in Australia.
“Among a very talented and deep pool of applicants, Zach’s vison for the trajectory of the program both immediate and future is what ultimately set him apart,” Verdugo said. “The qualities that have molded Zach into an elite collegiate student-athlete, national champion, multiple-year professional, and accomplished collegiate coach will be the same qualities that will make him a successful leader for UWEC Blugold men’s basketball.”
Blugold men’s basketball has a proud tradition dating back 108 years. The Blugolds have 18 conference championships, six trips to the national semifinals and three national runner-up finishes to their credit. UW-Eau Claire has a .712 winning percentage across the NCAA and NAIA postseasons and its players have earned 34 All-America honors. The Blugolds have had nine players selected in the National Basketball Association Draft dating back to the 1970s, several more than any other WIAC member. Multiple alumni went on to play in the NBA.
The men’s and women’s basketball programs will move into the state-of-the-art Sonnentag Event Center ahead of next season. The new arena will usher in a new era of Blugold basketball with the 2024-25 campaign.
