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The St. John’s men’s basketball program has announced the hiring of Dan Matic as director of basketball operations and Dru Anthrop who was named the team’s graduate assistant. Matic returns to his native New York after two years as an assistant coach at South Alabama. Anthrop spent the past two years as the film coordinator with the Indiana Pacers organization.
Matic comes to St. John’s with a variety of experience from the NCAA Division I, Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), junior college and international levels. As the Red Storm’s director of basketball operations, Matic will provide day-to-day administrative support within the men’s basketball program. His responsibilities include coordinating travel, managing game day operations, maintaining the team’s calendar, and serving as the program liaison for athletic administrative areas along with community service. Matic will also assist in coordinating on-campus recruiting activities.
“Dan has a wealth of basketball knowledge and experience working in all facets of a program. He has a natural ability to connect with players and serve as a mentor,” said Head Coach Chris Mullin. “Dan has been part of several winning programs throughout his career working alongside Bo Ryan and other well-respected coaches. His diligence and organizational skills will be vital in developing an environment for our team to be successful.”
The Brooklyn native spent the last two years as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of South Alabama on Matthew Graves’ staff. In each of his two seasons (2013-14 and 2014-15), Matic helped assemble a recruiting class that was the highest rated in the Sun Belt Conference and ranked in the top-80 nationally. The Jaguars signed 15 players during his two seasons in Mobile, Ala.
“I look forward to this opportunity to be part of a prestigious program and work for a Hall of Famer. It is a true honor to join Chris Mullin’s staff,” said Matic. “There is a lot of pride throughout the city for St. John’s University and our basketball team. I am prepared to work hard to help build this program and contribute to its winning tradition.”
Prior to South Alabama, Matic was an assistant coach and the recruiting coordinator at Eastern Illinois for the 2012-13 campaign. The Panthers qualified for the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament for the first time in three years, while one of his recruits, Alex Austin, led all OVC freshmen in scoring.
Matic began his collegiate coaching career in 2011-12 as an assistant at Olney Central College in Olney, Ill. In his one season at OCC, the Blue Knights won 27 games and captured the Great Rivers Athletic Conference championship for the first time in 14 years. Olney earned a second place finish in the NJCAA Region 24 Tournament, the school’s best finish since 1994. Matic also mentored GRAC Player of the Year Trivante Bloodman during his time at Olney.
As a video coordinator for USA Basketball in 2009, Matic accompanied the team to the World University Games in Serbia. Team USA, led by Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan, took home the bronze medal. Matic moved on to Wisconsin-Milwaukee for two seasons, serving as a graduate assistant and academic mentor under head coach Rob Jeter. The Panthers won the Horizon League regular-season championship and participated in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). Wisconsin-Milwaukee also received the Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Associate Scholar-Athlete recognition during Matic’s tenure as the program’s Academic Mentor.
Matic launched his coaching career in 2001 with the AAU program Team Takeover in New York City. He spent six years as the head coach, leading the team to a sixth place finish at AAU nationals in 2005. The program produced 16 NCAA Division I players during his tenure, including future NBA players Devin Ebanks and Ed Davis.
Matic lettered four years at Trinity International and pursued a professional playing career in Cyprus.
Anthrop, a four-year letterwinner and team captain at Purdue under head coach Matt Painter, was part of three NCAA Tournament teams (2010, 2011, 2012) and won a Big Ten Championship in 2010. The Lafayette, Ind. native, graduated with the winningest class in Boilermaker men’s basketball history.
“Dru knows what it takes for a team and organization to be successful. He experienced it first-hand from his time at Purdue and then in the NBA with the Pacers,” said Mullin. “Dru has a tremendous work ethic and will strengthen our program in a variety of areas.”
A three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree, Anthrop was one of only six Big Ten players to be named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Honors Court in 2011-12. He also received the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award in 2013, an honor presented to individuals who distinguish themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior.
“I am very excited for the opportunity to join the St. John’s staff as a graduate assistant,” said Anthrop. “St. John’s is one of the most storied basketball programs in NCAA history. I couldn’t pass up the chance to work for a BIG EAST program and learn from Chris Mullin and the talented staff in which he has surrounded himself.”
Anthrop spent the last two years working for the Indiana Pacers organization as a film coordinator. In his role, he provided opponent game film breakdown to head coach Frank Vogel and his staff, and researched statistics for scouting reports and team analysis. Anthrop was responsible for creating video edits on NBA Draft prospects and helped manage a database of scouting video for NBA, NCAA and international competition. On the court, Anthrop assisted in the training and development of the Pacers players and pre-draft workouts. He worked as an assistant coach for the Pacers during the 2015 NBA Summer League in Orlando.
http://www.redstormsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/100715aaa.html
