University of Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery announced today that Al Seibert is now the director of basketball operations. Seibert, who has spent the past five seasons as the team’s video coordinator, fills the operations void left by Billy Taylor. Taylor left to become the head coach at Belmont Abbey College in North Carolina.

As operations director, Seibert works closely with the basketball staff, helping coordinate travel and carry out the day-to-day activities of the UI basketball program.

“I’ve known Al Seibert for nearly 25 years,” said McCaffery. “Al has been a tremendous asset to our program the past five seasons as video coordinator and believe he will do an outstanding job in this new role. His knowledge of our program and everyday operations, along with his energy and excitement, is of great value to our program.”

Seibert has assisted in the rise of the Hawkeye basketball program back to national prominence since 2012. The Hawkeyes have posted 20 wins or more and finished in the upper division of the Big Ten Conference each of the last four seasons, including a top three conference finish in 2015 and 2016. After a runner-up finish in the 2013 NIT, Iowa has appeared in three consecutive NCAA Tournaments (2014, 2015, 2016), including registering NCAA Tournament wins against Davidson (2015) and Temple (2016) in consecutive years for the first time since 1996 and 1997.

Seibert has 18 years of coaching experience, having most recently served as the head coach at the University of New Haven in West Haven, Connecticut, from 2005-10.

He was at the University of Hartford for five seasons, four as an assistant (2000-04) and one as associate head coach (2004-05). Seibert was the top assistant in 2002 when Hartford posted the second-best Division I turnaround. He also helped coach the Hawks to a top three finish in the America East Conference from 2002-04.

Seibert was also an assistant coach at Western Kentucky (1994-98). He helped coach the 1995 Western Kentucky team to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, a final national ranking of No. 18 and a 27-4 overall record, which was second only to national champion UCLA.

Other stops include one season as a volunteer assistant coach at Duquesne (1992-93) and working as a basketball administrative assistant at Pittsburgh (1993-94).

Seibert has worked individually with a number of athletes drafted in the NBA. In 1993, he worked with Derrick Alston (Duquesne University), who was a second round draft pick of the Philadelphia 76ers. The following spring, Seibert worked with Erik Mobley (University of Pitts-burgh), who was the 16th overall selection of the Milwaukee Bucks in the 1994 NBA Draft. In 1996, he worked with Ben Davis (University of Arizona), who was a second round pick of the Phoenix Suns. Seibert also worked individually with Lee Nailon (TCU) in 1998-99, who was a second round selection by Charlotte.

Seibert played collegiately at Frederick Community College (Md.) from 1981-83.

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