Arkansas State men’s basketball head coach Mike Balado announced today the hiring of Mike Scutero as assistant coach on his staff.
“I’m happy to announce the hiring of Mike Scutero to our staff,” Balado said. “I have known Mike for over 20 years and he is someone I trust for this journey. Coach Scutero is an extremely hard worker and a proven recruiter. He will be an energetic, positive role model for our players.”
Scutero has over 15 years of coaching experience at the NCAA Division I, junior college, high school and AAU levels. He spent the 2016-17 season as head coach at Buffalo Island Central High School (Monette, Ark.) after serving previously on coaching staffs at Arkansas State (2014-16), Kennesaw State (2013-14), Middle Tennessee (2009-13) and Odessa Junior College (2004-09).
“I am extremely humbled, appreciative and thankful to be joining the Red Wolf family,” said Scutero. “Coach Balado brings tremendous energy in everything he does and I look forward to working with a coach who has experience at the elite level. Having known Coach Balado for over 20 years, I’m excited to join his staff as we begin this journey toward championships.”
Scutero is familiar with the program after spending the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons on the sidelines at the Convocation Center. Scutero was instrumental in recruiting Devin Carter, a two-time all-conference selection, to A-State. Carter scored 1,062 points in his two seasons as a Red Wolf, becoming just the third player in program history to reach 1,000 points in two seasons played.
While at Kennesaw State, Scutero served as the Owls’ recruiting coordinator and was responsible for all aspects associated with recruiting. He assisted with on floor coaching in practice and oversaw opponent scouting under head coach Lewis Preston.
During his tenure at Middle Tennessee State, Scutero was a part of three (2010-11, 2011-12, and 2012-13) Sun Belt Conference Championship and three postseason teams (College Insider Tournament, National Invitational Tournament, and NCAA Tournament) as a member of head coach Kermit Davis’ staff. Scutero, who recruited and coached MTSU’s first SBC Player of the Year (LaRon Dendy), Defensive Player of the Year (Bruce Massey Jr.) and Conference USA Player of the Year (Shawn Jones), was the assistant to the head coach and director of basketball operations at MTSU. The Blue Raiders not only posted the most single-season victories (28) in the program’s history to that point, but also made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 24 years and ranked top 10 nationally with a combined 55 wins over a two-season period.
Prior to MTSU, Scutero was the associate men’s basketball head coach and recruiting coordinator at Odessa (Texas) College from 2004-09. He helped guide the Wranglers’ to three consecutive 20-plus win seasons, a 2007 Western Junior College Athletic Conference championships, and a top 10-place ranking in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Poll each campaign under NJCAA Hall of Fame Coach Dennis Helms.
Scutero started his coaching career as assistant at Lake Howell High School in Winter Park, Fla., where he helped lead LHHS to five state Class 6A and 5A playoff appearances in seven seasons (1996-03). He was a member of the LHHS staff to be recognized three times (1999, 2002, and 2003) as Florida’s State Coaching Staff of the Year. In the 2002-03 season, the SilverHawks compiled a school-record 29 victories (29-7 record) and made their first-ever State Final Four appearance in school history. Scutero then secured an assistant coaching post at Winter Springs (Fla.) High School for the 2003-04 season and played a key role in the Bears registering their winningest season of all time to go with the prep school’s first-ever Class 6A Regional Playoff appearance.
A native of Orlando, Fla., Scutero assisted with the highly-touted Nike Team Florida Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) program which was comprised of the top high school players in the state of Florida and were three time (2001, 2002, and 2004) Florida AAU State Champions.
Scutero had the opportunity to recruit and coach over 50 players who moved on to NCAA Division I schools and nearly 25 players to play professionally. Some of Scutero’s most notable players are Chandler Parsons (Florida and 2011 SEC Player of the Year) of the Memphis Grizzlies, guard Nick Calathes (Florida and 2007 McDonalds All American) of the Panathinaikos of the Greek Basket League, and Los Angeles Clippers’ Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (UCLA). Brandon Marshall (Central Florida), who plays for the National Football League’s New York Giants, was also one of Scutero’s hoops standouts in high school.
Scutero graduated from the University of Central Florida in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science degree in liberal studies and a minor in athletic coaching. Scutero and his wife, Kimberly, have two sons – Noah and Kaleb
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