Utah State head men’s basketball coach Craig Smith has named Austin Hansen as an assistant coach to the program. Hansen was a member of Smith’s staff at South Dakota, having coached in Vermillion each of the past four seasons. Hansen is one of two coaches joining Smith from South Dakota as Eric Peterson was also announced as an assistant coach on Friday.

“Austin brings a wealth of coaching experience to the table,” Smith said. “He has a great feel for what it takes to win and is an excellent teacher of the game. Our guards were some of the best in the league at South Dakota because of Austin’s abilities. He brings a pit bull mentality to the game and will not be outworked.

“Austin and Eric are the total package,” he continued. “They are great coaches, recruiters, and mentors for the men in our program. They have wonderful families that will thrive in Logan. We went 48-21 over the last two years at South Dakota and both of these men were a major reason for our success.”

While at South Dakota, the Coyotes enjoyed unprecedented success at the Division I level with back-to-back 20-win seasons, a regular season Summit League Championship and the school’s first ever appearance in the Summit League Tournament Championship game. Overall, USD was 79-55 (.590) over the past four seasons, including 38-26 (.594) in conference play. In the past two seasons alone, South Dakota was 48-21 (.696) and 23-7 (.767) in league play, while advancing to a pair of postseason appearances in the NIT and CBI.

Hansen was responsible for the perimeter players at USD, guiding his athletes to several all-league honors and one of the most efficient offenses in the Summit League. Junior guard Matt Mooney was a two-time, first-team all-Summit League selection after leading the Coyotes in scoring in back-to-back seasons with 18.7 points per game as a junior and 18.6 points as a sophomore. Overall, USD led the Summit League in field goal percentage, shooting 47.6 percent (1,017-of-2,136) from the floor last season.

 

South Dakota was one of the best in ball security under Hansen’s watch, finishing second each of the past two seasons in turnovers per game. USD was also one of the top programs in the Summit League in creating turnovers, finishing second and third in steals per game, while finishing second and first in turnover margin. Mooney was another big part of the Coyotes’ success defensively, finishing second in the Summit League with 2.3 steals per game last season.

Prior to USD, Hansen was an assistant coach at Northern Colorado for a season, where he helped the Bears to an appearance in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament and an 18-14 overall mark.

Hansen joined UNC following five years as an assistant coach at his alma mater, South Dakota State. Hansen helped the Jackrabbits to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances in 2012 and 2013, along with two Summit League Tournament Championships and one regular season title. Hansen was also the lead recruiter of SDSU’s Nate Wolters, the all-time leading scorer in South Dakota State history with 2,353 points and a 2013 NBA Draft pick.

Hansen began his coaching career at Minnesota State in Mankato, Minn., helping the Mavericks post an overall mark of 116-37, including four-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. Hansen coached 12 players to all-North Central Conference honors, including two MVP awards and placed five on the academic all-NCC teams.

“I’m excited and extremely grateful to be joining coach Smith and his staff at Utah State,” Hansen said. “He’s a proven winner at every level and always does it the right way. The history, tradition and support of USU basketball makes this a great opportunity for me. Our family is really looking forward to being a part of the Aggie family.”

As a player at South Dakota State, Hansen was a four-year letterwinner and a two-time team captain, while earning a pair of all-region and three all-NCC honors. Hansen led the Jackrabbits in scoring all four years and finished his playing career as the second-leading 3-point shooter and third-leading scorer in program history. During his junior year, Hansen led the Jackrabbits to a North Central Conference regular season and postseason championship.

Hansen, originally from Valley Springs, S.D., was named the South Dakota High School Mr. Basketball in 1998. He and his wife, Andrea, have three daughters: Hannah, Hadlee and Harper.

http://www.utahstateaggies.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/042018aab.html