Eastern Illinois men’s basketball coach Jay Spoonhour has completed his coaching staff for the 2020-21 season with the hiring of veteran coach Mark Bernsen.
Bernsen, a veteran of more than 40 years at the prep, collegiate and professional level, comes to EIU following a stint coaching in the Irish Super League with the Tralee Warriors. He guided his teams to three straight 20+ win seasons, twice winning the Ireland Super League Trophy while being named the Basketball Ireland Coach of the Year.
He won additional Irish Super League titles with the Tralee Tigers club and led the Limerick Eagles to a Southern Conference Championship. He won more than 125 games as a professional coach in the Ireland Super League. Bernsen also coached one season with MGS Grand Sacconex win the Swiss Professional League.
In the United States, Bernsen was the head coach at Moberly Area Community College from 2004-06 leading the team to a 30-7 record and NJCAA National Runner-Up finish in 2005. He was named the Region 16 Coach of the Year. He also served as the head coach at Missouri St. Louis for four seasons and Missouri State for three seasons. At Missouri State he led the Bears to the NIT Quarterfinals in 1993 finishing the year with a 20-11 record. He was the head coach at Jefferson Community College for eight seasons winning more than 200 games in his career with a Region 16 title and three Region Coach of the Year honors.
He added prep head coaching stops at Kirkwood High School and McCluer High School. At McCluer he won the 1975 Missouri Class 4A State Championship and was the Missouri Coach of the Year.
Bernsen has had assistant and associate head coaching roles during his career at Southeast Missouri, Idaho, New Mexico State, Missouri State, Murray State and Missouri St. Louis.
He holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Missouri St. Louis. Bernsen was a member of the UMSL 1972 Championship team and has been inducted into both the USML Athletic Hall of Fame and McBride Catholic Prep Athletic Hall of Fame.
https://eiupanthers.com/news/2020/8/10/bernsen-hired-as-assistant-mens-basketball-coach.aspx
