Lewis University head men’s basketball Scott Trost has announced the promotion of Nick Rocco to the position of associate head coach.
“I’d like to thank coach Trost, Dr. Planek, and the university for trusting me in this new role,” Rocco said. “I’m so fortunate to have worked under two esteemed head coaches, coach Ping and coach Trost, during my career. Over these last six seasons I’ve learned invaluable lessons from Trost. While our players and championships together are memorable, It’s coach Trost’s hard work and dedication to his program and this university day in and day out that makes a big impression.”
Rocco is entering his seventh season for the Flyers after arriving at Lewis in 2017 and has helped bring the program to new heights including 25 wins during the 2018-19 season, which tied the program’s best total. During the 2018-19 season, Rocco helped Lewis achieve the No. 1 ranking in the NCAA DII Midwest Region Rankings with the team winning the conference regular season crown after sweeping former GLVC members Bellarmine and University of Southern Indiana after going 4-0 against both opponents.
During the 2020-2021 season, The Flyers won the GLVC Tournament after defeating Drury in the championship game. The next year Lewis went on to win the GLVC Regular Season East Title.
Rocco has been apart of the development of various players to achieve postseason accolades. Kendale McCullum and Connor Niego were named to the D2 Conference Commissioner’s Association Midwest All-Region in 2019 and 2022 respectively. McCullum was also named a National Association of Basketball Coaches All-American and GLVC Player of the Year for his efforts in 2019.
Many players have achieved All-GLVC Honors under Rocco including Cristen Wilson (first team, 2018), Delaney Blaylock (first team – 2019, second team – 2018), McCullum (first team – 2019), Connor Niego (first team – 2021), Adam Pischke (second team – 2019), Anthony D’Avanzo (second team – 2020), Bruno Williams (second team – 2022) and Beau Frericks (Cary, Ill./Cary Grove) (second team – 2023).
There have been four athletes named to the All-GLVC Defensive Team, McCullum (2019), Artese Stapleton (2020), Marquise Jackson (2021 & 2022) and Dre Bell (2022). Two athletes have been named to GLVC All-Tournament teams including Connor Niego and Stapleton, who was also named tournament MVP.
