Catholic University head men’s basketball coach Aaron Kelly announced the hiring of Justin Klingman as an assistant coach on Friday. A 2015 graduate of the University of Scranton, Klingman comes to the District after four years as an assistant coach at Ursinus.
Klingman’s primary responsibilities at Ursinus included recruiting, opponent scouting, player skill development and development of game and practice plans. The Bears averaged 15 wins per season and had two Centennial Conference semifinal appearances in 2017 and 2018. A year ago, Ursinus posted its third win against top-10 team in program history with a 94-88 win at home over No. 10 Swarthmore on Jan. 19, 2019. The Bears finished the 2017-18 season with a 17-10 record, marking the team’s highest win total since the 2007-08 season.
Klingman has also spent the last four summers as a teacher and coach at Strive Sports Challenge, a residential leadership development academy for high school student-athletes from around the country.
“I am thrilled to add Justin to our coaching staff,” said Kelly. “His four years of experience as an assistant at Ursinus, coupled with his experience as a student-athlete in the Lamdmark Conference, make him an ideal fit for Catholic. He is a tireless worker, proven recruiter and will serve as a great mentor to our current student-athletes. Justin is a rising star in our profession and I feel very fortunate to have him on our staff.”
As a player, Klingman was a four-year letterman at Scranton, appearing in 82 games while making 42 starts and totaling 708 points. During his career, the Royals posted 89-25 record, including a mark fo 47-11 in the Landmark Conference. The team won three conference championships and appeared in the NCAA Tournament in each of those seasons, reaching the national quarterfinals in 2012.
Klingman is the program’s all-time leader in three-point field goal percentage (.507) and 10th in three-point field goals made (138). He led the Landmark Conference in three-point field goal percentage as a junior and senior where he led all active players in Division III in career three-point field goal percentage.
A team captain as a senior, Klingman earned All-Landmark Conference Second Team honors and shared the John “Les” Dickman Award as the team’s most valuable player. That year, he scored 12 points in Scranton’s 76-65 victory at Catholic in the Landmark Conference championship game on Feb. 28, 2015 as the Royals won their second consecutive title. He then added 11 points in the Royals’ 72-62 victory over Baruch in the NCAA First Round.
Klingman had a breakout season as junior, averaging a career-best 11.8 points in 28 games after seeing action in 25 games his first two seasons. He started 18 of the team’s final 19 games and scored a career-high 23 points, including 7-of-8 shooting from three-point range, in an 80-71 victory at Catholic on Feb. 15, 2014. He shot 56.5 percent from three-point range, breaking Al Callejas’ 15-year old program record for three-point field goal percentage in a season.
Klingman was also a three-year member of the Scranton baseball team from 2012-14.
A native of Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, Klingman is the son of former Scranton men’s soccer coach and current associate director of athletics Stephen Klingman and former women’s basketball standout Deanna (Kyle) Klingman who was named the 1985 NCAA Division III Player of the Year. His brother, Derek, was a member of the Royals’ men’s soccer team and his sister, Kelly, played on the women’s soccer team from 2001-04. Meanwhile, his brother, Colin, has started 47 of the team’s 48 games for the Ursinus men’s soccer team over the last three seasons.
http://www.catholicathletics.com/sports/mbkb/2019-20/releases/20190712okhaf6
