New Mexico State head men’s basketball coach Chris Jans filled his final assistant coach position with the hiring of David Anwar.
“Coach Anwar brings a wealth of experience to our staff,” Jans remarked. “He is highly regarded in our business and respected for his productivity. Dave possesses a likeable personality and will build lasting relationships with our student-athletes and the NMSU community. I am very excited about Coach Anwar being a big part of our program!”
Anwar comes to Las Cruces after spending the past five seasons at North Texas under Mean Green head coach Tony Benford. There, he served as the team’s lead recruiter since joining Benford’s staff in 2012. While in Denton, Texas, Anwar helped North Texas rake in a top-50 recruiting class for 2013-14.
“I am excited and privileged for the opportunity to work with a great staff led by Coach Jans at New Mexico State University,” remarked Anwar. “Coach Jans is a proven winner and will continue the rich tradition of success at New Mexico State.”
Prior to joining the Mean Green, he spent six years at Nebraska (2006-12) where he worked for Doc Sadler and alongside Benford from 2006-08. Anwar worked mainly with the guards and forwards during his time with the Huskers, guiding them to postseason play in three of his final five campaigns there.
He also played a crucial role in NU earning back-to-back top-25 national ranking in scoring defense (2007-09). His tutelage of the guards saw a huge uptick in shooting beyond the arc for NU. In his first year with the Huskers, Anwar helped the guards knock down 244 triples, good for second-most in program history. During the 2009-10 season, three players shot over 43-percent from 3-point range. Nebraska also set a school record that season with a 39.7-percent shooting from downtown – which was also good for 15th nationally.
Anwar’s presence in the recruiting world is also well-known, landing Nebraska arguably its best recruiting class in the Big 12 era in 2007. That year, The Huskers’ recruiting class was ranked in the top-25 by three major scouting services in ESPN.com’s Bob Gibbons (21st), CSTV.com’s Van Coleman (12th) and HoopScoopOnline.com’s Clark Francis (5th).
No stranger to the Borderlands and Sadler, Anwar served as the director of operations at UTEP under Sadler from 2004-06. Before making his first trip to the Borderlands, Anwar was an assistant coach at Division II University of Arkansas at Fort Smith from 2000-04.
His final three seasons at UAFS was where he and Sadler first paired up. During his time in Fort Smith, Anwar helped the Lions post a 101-29 record in addition to a pair of top-seven national finishes in 2001 (fifth) and 2002 (seventh). UAFS captured the Bi-State Conference East title in each of his final three seasons and produced a multitude of all-conference players. He’s also helped over 20 players get to the Division I level during his time at UAFS.
Anwar’s coaching career started at the prep level in Philadelphia and Massachusetts, where he saw over 40 of his players continue their careers at the Division I or II levels.
The Philadelphia, Pa., native received his bachelor’s degree in special education and sociology from Fitchburg State in 1998 and then tackled on a master’s degree in sports management/sports leadership from VCU in 2004.
http://nmstatesports.com/news/2017/8/2/mens-basketball-anwar-joins-nmstatembb-staff.aspx
