Had this in the Daily Dirt as a rumor, it’s now official…
Building on the strong tradition of a national power in men’s basketball, Wilkes University has announced the hiring of Izzi Metz as the Colonels new head men’s basketball coach.
Wilkes Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Paul Adams announced Tuesday the selection of Metz to pilot the Colonels following the conclusion of an extensive search process. Metz, a proven winner at Division I Boston College and Division III Hobart, brings a wealth of coaching experience and a high-octane style of play both on the offensive and defensive sides of the court.
"I am thrilled and honored to be the new head men’s basketball coach at Wilkes University," Metz said. "I sincerely appreciate this opportunity given to me by President Patrick Leahy, Vice President Paul Adams, and Athletic Director Addy Malatesta. Wilkes is a tradition rich program that has achieved great regional and national success under Coach Rickrode over the years. I am very excited to start working with our student-athletes to build upon that tradition both on and off the basketball court," he added.
Metz comes to Wilkes after three years at Division I and Atlantic Coast Conference member Boston College starting as the Director of Basketball Operations in 2011 before moving to an assistant coach role this past season. While at Boston College, Metz was instrumental in assisting head coach Steve Donahue in all aspects of the program as the Eagles highlighted this past season with a win against then No. 1 and unbeaten Syracuse University in mid-February.
Prior to his time at Boston College, Metz served five successful seasons as head coach at Division III Hobart College in Geneva, N.Y. During his tenure as the head coach at Hobart, Metz compiled a 69-62 record and guided the Statesmen to a Liberty League regular season championship and ECAC Upstate tournament title in 2010-11. His team finished with a 21-7 mark, setting the school’s single-season record for wins.
In 2009-10, Metz was named Liberty League Coach of the Year as his squad finished 17-11. While at Hobart, Metz’s recruiting classes produced three Liberty League Rookies of the Year and a two-time unanimous All-Liberty League selection.
Metz also served as an assistant coach at Division I Cornell University under Donohue from 2001-06. As an assistant coach at Cornell, Metz played a key role in the program’s resurgence as the Big Red showed steady improvement during his stay earning back-to-back winning seasons in the Ivy League for the first time since 1986-87 and 1987-88.
A 1998 graduate of Hobart with a degree in Economics, Metz played basketball for the Statesmen. Following graduation he joined the coaching staff at Bishop Montgomery High School, just south of his native Los Angeles before moving onto Donohue’s staff at Cornell.
"My excitement for this opportunity at Wilkes only got stronger during the interview process," Metz stated. "The buzz on campus for men’s basketball and Colonel Athletics in general is genuine. Combine that with great people, attractive facilities, and a curriculum that offers diverse majors from Sports Management to Engineering to Pharmacy, I knew Wilkes was a place where we can attract high character student-athletes and win at a high level," he added.
Metz becomes the tenth coach in the program’s 68-year history and just the second in the last twenty-two years after long-time Colonel mentor Jerry Rickrode stepped down to take another role with the University in late February. Metz begins his duties at Wilkes next week.
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