University of South Alabama men’s basketball head coach Matthew Graves has named former Eastern Illinois assistant Dan Matic to the Jaguars’ coaching staff.
The hire completes Graves’ staff, following the announcements of Darnell Archey and Ronald Nored earlier in the month.
“I am excited that Dan Matic will be joining the staff at South Alabama as he brings a vast array of connections not only throughout the U.S., but internationally as well,” Graves said. “He has a passion for the game and is a relentless recruiter.”
A Brooklyn, New York native, Matic spent the 2012-13 season at Eastern Illinois, serving as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. One of his recruits, Alex Austin, led all Ohio Valley Conference freshmen in scoring, and the Panthers qualified for the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament for the first time in three years.
“I am really excited to join the South Alabama family and be part of the new and exciting things to come in the future,” Matic said. “I have known Coach Graves for some time now and really respect how he does things and the things that he stands for. I believe that the product we will put on the floor will be one that our community will be proud of. I believe that coach Graves has a clear vision of where he wants to take the program and I am really excited that he asked me to be part of it.”
Prior to his time at EIU, Matic was an assistant at Olney Central College in Olney, Ill. In his one season at OCC, the Blue Knights won 27 games and won the Great Rivers Athletic Conference championship for the first time in 14 years. Matic helped guide Trivante Bloodman to player of the year honors in the GRAC and the team finished second in the NJCAA Region 24 Tournament. The second-place finish was the school’s best since 1994.
Five players from that team went on to play at a NCAA Division I institution, including Bloodman, who signed with Mississippi State.
Matic worked as a video coordinator for USA Basketball in 2009, where he accompanied the team to the World University Games in Serbia. Team USA, led by Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan, took home a bronze medal. Matic moved on to Wisconsin-Milwaukee for two seasons, serving as a graduate assistant and academic mentor.
His work with UW Milwaukee helped Tony Meier receive Division I-AAA Athletics Directors Association Scholar-Athlete recognition and the team improved its GPA from 2.1 to 2.9.
On the court, the Panthers won the Horizon League in 2011 and participated in the NIT.
Matic started his coaching career in 2001 with AAU team Team Takeover of New York City. In six years as head coach, he led the squad to a sixth-place finish at AAU nationals and had 16 players earn Division I scholarships, including Devin Ebanks (West Virginia/Los Angeles Lakers) and Ed Davis (North Carolina/Toronto Raptors).
As a player, Matic lettered four years at Trinity International before playing professionally in Cyprus. He returned to his alma mater and joined the coaching staff in 2008.
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