MSU Denver men’s basketball coach Dan Ficke has announced the addition of two assistant coaches to his staff for the 2024-25 season.
Dwight Thorne joins MSU Denver after being an assistant coach at Division I Texas-Arlington, while Malik Tucker joins the Roadrunners after playing for and coaching with Ficke at Belmont Abbey (N.C.).
“I am pleased to announce the hiring of Malik Tucker and Dwight Thorne to our coaching staff,” Ficke said. “They will be great additions not only to our program but also to our athletic department and the MSU Denver community. Coach Thorne and Coach Tucker are men of high character who have great basketball minds, a tireless work ethic, and a passion for teaching and coaching young people. They will have an immediate impact on our program on and off the court.”
Thorne spent two years at Texas-Arlington after five years at Denver University, where he and Ficke were on the same staff for the Pioneers. In Thorne’s first three years at Denver, he was the program’s director of operations and video coordinator. Thorne was also a graduate assistant at Georgia Tech during the 2015-16 season. Thorne played four seasons professionally in Greece, Croatia and Germany as well as in the NBA Developmental League. He played collegiately at Colorado, where the 6-foot-3 guard had career totals of 750 points, 234 rebounds and 160 assists in 117 career games. He averaged 18.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists a game as a senior at Martin High School in Arlington, Texas. Thorne’s cousin, Acie Law IV, played in the NBA, and his great uncle is baseball Hall of Famer Ernie Banks.
“Coach Thorne is a tremendous addition to our staff,” Ficke said. “He very good coach with a high basketball IQ. He brings a wealth of experience to our program from his time as a player, assistant coach at the Division I level, and as a head coach for Team Colorado and Team Diesel in The Basketball Tournament. He is a proven recruiter and developer of student-athletes on and off the court. He has helped multiple players reach the professional level both in Europe and the NBA.”
Tucker spent the 2023-24 season as an assistant coach at Belmont Abbey, after two seasons as a student assistant for the program. The 6-5 guard played two seasons for Ficke’s Crusaders, where he was also a teammate of Mario Lacy, Jr., who played his senior season (2023-24) for Ficke and MSU Denver. Tucker averaged 4.0 points and 4.1 rebounds for Belmont Abbey’s 18-5 team in 2020-21. In two seasons he had 98 points and 95 rebounds in 29 games. As a senior at Columbia (S.C.) Cardinal Newman High School, Tucker was a 2018-19 all-state player while leading his team to a 25-5 record.
“I am very excited to add Coach Tucker to our staff,” Ficke said. “I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to coach Malik at Belmont Abbey and have him as a member of our staff as a student assistant. He is a bright young coach with a championship pedigree. As a player and student assistant he was an integral part of our three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances and two conference championships. He has a relentless work ethic, always puts the program first, and will be a great mentor to our student-athletes.”
Thorne, Tucker join MSU Denver Basketball Staff
