By AJ Nelson, HoopDirt.com staff writer
Congratulations to the following coaches who have been selected as the Week 4 HoopDirt.com Coach of the Week presented by Just Play Solutions. These coaches are now eligible to receive the HoopDirt.com National Coach of the Year Award presented by Just Play Solutions which will be announced at the conclusion of the 2021-22 college basketball season.
This is the seventh season that HoopDirt.com has run the Coach of the Week and Coach of the Year programs. The list 2021-22 Coach of the Week winners, as well as the list of all-time COY winners can be found following this week’s honorees.
To nominate coaches for future weeks, please email [email protected] with your selection(s).
The Week 4 winners are:
NCAA DI: Ed Cooley – Providence College
With two more wins this week, Coach Cooley has Providence off to its best start since the 2015-16 season. On Wednesday, the Friars trailed Texas Tech by as many as 14 in the first half, but fought back for an impressive 72-68 victory in the Big East-Big 12 Battle. Providence then defeated Rhode Island by a score of 66-52 on Saturday, extending its winning streak to three. Now 8-1 on the season, the Friars will look to keep it rolling when they host Vermont on Tuesday.
NCAA DII: Greg Clink – California State University, Chico
Coach Clink’s No. 8 Wildcats defeated two ranked opponents this week, extending their perfect start to the season. Chico State knocked down a program-record 20 threes in a 99-90 victory at No. 11 Cal State San Bernardino on Thursday, before closing out their three game road trip at 21st-ranked Cal Poly Pomona on Saturday. The Wildcats jumped out to a 13 point halftime lead in the contest, eventually coming away with a 74-64 win to move to 7-0 (3-0 CCAA) on the season. That marks the program’s best start since the 1942-43 season. Chico State returns home to take on Sonoma State in a conference showdown on Saturday night.
NCAA DIII: Tim Fusina – Waynesburg University
Coach Fusina guided Waynesburg to a pair of conference wins this week, propelling the Jackets to a 3-0 start in conference play for the first time since the 1999-2000 season. Waynesburg trailed Grove City by four at halftime on Wednesday, but utilized a 26-1 run over an 11-minute span in the second half to run away with a 62-52 victory. The Jackets then held Franciscan, which entered the contest averaging over 97 points per game, to just 67 in a 75-67 triumph. Now 5-2 overall, Waynesburg is off to its best overall start to a season since the 2006-07 campaign. The Jackets will try to stay hot when they take on Muskingum in a non-conference match-up on Wednesday.
NAIA: Stacy Hollowell – Loyola University New Orleans
Coach Hollowell’s squad picked up two more victories this week, setting a new program record for most consecutive wins to start a season. The 2nd-ranked Wolf Pack began the week by scoring 64 points in the second half of a 95-62 triumph over Dillard on Tuesday. Loyola then hit the road to take on William Carey in a conference match-up on Thursday night. The Wolf Pack came away with a 78-71 victory, improving to 12-0 (3-0 SSAC) for the first time ever and extending the NAIA’s longest active winning streak. They return to action on Thursday night, when they take on LSU – Shreveport on the road.
JUCO: Kyle Taylor – Salt Lake Community College
Coach Taylor led No. 1 Salt Lake Community College to two 40+ point victories this week to improve to a perfect 10-0 on the season. The Bruins scored 76 points in the first half of a 133-79 blowout over Northwest College on Friday. They followed up on that performance by defeating Central Wyoming 126-82 less than 24 hours later. SLCC has topped 100 points in six of their ten wins this season, and have won seven by double-digits. The Bruins will travel to take on the College of Southern Nevada in a conference match-up on Wednesday.
2021-22 HoopDirt.com / Just Play Solutions Coach of the Week Winners
NCAA DI: Gerald Gillion – Chicago State University
NCAA DII: Jeff Brookman – Anderson University
NCAA DIII: Rich Sutter – Westfield State University
NAIA: Kurt Paulson – Carroll College
JUCO: Jeremy Shulman – Eastern Florida State College
NCAA DI: Lamont Paris – Chattanooga
NCAA DII: Bart Lundy – Queens University of Charlotte
NCAA DIII: Chris Carideo – Widener University
NAIA: Chris Wright – Talladega College
JUCO: Allen Sharpe – Wallace State CC
NCAA DI: T.J. Otzelberger – Iowa State
NCAA DII: Todd Duncan – Lubbock Christian University
NCAA DIII: Jeff Brown – Middlebury College
NAIA: Tigh Compton – University of Pikeville
JUCO: Hank Plona – Indian Hills CC
Previous HoopDirt.com Coach of the Year Award Winners:
Division I
- 2020-21: Dennis Gates – Cleveland State University
- 2019-20: Joe Gallo – Merrimack College
- 2018-19: Kelvin Sampson – University of Houston
- 2017-18: Porter Moser – Loyola University Chicago
- 2016-17: Chris Collins – Northwestern University
- 2015-16: Roy Williams – University of North Carolina
Division II
- 2020-21: Ben McCollum – Northwest Missouri State
- 2019-20: Fred Watson – Miles College
- 2018-19: Ben McCollum – Northwest Missouri State
- 2017-18: Andy Bronkema – Ferris State
- 2016-17: Ben McCollum – Northwest Missouri State
- 2015-16: Josh Schertz – Lincoln Memorial University
Division III
- 2020-21: Brooks Miller – Trine University
- 2019-20: Elliot Steinmetz – Yeshiva University
- 2018-19: Dale Wellman – Nebraska Wesleyan University
- 2017-18: Eric Bridgeland – Whitman College
- 2016-17: Stephen Brennan – Babson College
- 2015-16: John Tauer – University of St. Thomas
NAIA
- 2020-21: Delano Thomas – Shawnee State University
- 2019-20: Colby Blaine – College of Idaho
- 2018-19: Chris Briggs – Georgetown College
- 2017-18: Craig Doty – Graceland University
- 2016-17: Kevin Burton – Union College
- 2015-16: Larry Cordaro – LSU-Alexandria
JUCO
- 2020-21: No winner named – COVID season
- 2019-20: Randy Casey – Milwaukee Area Technical College
- 2018-19: Billy Gillispie – Ranger College
- 2017-18: Paul Cisek – Brookdale Community College
- 2016-17: Todd Lorensen – Southwestern Community College
- 2015-16: Craig Doty – Rock Valley College
USCAA
- 2018-19: LeShawn Hammett – Penn State Wilkes-Barre
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About Just Play Solutions
Just Play Solutions has become the market leader in coaches’ workflow. A platform to help coaches prepare playbooks, automate scouting reports, research analytics, integrate and distribute video, manage recruiting workflow, and organize recruiting schedules. The end-to-end platform is used by over 700 customers across the country and internationally in football, basketball, and lacrosse.
