Western Oregon men’s head basketball coach Jim Shaw has announced a pair of additions to his staff for the upcoming 2016-17 season.
Shaw has tabbed Gage Aker and Zach Payne as assistant coaches for the Wolves.
“We’re excited about adding two great coaches to our staff in Gage and Zach,” Shaw said.
Aker comes to Western Oregon after spending the past two years as an assistant coach at Montana State-Northern, under head coach Shawn Huse. At MSUN, Aker’s main responsibilities included scouting, recruiting, player development and operational aspects of running the program. During his tenure at MSUN, Aker was instrumental in preparing back-to-back Frontier Conference scoring defense titles for the Northern Lights.
Prior to MSUN, he spent two seasons as an Assistant Coach at his alma mater, Concordia University-Portland, under head coach Brad Barbarick. In 2014, Concordia advanced to the NAIA Division II National Tournament for the first time in ten seasons.
During his playing days, Aker was an All-Cascade Collegiate Conference point guard for the Cavaliers, where he still ranks in the top ten in numerous statistical categories. He also played baseball for Concordia for two seasons, where as a relief pitcher he helped the 2013 team win the NAIA West Championship and advance to the NAIA National Tournament. Coach Aker received the prestigious NAIA Champions of Character award as a member of the 2013 Concordia University Baseball team.
Coach Aker graduated from Wilson High School (Portland, Oregon) in 2008 where he earned First Team All-Portland Interscholastic League honors while playing for his father, Scott Aker. Aker earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a minor in Mathematics from Concordia in 2013 and a Master’s Degree in Education: Instruction and Learning at MSUN in 2016.
“Gage is an outstanding person who has tremendous personal character,” Shaw said. “He comes from a basketball home and family, and is an extremely well-rounded person and coach.”
Payne will join the WOU men’s basketball staff after three years as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Whitworth University in Spokane, Wash. Over the three year span, Payne coached the post players for a program that went 74-12, won three NWC league titles, three NWC tournament titles and advance to the NCAA Division III tournament each season. His responsibilities included post player development, recruiting, scouting, academic success and operational aspects.
Coach Payne graduated from De La Salle High School (Concord, Calif.) where he earned East County All-Star honors for the nation’s 24th-ranked prep team. He played two seasons at Diablo Valley College, helping the team get to the California Elite Eight in his sophomore year. Payne played in all 30 of the Pirates’ games in his senior season (2012-13), averaging nearly 16 minutes, five points and three rebounds per contest. He graduated from Whitworth in 2014 with a bachelor of art degree in business administration.
“Zach comes from a GREAT program at Whitworth,” Shaw said. “He has played and coached for/with outstanding coaches in Frank Allocco, Steve Coccimiglio and Matt Logie. He has an extensive background working with post players and his ties to Northern California will expand our focus area in recruiting.
Aker and Payne join assistant coach Josh Reber to comprise Shaw’s staff for the 2016-17 campaign, which officially begins Nov. 11 in the GNAC/PacWest Challenge against Point Loma in Fresno, Calif.
http://www.wouwolves.com/news/2016/9/14/basketball-m-shaw-announces-mbb-staff-additions.aspx
