The Winona State men’s basketball program has added two assistant coaches to the Warrior staff, as announced by head coach Todd Eisner.
Former Winona State standout Devin Whitelow and former Wisconsin Eau Claire All-WIAC performer Cole Rabedeaux have joined the WSU ranks. Whitelow, a NSIC Don Olson Award winner at Winona State. Rabedeaux owns the all-time Blugold record for 3-pointers made and earned both all-league and All-Region honors in 2019.
Head coach Todd Eisner, “I am really excited about the additions of Dev and Cole to our Warrior Basketball coaching staff. Both expressed to me a strong desire to be at Winona State to help move our program forward and each have a great energy and enthusiasm for recruiting the type of student-athletes needed to be successful in the classroom and in the NSIC, which is the best Division II men’s basketball conference in the country! Both these young men were very impressive when I visited with them during and after the NCAA Division I Final Four about what they will bring to our program to help our players have the best possible student-athlete experience during the players’ time at Winona State. I know both guys will work tirelessly to maximize every opportunity we have to get the Warriors back to the NCAA Division II National Tournament!”
Whitelow returns to McCown Gymnasium having spent the past two years at league-rival Augustana University. Whitelow was a part of a Viking staff that qualified for the 2022-23 NSIC postseason. A Peoria, Illinois product who played at Washington High School, Whitelow set a NCAA Division II record in assist/turnover ratio (5.96) in his sophomore year at WSU.
Eisner on Whitelow: “Dev was a special person and player during his time as a student-athlete at WSU. As a coach, he was everything you want in a point guard, in terms of leadership, toughness, commitment, and competitiveness. Dev was always an extension of the coaching staff as a player and now he gets the opportunity to use those same “championship intangibles” to help his alma mater make the necessary strides to be one of the best programs in the NSIC.” Eisner went on to note, “Dev knows WSU and has a great pride in our basketball program that will continue to rub off on everyone he comes in contact with. Dev was the ultimate connector when he played and I know he will do the same thing as a coach with our players, our recruits and their families, the campus community and the Winona community. Dev has a really bright future in the coaching profession!”
Rabedeaux comes to Winona State from NCAA Division I University of Houston, where he served as a graduate assistant coach for the Cougars, a program which reached the NCAA Tournament in both seasons the Poulsbo, Wash. product was on staff. UH reached the NCAA Division I Sweet 16 in the 2022-23 campaign under head coach Kelvin Sampson.
Rabedeaux began his playing career at Peninsula College in 2016 and transferred to University of Wisconsin Eau Claire in 2017. While at UWEC, Rabedeaux earned 2019 and 2020 First Team All WIAC honors. Rabedeaux owns the UW-Eau Claire School record three-pointers made in a game (11) and was named to the 2020 NABC All-District 2nd Team. Rabedeaux ranks No. 17 all-time in career points scored at UW-EC (1,163) and is fourth all time in points per game (19.3 ppg).
Eisner on Rabedeaux: “Cole came highly recommended to me by numerous people that have been very successful in the college game. Coach Siverling at UW-Eau Claire spoke glowingly of Cole as a person and the high level of basketball IQ that he displayed as a player during his time there and always felt like he was going to be an outstanding college basketball coach.” Eisner also said, “I had several people reach out to me at the Final Four in Houston in April and strongly recommended that I take the time to meet with Cole. I was very impressed with his presence as we talked as he displayed a confidence not seen often in young coaches. I also had the opportunity to speak a couple time with Coach Sampson at the University of Houston about Cole and he was so complimentary of the work Cole did as the graduate assistant the last two years. I believe Cole is going to be outstanding on our staff and I can tell already by his interactions with our players that he will fit in great with Warrior Basketball!”
