Men's Basketball Coaches
Kevin Schlagel
Head Men's Basketball Coach
Kevin Schlagel has been associated with the St. Cloud State basketball program for much of his adult life, first as a player, followed by 18 years as the top assistant, and then in 1997 being named the head coach of Husky Basketball.
Husky basketball has had a steady presence in the upper Midwest and more recently on the national scene. During the 2009-10 season, St. Cloud State produced the most successful season in its history. The Huskies won a school record 29 games and advanced to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight Final Four.
To get there, St. Cloud State posted a 16-4 record in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) games to finish second in the league standings. The Huskies went on to host the NSIC/Sanford Health Men’s Basketball Tournament, won the title with
wins over Concordia-St. Paul, Wayne State, and Southwest Minnesota State.
The NSIC tournament championship was the second straight for the Huskies and automatically put the team in the NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament. Three wins later the fourth seeded Huskies captured the Central Region title with wins over Metro State, Minnesota State, Mankato, and an overtime thriller, 84-75 over Augustana College in the Champoinship game.
They were on their way to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight in Springfield, Mass.
The Huskies won their quarterfinal match-up over Midwestern State (Texas) University, 92-88, behind one of the greatest Elite Eight performances by an individual player.
Junior guard Taylor Witt scored 43 points, 38 in the second half and made 22 of 23 free throw attempts to carry the Huskies into the Final Four.
The season came to an end on March 25 in a nationally televised loss to Indiana (Pa.), 76-70 in the semi finals.
It is appropriate that Schlagel became the winningest head coach in St. Cloud State men’s basketball on Feb. 21, 2009 when he captured his 232nd career win in an 80-74 win at Minnesota, Crookston.
His pride in SCSU basketball is evident in his successful background and displayed by the way in which he has led the program year after year. Schlagel’s teams have won 17 or more games 12 times during his 13-year tenure and have been 20-game winners on seven occasions.
Since Schlagel was named head coach at SCSU, the Huskies have compiled a 266-118 overall record. Along the way, SCSU has won a North Central Conference regular season title in 2002-03 (the first since the Huskies’ triple crown in 1986, 1987 and 1988), has been selected for NCAA tournament play seven times since 2000 (2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010), and the Huskies won the NCC Wells Fargo Finals tournament twice in the tournament’s five-year history.
During the 2008-09 season, St. Cloud State’s first as a member of the NSIC, Schlagel’s squad finished third in the regular season and went on to claim the 2009 NSIC Sanford Health Tournament Championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
In NCAA tournament games, Schlagel’s troops have advanced to the regional finals in 2001 and won the region title in 2010, and also collected a first round win in 2003. In addition, his players have consistently been recognized for excellence throughout his tenure.
During the 2009-10 season, senior Matt Schneck won nearly every honor possible as he led the Huskies to the Final Four. He was named the NSIC Player of the Year, First Team All-NSIC, the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament MVP, Central Region Tournament Most Outstanding Player, NABC All-District First Team, and Daktronics All-Central Region First Team.
He culminated his career by being named to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight All-Tournament Team and three All-American Teams, as he was an NABC and Division II Bulletin First Team All-American and Daktronics Third Team All-American.
For four straight years and five times since 2000, a Schlagel coached player has been named the NCC Defensive Player of the Year. In 2005, outgoing senior Steve Trull earned the honor, following in the footsteps of Alex Carlson (2004) and Jason Kron (2000, 2002, 2003).
In addition, the Huskies have gained several other league honors as Forrest Witt was named the MVP of the Wells Fargo Finals in 2001 and 2003.Witt’s younger brother Taylor, continued the tradition winning MVP honors in the 2009 NSIC Sanford Health Tournament.
In the 1998-99 season, Rado Rancik was voted the NCC Freshman of the Year.
To complete the scene, in 1997-98 Jon Hinzman earned All-America and NCC Most Valuable Player honors.
Schlagel was an assistant coach for former head coaches Butch Raymond, Sam Skarich and Noel Olson, Schlagel has been on the coaching staff at St. Cloud State since 1980.
He started his association with the SCSU program in 1972 as a player for Olson. As a senior, Schlagel helped guide SCSU to a Northern Intercollegiate Conference title in 1975-76.
Following his graduation in 1976, Schlagel was the head basketball coach at Shellsburg (Iowa) High School from 1977-80. He returned as an assistant to Olson and has since been a vital member of the Husky coaching staff since 1980 - including an 11-game stretch in 1983-84 when Schlagel served as the interim head coach.
As an assistant to Raymond, Schlagel served as the recruiting coordinator and director of operations and player personnel for the Huskies. From 1985-1988, Schlagel was part of SCSU’s triple crown in the North Central Conference as the Huskies won three consecutive conference titles.
The Huskies posted a 76-15 record during those three campaigns and also advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs in each of those seasons. In 1986-87, the Huskies advanced to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA playoffs for the first time in school history.
Schlagel believes his tenure at SCSU has provided him with the experience necessary to be successful as a collegiate head coach. “I have had a great experience at St. Cloud State,” Schlagel noted, “I have learned a lot about basketball from the coaches I have worked with and one of those things is to have fun within the game.”
“Our goal every season is to win a conference title and qualify for the NCAA playoffs. In order to accomplish those goals, the first step is to play to our potential every time we hit the court. I want our players to know that when we walk into the locker room after the game, we gave our best effort.”
Schlagel hopes to build on the success that made SCSU one of the elite programs in the NCC, as they begin their tenure in the NSIC. His game plan will center on an up-tempo style of play - one that has been a trademark of Husky basketball.
“We like to be up-tempo and aggressive in our style of play,” Schlagel said. “On offense and defense, we will be looking to force the action as much as possible.”
To fill his roster each season, Schlagel will be looking for talented student-athletes.
“When it comes to recruiting, we will be looking for quality student-athletes who have demonstrated good citizenship throughout their high school and collegiate careers.”
A native of Rush City, Minn., Schlagel played basketball and baseball at Rush City High School. Schlagel and his wife Pam reside in St. Cloud. Daughter Leah is a student at St. Cloud State.
| Year | Overall | NSIC/NCC |
|---|---|---|
| 2009-10 | 29-6 | 16-4^*%+! |
| 2008-09 | 22-9 | 14-6^ |
| 2007-08 | 17-11 | 5-7 |
| 2006-07 | 19-11 | 7-5* |
| 2005-06 | 20-11 | 8-4* |
| 2004-05 | 21-8 | 7-5 |
| 2003-04 | 17-11 | 7-7 |
| 2002-03 | 26-5 | 13-3*%$@ |
| 2001-02 | 21-7 | 12-6 |
| 2000-01 | 25-6 | 13-5*#$ |
| 1999-00 | 18-10 | 10-8* |
| 1998-99 | 14-13 | 8-10 |
| 1997-98 | 17-10 | 12-6 |
| Total | 266-118 | 132-76 |
^NSIC Tournament Champs / @ NCC Champs |
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