COACHING STAFF Coaching Staff
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COACHING STAFF Coaching Staff BLUEJAY BASKETBALL 11 HEAD COACH DANA ALTMAN Dana Altman Head Coach - 14th Season at Creighton Dana A l t m a n qualifier George Mason. That team finished tied for The Dana Altman File enters his 14th second in the MVC, which gained national attention year at Creighton after ranking as the country’s sixth-best league. with a 260-141 In 2004-05 Altman helped guide a young team Personal record, which back to the Big Dance, thanks to an MVC Tourney • Wife - Reva equates to exactly title victory against Missouri State. The Jays won • Children - Jordan (23), Chase (21), 20 wins per season over the past 13 years. eight straight games down the stretch before losing Spencer (19) and Audra (15) The man who was recently named a coach on a 63-61 nailbiter to eventual Elite Eight qualifier • Date of Birth - June 16, 1958 the MVC Men’s Basketball Centennial Team has led West Virginia in the first round of the NCAA’s. • Hometown - Wilber, Neb. Creighton to a league-record nine straight seasons In 2003-04, Creighton started 12-0 (the school’s of 20 or more wins, not to mention 10 consecutive best start since 1942-43) and returned to the top 25 Collegiate Coaching Honors postseason tournament appearances. for the second straight year. The accomplishments Creighton University The dean of the Missouri Valley Conference, he earned Altman the collegeinsider.com Jim Phelan • MVC Men’s Basketball Centennial Team Coach ranks third on the coaching victories list in the 101- Mid-Season Coach of the Year award, the latest in • 2004 Collegeinsider.com Jim Phelan Mid-Season year history of The Valley, trailing only Hall of Fame a long line of honors. He now owns regional, district, Coach of the Ye a r coaches Henry Iba and Eddie Hickey. conference or national coach of the year honors in • 2003 Naismith National Coach of the Year Finalist Altman owns a 343-208 career record in 18 10 of his 22 years as a head coach. • 2003 NABC District 12 Coach of the Ye a r years at the Division I level and is 466-232 in 22 The 2003-04 season also saw Creighton move • 2003 USBWA District VI Coach of the Year years overall as a head coach. into the $291 million Qwest Center Omaha in down- • 2002 Rawlings MVC Coach of the Year Altman has guided Creighton to an increase in town Omaha. The Jays averaged 12,016 fans per • 2001 Rawlings MVC Coach of the Year victories in nine of the past 12 years while firmly game in ‘03-04 and have ranked in the top 30 • 1999 NABC District 12 Coach of the Year Kansas State University establishing the Bluejay program on the national nationally in attendance each of the last four years. • 1993 Big Eight Conference Coach of the Year scale. A two-time MVC Coach of the Year (2001 and Marshall University Since coming to Creighton, his athletes have 2002), Altman was a finalist for the prestigious • 1990 Southern Conference Coach of the Year earned five All-American honors on the court and Naismith National Coach of the Year and named the Moberly (Mo.) Junior College four Academic All-America laurels in the classroom. NABC District 12 and USBWA District VI Coach of • 1986 Region 16 Coach of the Year Two players he coached at Creighton, Kyle Korver the Year in 2002-03. • 1986 Finalist, NJCAA Coach of the Year and Rodney Buford, have played in the NBA, while Altman led that 2002-03 squad to a school- • 1985 Region 16 Coach of the Year Anthony Tolliver and Nate Funk from last year’s record 29 wins during a year that most consider Southeast (Neb.) Junior College squad participated in the NBA Summer League and among the best in Bluejay history. A win over • 1983 Neb. State College Coach of the Year will look to join the NBA this winter. Indiana State on Jan. 29, 2003 was his 164th over- • 1983 Region 9 Coach of the Year Altman’s 2006-07 team was nationally-ranked in all at Creighton, passing Arthur A. Schabinger to the preseason and won its sixth MVC Tournament become the school’s all-time winningest coach. Collegiate Playing Experience title in the past nine years with a 67-61 win over #11 In December 2002, Altman directed the • Eastern New Mexico - 1978-80, Guard Southern Illinois. The school finished 13th national- Bluejays into the top 25 for the first time since 1975, ly by averaging a league-record 15,909 fans per climbing as high as ninth in the coaches poll and • Southeast Junior College - 1976-78, Guard game while also playing on TV in 28 of 33 contests. 10th in the Associated Press poll. The Jays Despite season-ending injuries to starting remained in the poll for the final 15 weeks of the College Education guards Nate Funk and Josh Dotzler, Altman’s 2005- season, finishing the season 15th in the AP poll and • Western State University - M.B.A., 1981 06 squad finished 20-10 and reached the final 16 of 23rd in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll. • Eastern New Mexico - B.A., Business, 1980 the National Invitation Tournament. Creighton Altman has led Creighton to 10 straight post- • Southeast J.C. - A.A., Business, 1978 owned wins over three teams that reached the season berths, including seven NCAA Sweet 16, including a 20-point victory at Final Four Tournaments. Along the way, the Jays have estab- first time in 60 years, won the MVC Tournament and lished new school records advanced to the second round of the NCAA for victories in a two-year Tournament with a double-overtime victory over No. (52), three-year (76) and 15 Florida. In the process, he coached an honor- four-year span (99). able-mention All-American and the league’s Player Creighton is one of just nine of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, and members of schools to win 20 or more the Valley’s Most-Improved and All-Bench teams. games each of the last nine His 2000-01 squad tied Creighton’s then-school years, an elite list that also record for wins in a season (24-8) and won its first includes Arizona, Duke, Valley regular season title since 1990-91, while the Florida, Gonzaga, Kansas, 1999-00 team won its first nine games on its way to Kent State, Kentucky and an overall record of 23-10. Syracuse. In 1998-99, Altman earned National Association Creighton’s time in the of Basketball Coaches District 12 Coach of the Year spotlight in recent years is honors after CU went 22-9 and made the second nothing new, but rather the round of the NCAA Tournament. That year, Altman culmination of continued joined Creighton’s Eddie Hickey and Wichita State’s growth in the program. Gene Smithson as the only coaches in MVC histo- Altman’s 2001-02 team ry to have led their teams to improved winning per- won a share of its second centages in five straight seasons. straight MVC title for the 12 CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY HEAD COACH DANA ALTMAN Altman became the 14th head coach in Creighton history following the 1993-94 season after four suc- cessful years as the head coach at Kansas State and a season at Marshall. Hired March 31, 1994, Altman inherited a team that posted a 7-22 ledger the year before his arrival and led the Bluejays to a slightly improved 7-19 record in 1994- 95 before his 1995-96 squad jumped to 14-15. In 1996- 97, Altman’s team was 15-15 and followed with anoth- er substantial jump to 18-10 and a bid to the NIT in 1997-98. But making his teams better is nothing new for the 49-year-old Altman. In his 18 seasons as an NCAA Division I head coach, Altman has led his teams to either an improved overall winning percentage or vic- tory total 15 times. Altman arrived at Creighton after compiling a 68-54 record in four seasons (1990-94) at Kansas State University. During that time, Altman led the Wildcats to three straight postseason tourneys and was named the Big Eight Conference Coach of the Year after leading KSU to a 19-11 record and an appearance at the NCAA Tournament in 1993. Altman’s final Kansas State club turned heads nationally with a 68-64 win at No. 1 Kansas on Jan. 17, 1994. The Wildcats lost their next 30 games to their in- state rival after A l t m a n ’s conquest of the rival The Altman family, from back left: Chase, Spencer, Jordan, Audra, Reva and Dana. Jayhawks. That team eventually advanced to New York City while playing in the Final Four of the NIT. Dana Altman’s Year-by-Year Coaching Ledger Altman’s success at KSU followed him from his ini- tial head coaching job at Southeast Junior College in SEASON SCHOOL RECORD PCT. POSTSEASON Fairbury, Neb. His first team (1982-83) rolled to a 29-6 1982-83 Southeast Junior College (Fairbury, Neb.) 29-6 .829 NJCAA Tournament record and a third-place finish in the junior college 1982-83 Southeast JC total (One season) 29-6 .829 1 NJCAA national tournament and Altman was honored as both 1983-84 Moberly Junior College (Moberly, Mo.) 25-9 .735 -- Region 9 and the Nebraska College Coach of the Year. 1984-85 Moberly Junior College (Moberly, Mo.) 35-5 .875 NJCAA Tournament In 1983, Altman accepted the head coaching posi- tion at Moberly (Mo.) Junior College, where his mar- 1985-86 Moberly Junior College (Moberly, Mo.) 34-4 .895 NJCAA Tournament velous three-year run resulted in a staggering 94-18 1983-86 Moberly JC totals (Three seasons) 94-18 .839 2 NJCAA’s record (25-9 in 1983-84; 35-5 with a third-place finish 1986-87 Kansas State University (assistant coach) 20-11 .645 NCAA Tournament at the national tourney in 1984-85; and a 34-4 mark in 1987-88 Kansas State University (assistant coach) 25-9 .735 NCAA Tournament 1985-86 with a sixth-place finish at nationals).