Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff

Get to know the assistant coaches for the men’s basketball team at Mississippi State University

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Tom Izzo

As the Head Coach of the Michigan State University men’s Basketball team Tom Izzo is one of the most well-known and respected figures in the world of collegiate sports. He’s led the Spartans to six NCAA Final Fours, including a National Championship in 2000, and his teams are always among the favorites to make a deep run in the tournament every year. But what else do you know about Coach Izzo? Here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He was born and raised in iron range country in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
2. He played basketball for his High School team, but was never recruited to play at the collegiate level.
3. He started his coaching career as a volunteer assistant at his alma mater, Northern Michigan University
4. He’s been inducted into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the college basketball Hall of Fame
5. In addition to his on-court successes, he’s also known for his scathing commentary on officiating and has been ejected from 11 games over his career.

Get to Know the MSU Basketball staff Dwayne Stephens

Dwayne Stephens is in his second season as an Assistant Coach for the Michigan State men’s basketball team Stephens, a Detroit native, came to Michigan State after serving as an assistant coach at Oakland University for one season. Prior to Oakland, Stephens was an assistant coach at Macomb Community College for two seasons.

Stephens is a 1996 graduate of Detroit Southeastern high school where he was a four-year starter and helped lead the Jungaleers to the Class A state championship as a senior. He played collegiately at GRand Rapids Community College and Oakland University Stephens earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Oakland in 2002.

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Mike Garland

Mike Garland is in his fourth season as an assistant coach for the Michigan State men’s Basketball team He came to MSU after serving as the head coach at Cleveland State for six seasons.

Before taking over at Cleveland State Garland spent 12 seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Purdue University He helped the Boilermakers to four NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearances, five Big Ten regular season titles and three Big Ten Tournament championships.

A native of Chicago, Illinois, Garland played four seasons at Purdue before embarking on his coaching career. He was a member of the Boilermakers’ 1987 NCAA Elite Eight team.

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Doug Wojcik

Doug Wojcik enters his first season as an assistant basketball coach at Michigan State Wojcik comes to the Spartans after spending the previous five seasons as the Head Coach at Tulsa, where he guided the Golden Hurricane to a potential NCAA tournament berth in 2013. Wojcik has also served as a Head coach at the University of South Carolina Upstate and College of Charleston

Wojcik is a 1990 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, where he played four years of basketball for legendary head coach Paul Evans. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Navy from 1990-96 before moving on to Virginia Commonwealth for one season (1996-97). Wojcik then spent 12 seasons (1997-2009) as an assistant under current Boston College head coach Steve Donahue at Cornell and Pennsylvania, helping the Big Red to three Ivy League titles and two NCAA Tournament appearances.

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Dave Hopla

Dave Hopla is in his third season as head coach Tom Izzo’s shooting coach

A Flint, Michigan, native who graduated from Michigan State in 1986 with a degree in advertising, Hopla was a three-time All-American shooting specialist at MSU. He still holds the Spartan record for career free throw percentage at 86.8 percent (232 of 266), and his .917 free throw percentage in 1985-86 (52 of 57) is the second best single-season mark in school history.

Coach Hopla also held MSU’s season three-point field goal percentage record (.444 in 1986-87) until it was broken by Pomarie Christlieb last year. His .437 career three-point field goal percentage (67 of 153) is still the fourth best mark in school history.

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Jim Boylen

Jim Boylen is in his first season as Michigan State’s head coach He was hired on April Fool’s Day, following Tom Izzo’s retirement announcement.

Boylen, who played at the University of Notre Dame and has coached in the NBA for two decades, is known for his tough, defensive-minded style of play. He inherits a Michigan State team that finished last season with a 15-13 record and missed the NCAA tournament for the first time in 19 years.

The Spartans are currently 9-7 overall and 2-5 in the Big Ten They’ll look to get back on track when they host No. 9 Maryland on Thursday night

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Mark Montgomery

Mark Montgomery is in his ninth season as an assistant coach for the Michigan State men’s basketball team He has helped the Spartans to eight NCAA tournament appearances, including five Sweet Sixteens and two Final Fours, during his time on Tom Izzo’s staff.

A native of Flint, Mich., Montgomery played collegiately at Northwestern from 1988-92. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Northwestern in 1992-93 before serving as an assistant coach at Northern Illinois for two seasons (1993-95). Montgomery then returned to his alma mater, Northwestern, where he served as an Assistant Coach for five seasons (1995-2000).

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Mike Trgovac

MSU basketball’s Mike Trgovac is in his first season as an assistant coach He has more than 20 years of experience coaching at the collegiate and professional levels. Prior to joining MSU, he was the head coach at Siena Heights University for four seasons. Trgovac is originally from Detroit, Michigan, and he played basketball at the University of Detroit Mercy

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Dan Dakich

Dan Dakich is in his first season as an assistant coach for the Michigan State men’s basketball team Prior to joining the Spartans, he spent four seasons as Head Coach at Bowling Green State University

Dakich, a native of Zanesville, Ohio, began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Ohio State in 1984-85. He then spent one season (1985-86) as an assistant coach at Indiana before returning to Ohio State as an assistant for four seasons (1986-90). Dakich helped the Buckeyes to four NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Final Four in 1987.

Get to Know the MSU Basketball Staff: Mateen Cleaves

Mateen Cleaves is one of the most decorated players in Michigan State basketball history. A Flint, Michigan native, he played point guard for the Spartans from 1996-2000. During his time at MSU, Cleaves led the Spartans to a National Championship in 2000 and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four. He was a two-time First Team All-American and a three-time First Team All-Big Ten selection. His number 12 jersey was retired by MSU in 2003.

Since his playing days, Cleaves has remained involved with MSU Basketball. He served as an assistant coach for the Spartans during the 2014-15 season and has been a part of the Spartan radio network broadcast team since 2015.