Jamison Rusthoven takes over a program that has won less than a third of its conference games six times in the past seven seasons. |
Saint Mary's (Minn.) athletic director Nikki Fennern knew exactly the fit she was looking for in the school's search for a new head men's basketball coach.
Jamie Rusthoven, meanwhile, knew exactly what he was looking for in his search for a head men's basketball coaching position.
Consider the search over — for both of them.
Rusthoven — who has spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach for the UW-Platteville men's basketball team — was named the Cardinals' newest head men's basketball coach, Fennern announced Monday.
He replaces Todd Landrum, who retired following a
4-21 season. The Cardinals were 34-91 in his five
seasons at the helm.
“I am extremely excited to be Saint Mary's head men's
basketball coach,” said Rusthoven, who takes over for Todd
Landrum, who stepped down following the 2012-13 season. “I
want to thank athletic director Nikki Fennern for this wonderful
opportunity. Her vision and commitment to the university and its
mission is second to none.
“I would also like to thank Brother William for his generous
insight and candor during this process and I truly look forward to
living up to both of their expectations here at SMU. The
opportunity to work with such great coaches, faculty and staff in
such a great community is something my family and I are truly
blessed to have.”
“Coach Rusthoven is a great fit for our men's basketball
program, the athletic department, and Saint Mary's University
— he fits our mission and has been instrumental in the
building and success of several basketball programs,” said
Fennern. “His experiences, coaching philosophy, and education
are instrumental as this university continues developing our men's
basketball program — competitively, academically, and within
the community.
Rusthoven inherits a team that finished 4-21 last season —
but returns a solid nucleus, including two-year starting guard Evan
Pederson and MIAC All-First-Year selection Will Swiggum.
“The opportunity for success is what intrigues me about Saint
Mary's,” Rusthoven said. “Those of us who have followed
the MIAC closely, know that Saint Mary's has a history of competing
hard and having good athletes — that will not change.
“As we move forward, you can be certain we will compete hard
every day — both on and off the court,” added
Rusthoven. “We will respect the opportunity we have to
represent Saint Mary's and the Winona community in everything we
do, and we will be a program that will embrace all of the things it
takes to be successful.”
Rusthoven is no stranger to the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic
Conference. Prior to his three-year stint at UW-Platteville, he
served as an assistant at Hamline for five seasons.
While at Hamline, Rusthoven helped turn the Piper program around.
During the 2009-10 season, Rusthoven helped lead Hamline to their
first winning season since 1992-93, including their first Minnesota
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference playoff appearance since 2006
and then turned around and saw the 2010-11 Pipers finish third in
the regular-season conference standings — including a win
over the No. 1 team in the nation — St. Thomas — and
host their first home playoff game since 1986. While at Hamline,
Rusthoven played an integral part of bringing in four top-ranked
recruiting classes for the Pipers. Under his tutelage, he saw seven
players named to the five-player MIAC All-First-Year Team and 10
players named to the All-MIAC First-Team.
Prior to his time at Hamline, Rusthoven was an assistant at
Minneapolis Community and Technical College for the 2004-2006
seasons. During that time, the team posted a two-year record of
56-8 with two conference championships, one regional championship,
and a national tournament appearance. Rusthoven also spent two
seasons (2001-03) as an assistant at NCAA Division II Concordia-St.
Paul, where he was responsible for Midwest recruiting with an
emphasis on the Twin Cities metro area, as well as running the
Golden Bear Basketball Camps.
Before returning to the college ranks, Rusthoven was the head boy's
basketball coach at the largest high school in Minneapolis —
Minneapolis Southwest — for five seasons (1996-01). During
his time as head coach, Southwest saw some of its most successful
teams, doubling previous win totals. Rusthoven is currently fourth
on the school's all-time winning percentage list. He served as the
school's athletic director from 2002-06.
Rusthoven's early coaching experience includes a conference
championship and two second-place finishes at Osseo (Minn.) High
School (1993-96), as well as time as a student assistant for Clem
Haskins and the 1992-93 NIT-champion Minnesota.
“I am very fortunate to have experienced much success during
my career — whether it was experiencing team success as a
student-athlete at St. Thomas or being an assistant for one of the
most storied programs in all of Division III at UW-Platteville,
said Rusthoven, who played collegiate football at St. Thomas,
earning two varsity letters, a 1990 MIAC championship and a 1990
NCAA Division III final eight appearance. “And each and
everyone of those experiences will play a role in helping our
program move forward.”
Rusthoven earned his bachelor's degree from St. Thomas, and went on
to complete his master's degree in technology from St. Thomas in
1994. He is nearing completion of his doctorate degree in
educational leadership at Hamline.