Men’s basketball adds assistant coach
Ron Coleman joins assistant coaches Brendan Mullins and Deon Thomas on the Flames’ basketball staff.
UIC head men’s basketball coach Steve McClain finalized his coaching staff with the hiring of assistant coach Ron Coleman, former Bradley assistant head coach.
Coleman joins assistant coaches Brendan Mullins and Deon Thomas.
“I am truly excited to have Ron on our staff,” McClain said. “His knowledge of the Chicagoland area and his coaching expertise make him a great addition to our program.”
Coleman comes to UIC after three seasons at Bradley. In his first year with the Braves, Coleman helped Bradley reach the third round of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament and post an overall record of 18-17, the program’s first over-.500 mark in three years.
Before joining Bradley, Coleman was assistant coach at Colorado State under head coach Tim Miles. After one year, Miles brought Coleman with him to Nebraska as director of player development.
In his only season at CSU, Coleman helped pilot the 2011-12 Rams to their first NCAA Tournament since 2003. Colorado State earned an at-large bid and finished the year 20-12, the program’s first 20-win campaign in 14 seasons. Coleman helped develop three All-Mountain West players, including first-team member Wes Eikmeier.
Before entering the collegiate ranks, Coleman was head coach for the Mac Irvin Fire AAU squad from 2005-11, where he led the program to become one of the top AAU teams in the country.
Coleman coached Illinois prep hoops for Benjamin E. Hayes Academy and Whitney Young High School. In 2006, he directed Benjamin E. Hayes to an unblemished 35-0 record and a District 299 City Championship before moving to Whitney Young as associate head coach. From 2007 to 2011, Coleman helped guide the Dolphins to four consecutive top 25 national finishes and an IHSA state title in 2008-2009.
The Chicago native played high school ball at Chicago’s South Shore Career Academy before competing for Weber State and Lamar. Coleman spent his first season at Weber State, playing 25 games as a freshman. During his three seasons at Lamar, Coleman earned three consecutive first-team All-Sun Belt honors after leading the Cardinals in scoring each season. His 1,316 career points rank 11th all-time on Lamar’s career scoring list.
Coleman had a seven-year professional basketball career with the NBA’s Houston Rockets, the CBA’s Grand Rapids Hoops, and overseas in Finland and Latvia.
