Utah Valley Hires Mark Madsen As Head Basketball Coach
Apr 14, 2019, 3:18 PM | Updated: Apr 15, 2019, 11:01 am
OREM, Utah – Utah Valley University announced that Mark Madsen will be the next head basketball coach.
Madsen will replace Mark Pope, who left the program after four years to become the BYU basketball coach.
He was recently an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA before head coach Luke Walton and the Lakers mutually parted ways.
Madsen played in the NBA for the Lakers from 2000-03 and won two championships. He also played for the Minnesota Timberwolves from 2003-09. The Walnut Creek, California native began his coaching career in 2009 as an assistant coach for the Utah Flash of the NBA Development League from 2009-10 before going to his alma mater Stanford as an assistant for one season. He was with the Los Angeles Defenders in 2013 and then joined the Lakers coaching staff that same year from 2013 to this season.
“Mark Madsen has reached the pinnacle of his sport as an NBA champion — not once, but twice. He knows what it takes to succeed in basketball and in life,” said Astrid S. Tuminez, president of UVU. “Off the court, Coach Madsen earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA before launching an extensive coaching career. With his strengths and experience, he will inspire our student-athletes in and out of competition, and will help us build even stronger relationships with our broader UVU community.”
MBB | Mark Madsen to be named the new men’s basketball head coach at UVU.
Story: https://t.co/wzxNf3CeOk#GoUVU #UVU #WAC pic.twitter.com/1WmYSO4Pto
— UVU Athletics (@GoUVU) April 14, 2019
The Wolverines finished the 2018-19 season with a 25-10 record and was eliminated in the second round of the CBI.
“Utah Valley University is an amazing institution, and I’m excited to be the new head coach at the largest and fastest-growing school in the state of Utah,” said Madsen. “I love the mission that President Tuminez has put forth for the university, and I am excited to be a part of it. I can’t wait to get to work and start helping our players achieve their goals.”
