Reading, PA- The Penn St. Berks Athletic Department is excited to announce the hiring of Mike Brandt as the department's new Head Women's Basketball Coach.
Brandt brings over 30 years of coaching experience and over 500 collegiate career wins as a head coach to the women's basketball program. During his coach career, Brandt has spent time at SMU, University of South Carolina Aiken, Minot State, and Northeastern Junior College.
The opportunity to grow the program and the recruiting opportunities the campus provides attracted Brandt to the position.
"When the position opened, I went to the campus and saw that it would be very attractive to recruits," said Brandt. "The campus is well laid out, has good athletic facilities, campus housing, and of course having the Penn State label is a huge bonus. Looking at the past few years, the women's basketball program has had some struggles, so the challenge to build a program really motivates me to bring my absolute best and turn it around."
Brandt was incredibly successful at USC Aiken and is the program's all-time career wins leader with a record of 254-166 and leading the Pacers to the NCAA tournament five times, including three straight appearances from 2011-2013. He guided the Pacers to a program-record 27 wins in 2010-11 and again in 2011-12, winning the Peach Belt Conference Tournament championship in 2012. The Pacers No. 1 regional ranking enabled them to host the program's first ever NCAA Regional Championship. USC Aiken was consistently ranked in the top 25, being ranked as high as #3 in the NCAA Division II national rankings during his tenure. Brandt was on a number of WBCA Committees including the All-America Committee and the USA Today/WBCA Top 25 Committee.
Building relationships and culture are going to be important first steps for Brandt.
"There are a number of items that need to be done as one develops a basketball program, explained Brandt. "Some take a little time, but my number one priority is building the team. This late in the process may be difficult for bringing in many recruits, so I want to meet the current players and the signees for next year. I want them to know my expectations and for them to get a feel for how I will operate our program. On the other hand, I want to learn more about each of them as a person and student-athlete. Also high on the list of priorities is naming a staff, and contacting and meeting the high school and summer basketball coaches in the area."
After his time at USC Aiken, Brandt spent three seasons at SMU as the Associate Head Coach of the Women's Basketball Team. During his tenure, SMU made the 2017 NIT Tournament. The Mustangs had five players earn AAC All-Conference honors during Brandt's coaching tenure.
Brandt gave a sneak peek into the type of team he would like to put on the floor this winter.
"Penn State Berks Women's Basketball will hopefully be known for our outstanding defensive effort, aggressive attacking offense, playing smart with limited mistakes, and winning and losing with class," said Brandt
Brandt's first collegiate coaching job was at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colo. He was named NJCAA District G Coach of the Year in 2002 after leading his team to the Region IX championship. Brandt guided his team to at least 20 wins eight times, including six consecutive seasons, and broke the program's single season wins mark five times. Brandt is also the all-time wins leader at Northeastern, finishing with a 253-129 mark. During his time at Northeastern, he coached five NJCAA All-Americans, 52 academic award winners and numerous all-region players.
"I'm thrilled to welcome a coach with Mike's pedigree to Penn State Berks," said Barry Beal, Penn State Berks Director of Athletics. "His track record speaks for itself. As we moved through the process, it became evident that his vision, coupled with his experience, was the best fit for our women's basketball team."
Brandt will be the third head coach in program history. Kristin Hawley, who led the women's basketball team in the previous 10 seasons, has been promoted to the Assistant Athletic Director for Internal Operations for the Penn State Berks Athletic Department.
Fans can keep up with Penn St. Berks Athletics all season long on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube using the handle @BerksAthletics.
