Since taking the reins of the Army men's basketball program on Oct. 3, 2009, Zach Spiker has already guided the Black Knights to several milestones, some of which have not been seen in at West Point in decades.
Spiker is the first Army coach in more than 25 years to win 37 games in his first three seasons, and his 25 wins through his first two campaigns were the most by a Black Knight sideline boss since Mike Kyrzyzewski. He became the fastest Army coach to the 20-win mark since Krzyzewski won 20 of his first 36 games at West Point.
In addition to the team's overall mark, Spiker has put his stamp on the Army-Navy rivalry. The Black Knights 2010 "Star Game" victory was the program's first since 2002, and their 2012 win marked the first time Army has won two stars in a three-year period in the last 20 seasons. Spiker's teams have won three of the last five match ups with their arch rival, including a two-game sweep in 2011-12, the Black Knights' first season series victory since winning both match ups in 1991-92.
The Morgantown, W.Va., native has also guided the Black Knights to unprecedented success in the Patriot League. Spiker's three-year conference win total is higher than any of Army's previous coaches since joining the Patriot League in 1990. His teams have produced such signature wins as a 20-point victory over 2011 champion Bucknell, the Bison's only conference loss that season, and back-to-back road wins at Colgate for the first time in league play and a first for the program overall in nearly 40 years.
Spiker's first team at West Point posted a 14-15 overall record, matching or surpassing the Black Knights' win total in 22 of the previous 23 seasons. The Black Knights' first-year mentor posted the most wins by an Army men's basketball coach in their inaugural season at West Point since the legendary Bob Knight won 18 games in 1965-66, and Army's nine Division I non-conference victories were the most since the program joined a conference in 1981.
Through the first 24 seasons with the three-point shot, Army's team record stood at 188, but under Spiker's tutelage, the Black Knights have made more than 200 three-pointers in each of the last two seasons, including an Academy record 264 in 2010-11. Army has scored more than 2,000 points and averaged at least 67 points per game in each of the last two campaigns, a first for the program since the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons.
Spiker's system has produced several individual milestones as well. In his first three seasons both Julian Simmons and Ella Ellis scored more than 1,000 points, while Ellis became just the second player in Army history to produce multiple seasons with at least 400 points, 100 rebounds and 50 assists. In 2011-12, Ellis was Army's first NABC All-District selection since 1995, and the Black Knights' first All-Patriot League First Team selection since 2008. 2011 Patriot League All-Rookie Team selection Josh Herbeck enters his junior season with 113 three-pointers, the most by any Army player in their first two campaigns.
Through three seasons, Spiker has not been afraid to utilize freshmen. For the first time in 13 years, the Black Knights have placed a player on the Patriot League All-Rookie Team in consecutive seasons (Herbeck, 2011; Maxwell Lenox, 2012). In 2011-12, Army had two different plebes earn the Patriot League Rookie of the Week honor in the same season since 2006-07. Lenox's team-high 96 assists were the most by an Army freshman since 2000-01. In addition to leading the team in steals, Lenox was Army's highest-scoring plebe since 2008-09.
Spiker's charges have also excelled in the classroom. Nate Hedgecock was Army's first Academic All-America selection in 22 seasons, earning second-team honors in 2011, and became the first Black Knight to win the Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year award. In the Fall 2011 semester, Army placed four players on the dean's list and boasted another three players with at least a 2.7 grade point average for the semester.
Prior to his arrival at West Point, Spiker was one of the architects behind the recent resurgence of the men's basketball program at Cornell University. Spiker served as an assistant under former Big Red head coach Steve Donahue for five years, helping the program to upper-division finishes in the Ivy League during each of his five seasons.
Spiker was instrumental in helping Cornell's recruiting efforts that culminated in the Big Red winning three consecutive Ivy League titles (2008-10), including two with Spiker on the staff. It marked the first back-to-back league titles for Cornell in school history and the first time a team other than Pennsylvania or Princeton copped consecutive Ivy League championships. The core group that arrived in Ithaca during Spiker's tenure went on to win two games in the 2010 NCAA Tournament, becoming the first Ivy League squad to advance to the Sweet 16 in 31 years.
With Spiker on the sidelines alongside Donahue, Cornell had the most successful consecutive seasons in school history. After establishing school records for victories (22) and consecutive wins (16), points (2136), three-point field goals made (228) and highest free-throw percentage (.761) during the 2007-08 season, the Big Red set school records for points (2281), three-point field goals made (241) and blocked shots (121) in 2008-09.
After registering a 22-6 overall record in 2007-08 (and a perfect 14-0 Ivy mark), the Big Red posted a 21-10 slate in 2008-09, closing out consecutive 20-win seasons for the first time in school history. Cornell won the Ivy League championship by three games and tied a school record with a perfect 13-0 home record, extending its home winning streak to a school-record 21 games (the third-longest active streak in the country). Louis Dale and Ryan Wittman repeated as first-team All-Ivy League selections, while Jeff Foote was named the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year and was a second-team all-league selection. Chris Wroblewski earned Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors, marking the third time in four years a Cornell player was presented with the award. Wroblewski, who was a three-time All-Ivy League pick, finished his career as a member of Cornell's 1,000-point club and the Big Red's all-time assist leader, while Foote has played in the NBA Developmental League and earned a contract with the New Orleans Hornets in March 2012. Spiker played a large role in recruiting all those players to Cornell.
Spiker had helped Cornell to its first Ivy League title in 20 years in 2007-08 as Cornell became the 13th team in league history to go unbeaten in conference action (14-0). Four Big Red players were named to the All-Ivy League team, including conference Player of the Year Louis Dale. Dale became the second Big Red player to earn the honor, and the second sophomore in league history to capture the award. He was joined as a unanimous first-team all-league selection by classmate Ryan Wittman. Jeff Foote and Adam Gore were also second-team picks.
During Spiker's five-year tenure at Cornell, the Big Red notched a 50-20 Ivy League record. That stands as the best mark among Ivy League teams in that time. The Big Red finished no lower than third in the conference standings over that stretch. In the previous five seasons, Cornell posted a 20-50 record in conference play.
Spiker was part of a 2006-07 Cornell club that won 16 games and finished third in the Ivy League with nine wins, surpassing the team's win total from the previous year. Wittman was named Ivy League Rookie of the Year, while Dale was an All-Ivy selection. Spiker also assisted in the development of All-Ivy selection Andrew Naeve.
In 2005-06, Spiker helped the Big Red to its second-consecutive winning season in Ivy League play for the first time in 18 years. Adam Gore was named Ivy League Rookie of the Year and joined Lenny Collins on the All-Ivy second team.
During Spiker's first year at Cornell (2004-05), the Big Red earned their highest Ivy finish in 17 years and achieved their first winning season (8-6) in conference play since 1992-93. The Big Red had two players named to the first team All-Ivy League squad for the first time since 1997. The team's overall win total of 13 marked its highest since 1996-97.
Spiker joined the Cornell staff in June 2004, returning to Ithaca after spending the previous two seasons as an administrative assistant at West Virginia University under head coach John Beilein. He helped the Mountaineers to a pair of Big East Tournament appearances and an invitation to participate in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in 2003-04. While in Morgantown, Spiker was responsible for managing on-campus recruiting visits, opponent scouting, postgame film breakdown and overseeing the team's daily event schedules.
Prior to joining the Mountaineer staff, Spiker served from 2000-02 as a graduate assistant coach at Winthrop University under head coach Gregg Marshall, helping the Eagles garner a pair of NCAA Tournament berths after winning the Big South tournament in successive seasons.
Spiker joined the coaching ranks after completing his playing career at Ithaca College.
A 2000 graudate of Ithaca College, Spiker earned his bachelor's degree in communications. He received a master's degree in sport management from West Virginia in the spring of 2004.
THE SPIKER FILE
Hometown: Morgantown, W.Va. Date of Birth: Sept. 30, 1976 Age: 35 Education Ithaca College • B.S., Communications, 2000 West Virginia University • M.S., Sport Management, 2004
COACHING EXPERIENCE 2009-pres.: Army, Head Coach Overall record (3 years): 37-52 Patriot League record (3 years): 12-30
