South Dakota State hires T. J. Otzelberger from Iowa State
South Dakota State has found its new head basketball coach in Iowa State assistant T. J. Otzelberger. The 38-year-old Otzelberger was in his second stint at Iowa State, following a two-season stop at Washington under Lorenzo Romar. He was an assistant at ISU under Greg McDermott from 2006-2010 and associate head coach from 2010-2013 under Fred Hoiberg.
SDSU has been to the NCAA Tournament three times in the last five seasons under former head coach Scott Nagy, who left Brookings for Wright State last month. Nagy had been the head of the Jackrabbits program since 1995, a period which included the programs transition from Division II to Division I.
Otzelberger inherits a roster returning just 2 of last season’s top 5 scorers, but one that’s full of postseason experience. The defending Summit League champs will look to build upon the success they had under Nagy and Otzelberger will look to hit the ground running at his first head coaching gig.
