Taylor Meeks
Sports Writer
Last Friday, Idaho State University’s Director of Athletics Pauline Thiros introduced the new men’s basketball head coach, Ryan Looney, in a formal press conference in the Quad Lounge of the Pond Student Union Building.
Looney is bringing success with him as he is hired as the 22nd head coach here at ISU. He was the head coach at Point Loma Nazarene, where he guided the team to a Division II National Championship game last season, for three years prior to coming to Pocatello. In his 15 seasons as a head coach at the Division II and NAIA level, Looney boasts an impressive 330-132 overall record (.714 winning percentage) and a 198-82 record in conference games (.707 winning percentage).
“I am humbled and honored to be the next basketball coach at Idaho State University,” Looney said. “On my visit here, just a short few days ago, I learned really quickly that this can be a special place. There is a vision right now, and I am excited for our men’s basketball program to be an extension of that.”
Point Loma finished 31-5 and 20-2 in PacWest Conference play last season under Looney. He recruited and developed the NCAA Division II Player of the Year, Daulton Hommes, who averaged 21.9 points per game, 5.8 rebounds per game, .533 percent from the field and .470 percent from the 3-point arc.
In Looney’s previous seasons for the Sea Lions, he helped the team to a 38-23 record and its first NCAA West Regional appearance. In his first season, the team held a 17-13 record with a sixth-place conference finish in the regular season. The team made it to the championship game after knocking off the No. 2 and No. 3 seeded teams, but unfortunately fell to Hawaii Pacific in the championship game.
During the 2017-18 season, Looney boasted a 21-10 record for PLNU and a 15-5 PacWest mark. They earned the No. 8 seed as an at-large bid into the NCAA West Regional after finishing fourth in conference, their best-ever PacWest finish.
“Ryan knows how to win, and I know he knows how to repeat that success here at Idaho State University,” Thiros said. “He’s a person that is guided very much by his values, and he has a clear vision in each area in where he wants to take us, in terms of recruiting, player development, and program development.”
Prior to joining PLNU, Looney spent seven seasons as the head coach at Seattle Pacific. During his time there, the Falcons never dipped below 20 game wins each season, and in all seven years, the team made NCAA West Regional appearances.
While coaching there, he was a two-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, and his team won the league title in both 2010 and 2014. The team won three straight GNAC Tournament Championships (2013-15) and had a 164-51 (.763 winning percentage) overall record, the best winning percentage in SPU school history, all under the guidance of Looney.
He was not only behind great successes on the court, but in the classroom as well. The Falcons received three consecutive Team Academic Excellence Awards from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). SPU also had a collective 3.41 GPA, earning the team, for the fifth consecutive season, the GNAC trophy for posting the top GPA among the league’s men’s basketball teams.
Looney first began his head coaching journey at Eastern Oregon University. In three out of his five seasons with the Mountaineers, he posted above a .700 winning percentage. He also accomplished back-to-back NAIA Tournament appearances and the team’s first conference title in 38 years.
Looney graduated from EOU in 1998 and earned his master’s degree in sports administration from Wisconsin-LaCrosse in 2001. He is married to Julianna, and the couple have two children, daughter Peyton and son Micah.
“Coach Looney’s record of success is undeniable. He has demonstrated that he has the championship blueprint in three programs, and most importantly, his values and commitment to excellence align with the growing strong culture in Idaho State Athletics,” Thiros said in an interview with Steve Shaack, ISU Athletics Media Relations. “His ability to recruit and develop players is proven, and his success is consistent evidence of his talent in the tactical aspects of the game.”
