Men's Basketball

Head Coach Jim Sykes

Phone: 712-274-5371

E-Mail: sykes@morningside.edu

Jim Sykes has been a consistent winner at Morningside since he was promoted to the position of head coach in January of the 2003-04 campaign. Sykes has led the Mustangs to five consecutive winning seasons, including three 20-win campaigns, while posting a career record of 105-38 for a .734 winning percentage. He brought the Mustangs to a new level during the 2007-08 season when Morningside obtained its first-ever No. 1 national ranking.

He has guided the Mustangs to NAIA Division II National Tournament appearances in two of the last three seasons. The Mustangs posted a 29-4 record last winter to set a school record for victories and reached the second round of the national tournament. Sykes, who led the Mustangs to the GPAC's regular season championship, was named the GPAC Coach of the Year for his efforts. Sykes led the Mustangs to a 28-7 record, the GPAC's post-season tournament championship, and the Elite Eight of the NAIA Division II National Tournament during the 2005-06 campaign. 

Sykes guided the Mustangs to a 20-11 record in 2004-05 for the college's first 20-win season since 1994-95.

He was named the Mustangs' head coach on March 29, 2004, after he led the Mustangs to a strong second half finish during the 2003-04 season while serving as the team's head coach on an interim basis. Sykes, who was in his third year as the Mustangs' top assistant coach, took over the program on an interim basis after former head coach Jerry Schmutte took a medical leave of absence.

The Mustangs posted a 9-3 record under Sykes en route to an 18-13 finish and a 14-4 record in the GPAC to share the league's regular season championship with Northwestern College. Sykes was named the 2004 GPAC Coach of the Year for his efforts. The Mustangs, who had finished 10-22 during the 2002-03 campaign, were the surprise team of the GPAC after they had been tabbed for a 12th place finish in the conference coaches’ pre-season poll.

He came to Morningside from Waverly, Neb., where he had been a coach at Waverly High School for 10 years. He was an assistant coach for Waverly's varsity boy's basketball and football teams and was a junior high school track coach. Sykes helped lead Waverly to a berth in Nebraska's 1995 Class B state basketball tournament.

He graduated from the University of Nebraska in 1989. Sykes previously attended Hastings College, where he was a member of the Broncos' men's basketball team for two years.

Assistant Coach Brad Schmit

Phone: 712-274-5372

E-Mail: schmitb@morningside.edu

Brad Schmit is in his third season on the Mustangs' coaching staff and in his second year as the team's top assistant coach.

He joined the Mustangs' coaching staff following a highly decorated playing career with the team. Schmit, a 2006 Morningside graduate, is the Mustangs' all-time leading scorer with 1,987 career points as well as the school's all-time leader with 329 career 3-point field goals. He was a two-time NAIA Division II honorable mention All-American, a three-time first-team All-GPAC performer, and a four-year starter.

He was the Mustangs' leading scorer and rebounder during the 2005-06 campaign with averages of 17.3 points and 5.6 rebounds per game and made 96 3-point field goals to break his own school record.

Schmit set a Morningside single-game record with 10 3-point field goals during a 35-point performance against Dana College as a freshman.

He was a Iowa Newspaper Association and Des Moines Register all-stater during his prep career at Jesup High School.

Assistant Coach Eric Nelson

Eric Nelson, a 2008 Morningside graduate who majored in elementary education, is in his second season on the Mustangs' coaching staff.

Nelson, a native of Laurel, Neb., was in the Mustangs' basketball program as a player for three seasons. He earned a varsity letter in 2006-07 when he played in 27 of the Mustangs' 32 contests.

Nelson is a 2004 graduate of Laurel-Concord High School.

Assistant Coach Matt Johnson

Matt Johnson joins the Mustangs' coaching staff following a successful three-year playing career, two of them as the Mustangs' starting point guard.

Johnson, a native of Council Bluffs, Iowa, graduated from Morningside in 2008 with a major in biology.

He scored 705 points and amassed 304 assists and 161 steals during his playing career. Johnson had a career scoring average of 7.1 points per game, led the Mustangs in assists in each of his three seasons with the varsity, and was a two-time honorable mention All-GPAC performer.