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Brian Wardle made 3 straight postseason appearances as head coach at Green Bay, so now it is on to the next challenge after being named head coach at Bradley last March. The bad news is that the Braves only won 3 conference games last year, but the good news is that they did not lose a lot of seniors. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Wardle about being a great scorer in college and bringing in a ton of freshmen this fall.
As a freshman for Coach Mike Deane at Marquette you were named C-USA 6th Man of the Year: how does your mindset change when you are a starter vs. coming off the bench? When you come off the bench you want to bring some energy and toughness, and coaches like to bring in guys who can score. You have an advantage when you can pay attention to the details before you check into the game. I challenge my players to do that: it is not about who starts the game but who finishes it.
You led the Golden Eagles in scoring during each of your final 3 seasons: what is your secret for being a great scorer? You have to build a swagger through hard work and confidence is gained through your work ethic. I would get in the gym and watch the ball constantly go through the net, so even if I missed my 1st 5 shots in a game I thought the next shot would go in. You also have to put the time in to be the best-conditioned athlete on the floor by doing the extra things to be successful.
In 2010 you were hired as coach at Wisconsin-Green Bay: what was the best part of being the youngest D-1 head coach in the nation, and what was the worst part? The best part was the opportunity to build a relationship with your players and try to put yourself in their shoes. You can jump into practice when you need…to if you are still in playing shape and have your health! You always think you are prepared, but you are never as prepared as you think to move 1 seat over on the bench: you can only gain wisdom through experience. There were some things that caught me completely off-guard because there are so many time constraints and so many different aspects to a program.
In the 2013 Horizon League tourney Ryan Broekhoff scored 25 PTS including a 3-PT shot with a man in his face at the buzzer in a 1-PT win by Valparaiso: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? I have had a lot of them as a player and coach, but that is because basketball is a rollercoaster ride. It was tough to swallow but we battled as a group and fought hard through the end, so you just have to be proud of what you were able to accomplish.
In 2014 you were named Horizon League COY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? Any personal accolades a coach receives is due to his team winning games. I had really good players who bought in and sacrificed for each other, which is the beauty of team sports. We had a vision and took it step by step: you need good players and coaches around you.
Your best player last year was Keifer Sykes: how do you think he is going to do in the pros? I think he will have a very long career in pro basketball and end up in the NBA 1 day. Everyone has a different path but he is a warrior and will help a team win, which he has done his entire career.
Last March you were hired as head coach at Bradley to replace Geno Ford: why did you take the job, and how has the transition been so far? I took the job because having grown up in Chicago I know what a great place this is academically. Bradley basketball has great history/tradition so it was a no-brainer. I was extremely excited just to be interviewed, and to get it was a dream come true. My goal is to build a program that can last a long time and contend for championships. The transition has been wonderful: we have great people on campus and throughout the community and our athletic director has helped us all become comfortable and build a culture. It is a team effort to build a program and you need help with everything from marketing to sports information to training.
You play 6 games in a 13-day stretch in November highlighted by a pair of heavyweights in Arizona/Virginia: how do you expect to survive such a gauntlet? We are 1 of the most inexperienced teams in America so we will throw ourselves into the fire and see what we are made of. In-game experience against high-quality programs is the best way to evaluate your players, and to beat the best you have to play the best. Young men want to be challenged and try to get better.
You have 9 freshmen on the roster: do you consider this a rebuilding year or do you think you have a real chance to contend? It will be a learning process but nobody will feel sorry for us so we just have to get better each day/week/month. If we focus on the daily process then the results will happen. It is a big year for us to build our brand and then move forward.
What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? Ultimately we want to establish our identity and let people know what we stand for. I am not big on predicting a specific number of wins: great coaches do not get ahead of themselves and I just want us to get better each day on the little things.