Dwayne Jerome Stephens (born July 19, 1971)[1] is an American basketball coach who is currently the men's head coach for the Western Michigan Broncos. Previously, he was an assistant and associate head coach at Michigan State for 19 years.[2]

Dwayne Stephens
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamWestern Michigan
ConferenceMAC
Record22–45 (.328)
Biographical details
Born (1971-07-19) July 19, 1971 (age 53)[1]
Playing career
1989–1993Michigan State
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1997–1999Oakland (assistant)
1999–2003Marquette (assistant)
2003–2022Michigan State (assistant)
2022–presentWestern Michigan
Head coaching record
Overall22–45 (.328)

Playing career

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Stephens played basketball at Michigan State from 1989 to 1993 under Spartan legend Jud Heathcote.[3] He was a four-year letter winner for the Spartans and was a third-team Basketball Weekly's Freshman All-America Team. In his junior year, he averaged 11.2 points and five rebounds. In his senior season, he was co-captain for the Spartans and averaged 9.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.[4] He was named to Basketball Weekly's Honorable Mention All-Midwest Team. He played three professional seasons in Europe.[5]

Coaching career

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Stephens began his coaching career as an assistant for two season at Oakland from 1997 to 1999. He then joined former Tom Izzo assistant Tom Crean at Marquette and went to the Final Four in 2003 with Marquette star Dwyane Wade.[5] Stephens then joined his alma mater, Michigan State and its Hall of Fame head coach Tom Izzo, as an assistant in 2003.[6] He was named associate head coach in 2012.[7]

On April 4, 2022, Stephens, who had been considered for the position in 2020,[2] accepted the head coaching position at Western Michigan.[8]

Head coaching record

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Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Western Michigan (MAC) (2022–present)
2022–23 Western Michigan 8–23 4–14 12th
2023–24 Western Michigan 12–20 9–9 T–6th
2024–25 Western Michigan 2–4 0–0
Western Michigan: 22–45 (.328) 13–23 (.361)
Total: 22–45 (.328)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

References

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  1. ^ a b "Dwayne Stephens". coachesdatabase.com. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Paul, Tony. "MSU's Dwayne Stephens a 'home run hire' as Western Michigan men's basketball coach". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  3. ^ "Dwayne Stephens College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  4. ^ "Dwayne Stephens - M. Basketball Coach". Michigan State University Athletics. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  5. ^ a b "New WMU men's hoops coach Dwayne Stephens 'an all-star' hire, says former boss Tom Izzo". mlive. 2022-04-04. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  6. ^ Solari, Chris. "Michigan State basketball assistant Dwayne Stephens to coach Western Michigan". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  7. ^ "Dwayne Stephens promoted to associate head coach". MSUToday | Michigan State University. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
  8. ^ Knight (SpartyOnHuskers), Kevin (2022-04-05). "Longtime Michigan State assistant Dwayne Stephens leaves for Western Michigan". BT Powerhouse. Retrieved 2022-04-05.
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