Brian Joyce takes over men's basketball program

A familiar face to Region IX will guide the Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball program next season.

Brian Joyce, who was the head coach at Northeastern Junior College from 2002-2006 and spent last year as an assistant at Colorado State University, will take over a Cougar program that has had three head coaches since 2000. He will also teach criminal justice classes at the college.

“I am ecstatic about the opportunity, excited about the future and I am ready to get going,” Joyce said Friday at a press conference. “Having been in the region before, I understand what it takes to compete for a national championship. That is why I am here because I think there is a commitment from the administration, the community and the other sports in the department to excel at a high level and I want to be part of something that is special. I expect to do some great things here, but I know it takes a lot of support from a lot of people to make that happen, and to balance between the athletic and academic side. I expect great things from our program on and off the court.”

Joyce comes to WNCC with an impressive track record. On the court, he served has only the third head coach in NJC history, guiding them to a 97-38 record, including a national tournament berths in 2000 and 2005. His teams were ranked six of seven years in the top 20, and received Street and Smith’s Magazine top 15 rankings in three of the last five years.

He has also proven himself as a top recruiter. At Colorado State last season, he helped sign two junior college all-Americans, a commitment from Mr. Basketball finalist in Colorado, and two players the from No. 4-ranked junior college team in the nation. He has also sent 32 players onto Division I schools and 18 of his players have been starters at the Division I level.

Off the court, his resume is just as impressive. He has had four academic all-Americans and 31 of 33 sophomores have graduated with an associate’s degree.

“I am in this profession because I think you can utilize this game to impact their lives,” Joyce said. “I know that it is a cliché that a lot of people use, but my track record speaks for itself with the loyalty I have from past players. I was fortunate to be under some older coaches along the way that helped me understand the true root of teaching and how coaching fits into that.

“I want the players to know the bar is high and the expectations are there and they are going to have to fight me if they don’t want to achieve that high goal and high expectation both on and off the court. I am committed to them succeeding both on and off the court. We are going to have some struggles and stumbles a long the way, but that is the reality of dealing with college kids. I told them I will be there for them as long as they do what they are suppose to do in the framework of the institution and the framework of our program.”

Joyce has not only excelled on the coaching front, but he was a good player as well. Joyce was a first team all-state selection for La Cueva High in Albuquerque, N.M., where he led his team to a state championship.

He followed that up with two outstanding years at Northeastern Junior College, where he played for the legendary Lowell Roumph from 1991-93. During those years, he scored 801 points and made 108 3-pointers. He was also the school record holder for assists and steals, helping the Plainsmen to 43 wins in two seasons.

After that he played at Idaho State University for one year before transferring to Oklahoma Christian University, where he was nationally ranked in assists, 3-point shooting and free throw shooting.

Joyce said he expects the same passion for the game that he had and still has as.

“My programs have been known as tough, hard-nosed teams. That is how I played,” he said. “They will play with a lot of energy and passion because that is how I coach. I told the [returning Cougar players] last night is that the one thing you can count on me for throughout the whole year and the time you are here, is you are going to have energy and juice from me anything that I am involved in. I expect high energy and passion and that they will play real hard and people will know it will be a difficult game against Western Nebraska.”

Joyce met with returning players Thursday night and will start recruiting. He said they are a little behind in the recruiting cycle, but believes they will field a competitive team.

“I still think we are in a position to field a good team and I have high expectations of that,” he said. “I want to be in a position like I was at Northeastern to have a chance to win a national championship. I think the commitment from the administration is here, the support is here and the support from the campus and community. I want to embrace what is happening in the athletic department and the success the other programs are having and be on par with that and see what special things we can do.”

What attracted Joyce to apply for the head coaching position was WNCC’s rich heritage of success. In fact when he was at NJC, he measured the success of that program with what he did against the Cougars. Now, he will be the barometer measuring success to other programs.

“I understand how important it is to have a foundation and in the last 25 years, Western Nebraska has won more Region IX championships then anybody,” he said. “Knowing that and competing against that, that was the barometer when we were at Northeastern to comparing ourselves to Western Nebraska and how we compete and excel at the level. Having an opportunity to come back to the benchmark and the barometer for the region is exciting for me and I am excited to jump aboard.”