ACCC women’s basketball job is opportunity at right time
Success on the court and in the classroom is the mantra of Marcus Hicks.
Hicks is Allen County Community College’s new head women’s basketball coach. Hicks replaces Andy Hamilton, who resigned to take an assistant coaching position at Newman University in Wichita.
“It was the right time and a good opportunity for me to get back into coaching. I missed it,” Hicks said, after two years behind an admissions desk at Bethany College in Lindsborg. He was the assistant director of admissions and transfer student coordinator at Bethany.
Hicks knows the recent history of Allen County women’s basketball. He knows the Red Devil women have had just one winning season in the past nine years under five different coaches.
Hicks also knows the Red Devils will more than likely be without both of their leading scorers and rebounders from this season.
Hamilton’s two-year stint at ACCC had the Red Devils going 2-16 twice to finish last in the Jayhawk Eastern Division. In his two years, Allen County was 13-49 overall.
But Hamilton was not alone in trying to turn the Red Devil women’s basketball program around. Allen County’s last winning season was in 2006 under Tony Turner, who is now coaching at Independence Community College, at 19-13.
“That’s the past. I’m here to help build a solid foundation. It’s not going to be an overnight change,” Hicks said.
Hicks is not afraid of reclamation projects. In his last coaching position, he took a team that had won just seven games the year before and went 19-9.
That was 2007-2008 as head coach of the McPherson College women’s basketball team. Hicks guided the Bulldogs to a record-tying school record for most victories in a season. Mc-Pherson finished third in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) and lost in the semifinals of the conference postseason tournament.
“There was a change in administration and a difference of opinion between us on the direction the program needed to go so I left after one year,” Hicks said.
The past two years he has been at Bethany. Part of that position for Hicks was to work with transfer students to Bethany, which put him in contact with a lot of student-athletes coming out of the community college ranks.
“I’m a firm believer in teaching my players that it is important to win in the classroom as well as on the basketball court,” Hicks said.
“Make no mistake, I coach to win games. I don’t like to lose but it’s important for the young ladies I’m coaching to know what works in the classroom as well as what works in a game.”
Hicks is a graduate of Wichita Southeast High School and grew up watching Wichita State Shocker basketball.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in general studies with a minor in business and communications from Wichita State University. He also has a master’s degree in business management through Webster University in St. Louis, Mo.
Hicks knows Allen County Community College well enough. He has worked with Jason Kegler, former ACCC women’s basketball coach and now ACCC director of student life, at Pratt Community College. Hicks also worked with ACCC athletic director Randy Weber.
“I really wanted to come here. The two times I looked at the job opening I went to McPherson instead and then had just taken the job at Bethany,” Hicks said.
“I’m working to give this program some stability especially to the young ladies who are already here on the team. We want them all back. Andy was working toward that solid foundation.”
Hicks said Breanna Shaw, ACCC’s leading scorer this past season, has signed to play at Southeastern Louis-iana University, Hammond, La. It is a NCAA Division I program.
He said he didn’t think Dysyan Malone, ACCC’s second leading scorer and leading rebounder, was planning on returning either.
“That’s alright. We have seven young ladies returning and I’ve made some contacts about recruiting several others,” Hicks said.
Hicks said he is out to set the level of community action high on the team and with fans.
“We want to have fun playing the game but that comes after hard work away from the games and during the games,” Hicks said. “I believe it takes a team that can do all phases — not just run and gun, not just full-court pressure but being able to play the half-court defense and half-court offense.
“Defense wins championships. I’m a firm believer in that. Offense will come. There’s no off day defensively.”
Hicks is not making bold predictions for ACCC in his first season. He said it takes baby steps.
Hicks was a student assistant coach under men’s head coach Randy Smithson at WSU.
He was an assistant coach at Pratt Community College for both men and women, then served as the men’s basketball interim head coach.
Hicks spent four years on the staff at Newman University in Wichita in the admissions department and as an assistant women’s basketball coach.
He was the men’s basketball head coach at York College in Nebraska for four years. He led the York Panthers to their conference tournament championship game, losing to 2005 NAIA Division II national champion College of the Ozarks.
Hicks and his wife, Brandy, have an 18-month-old son, Nathan. Brandy, who is a teacher, has her younger sister, Allison Matthews, living with them.
