June 5, 2003
SAULT STE. MARIE - Former University of North Dakota player and Minnesota State-Mankato graduate assistant coach Brady Larson has been named Lake Superior State men's assistant basketball coach.
Larson fills the position vacated by Mike Fitzner, who was promoted to head coach after Marty McDermott was named head coach and assistant athletic director at the University of Dubuque (Iowa) last week.
Larson played at North Dakota from 1995-2000 and was a captain for two years. He participated in the 2000 NCAA II Basketball Tournament where his team lost in the second round to eventual national champion Metropolitan State College of Denver.
UND is a member of the highly-competitive North Central Conference and is in a tough region that includes the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. Larson expects Great Lakes Region competition to be similar.
"I am excited about coaching in a good league like the GLIAC," Larson said. "This is what I was looking for - to land somewhere in Division II where I was used to playing. I played at North Dakota for five years, and I am familiar with the Division II level."
Fitzner, who was an assistant coach at LSSU for four years prior to being named head coach, also played at North Dakota before transferring to Wayne State (Neb.) in 1994. He respects the quality of the UND program and is familiar with Minnesota State coach Matt Margenthaler's coaching style.
"Brady has had success on the court and at the programs where he has been a coach," Fitzner said. "And he has a passion for coaching basketball."
Larson is the son of a successful high school basketball coach and has two brothers who played college basketball. His goal is to help Fitzner elevate the Laker program to a national contender.
"One of the main things I looked at was what those two coaches (McDermott and Fitzner) have done in the last five years," he said. "They have really set this program up to be successful."
Larson, who will replace Fitzner as the Lakers' head men's golf coach, plans to arrive in Sault Ste. Marie on Friday and start preparations for the upcoming recruiting period, which begins June 15.
"We need to develop our recruiting list, then identify the kids we want to recruit hard and the others we need to take a look at," Fitzner said. "These days you need to identify these kids early because more than likely they will be recruited by more than one school."
Fitzner said that his transition from assistant to head coach has been smooth so far.
"It's not like the program needs to be turned upside down and built again," he added. "People have been very supportive, and I'm very much looking forward to the challenge and the opportunity."
