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Good to be a Lion
June 5, 2008
Los Angeles, CA (June 5) -- In his first six weeks as head coach of the Loyola Marymount men's basketball program, Bill Bayno has had many things to get excited about. He has even more reason to be excited, as his mentor and head coach of NCAA Division II power Bryant University, Max Good, has been hired as an assistant coach for LMU. Good, who posted a 132-86 record the past seven seasons at Bryant, announced he was leaving the Bulldogs for the Lions on Thursday afternoon. "Since I started the process of getting back into coaching at the college level, many things at LMU and what the University had to offer excited me," said Bayno. "Now that I am at LMU, we have many great things already happening, and possibly the one I am most excited about is my staff. With Max coming on, I believe our staff is in place to make a statement in the West Coast Conference." Good, who coached with Bayno at UNLV, joins the coaching staff of Jason Levy and Michael Scholl. All three assistants under Bayno come from different backgrounds, a quality that Bayno feels will take LMU to new levels of success. "Max brings a lot of experience and a great basketball mind to our program," said Bayno. "I am very excited about our coaching staff in that we as a group have experience in so many different areas." In seven years, Good led Bryant University (Smithfield, RI) to new levels of success. His final season in 2008 saw the Bulldogs earn their fifth-straight NCAA Division II Tournament berth with an 18-13 overall record. Good was named head coach in 2001 and inherited a program that had four straight losing seasons. He wasted little time in bringing success to the Bulldogs, posting a 17-14 record in his second season and earning the honor of Most Improved team by the New England Basketball Coaches.
The 2003-04 season saw Good lead the Bulldogs to a new level. They set a school-record with 23 wins, earning the school's first NCAA tournament berth in 24 years. They not only qualified, but advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. After a tough loss in the regional finals in just his third season, year four may go down as one of the best in Bryant's history. Good led the team to another wins record at 25-9 overall, leading the team all the way to the NCAA Division II Championship, falling to Virginia Union in the title game, 63-58. Good came to Bryant after spending the 2000-01 season as the head coach of UNLV. Prior to UNLV, he amassed an overall record of 275-30 in 10 seasons at the Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield, Maine. He enjoyed three undefeated seasons, won five New England Prep School Athletic Conference Championships, registered a 79-game winning streak that spanned three seasons and coached 87 players who went to play Division I college basketball, including nine who reached the NBA. Prior to MCI, he spent five seasons as the head coach at Eastern Kentucky University, registering an overall record of 96-129 (.427). He was named the Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 1987 after leading the Colonels to a 19-11 record. While known for his success on the court, Good also saw his players achieve in the classroom. His program at EKU had an 85-percent graduation rate, and 122 of his 128 players at MCI academically qualified for NCAA Division I and II competition following their prep years. Good graduated from EKU in 1969 and received a master's degree from his alma mater in 1970. He was introduced into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in Kingston, RI, for his time as coach at MCI in 2004 and was named the 2005 Words Unlimited Coach of the Year and Rhode Island Basketball Media Coach of the Year in 2008. - GO LIONS - |
