Paul Lusk (born November 14, 1971) is an American men's

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach and former

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

, who is a current assistant men's basketball coach for the

Purdue Boilermakers The Purdue Boilermakers are the official college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletics teams representing Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana. As is common with athletic nicknames, the Boilermakers nickname ...

. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

from 1991 to 1993 before transferring to

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois is a region of the U.S. state of Illinois comprising the southern third of the state, principally south of Interstate 70. Part of downstate Illinois, it is bordered by the two List of U.S. rivers by discharge, most voluminous ri ...

where he played from 1993 to 1995 for head coach Rich Herrin. He then served as the head coach of the

Missouri State Bears The Missouri State Bears and Lady Bears are the athletic teams representing Missouri State University (formerly Southwest Missouri State University). Missouri State's athletics programs date back to 1908. Missouri State competes in the NCAA Divi ...

(2011–2018).

Playing career

A native of

New Baden, Illinois New Baden is a village in Clinton County, Illinois, Clinton County, Illinois, United States (and partially in St. Clair County, Illinois, St. Clair County). The population was 3,428 at the 2020 census. Geography New Baden is located at (38.53547 ...

, Lusk played high school basketball at Trenton (Wesclin) high school, leading the Warriors to the 1990 Class A state title with an 83–78, 2OT win over top-ranked Fairbury (Prairie Central). Lusk originally committed to the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

, but suffered a broken leg in his freshman year with the Hawkeyes and later transferred to

Southern Illinois University Southern Illinois University is a system of public universities in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its headquarters is in Carbondale, Illinois. Board of trustees The university is governed by the nine member SIU Board of T ...

where he played under longtime head coach Rich Herrin.

Coaching career

Dubuque

Lusk was hired in 2002 as the head men's basketball coach at the University of Dubuque in Dubuque, Iowa. He held this job for only one year, the 2002-2003 season. During this season, he was able to win only two games, and finished the season with 2 wins and 23 losses. His team finished last in the conference with a record of 1 win and 17 losses. (archive) https://udspartans.com/sports/2023/12/1/mens-basketball-record-book.aspx

Purdue

Lusk was an assistant at

Purdue University Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...

from 2004 to 2011 under legendary coach

Gene Keady Lloyd Eugene Keady (born May 21, 1936) is an American Hall of Fame basketball coach. He is best known for his 25 years serving as the head men's basketball coach at Purdue University in Indiana. In his tenure leading the Boilermakers from 1980 t ...

and

Matt Painter Matthew Curtis Painter (born August 27, 1970) is an American basketball coach and former player, who is the current and 19th head coach of the Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball, Purdue Boilermakers, serving in that role since 2005. He played ...

Missouri State

Lusk was introduced as the new coach at

Missouri State University Missouri State University (MSU or MO State), formerly Southwest Missouri State University, is a public university in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1905 as the Fourth District Normal School, it is the state's second-largest u ...

on Friday, April 1, 2011, replacing longtime friend,

Cuonzo Martin Cuonzo LaMar Martin (born September 23, 1971) is an American basketball coach and former player who is in his second tenure as the head men's basketball coach at Missouri State University Missouri State University (MSU or MO State), formerl ...

after he left for the head coaching position at

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. In his first season as a head coach, the Bears entered the year with strong expectations and returned Missouri Valley Player of the Year, Kyle Weems. The team would go on to hold a 15–16 record. A major highlight of the season was a road victory over 21st-ranked Creighton in the opening game of conference play. In Lusk's second season as head coach, with a roster including six freshmen and only one returning senior, the Bears were the youngest team in the

Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the fourth-oldest collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the Midwestern Unite ...

and one of the youngest in the nation. Struggling early in the season the Bears went 0–10 against Division I programs, only gaining 2 wins in their first 12 games against Division II teams. The Bears registered their first win over a Division I team on December 30, beating

70–59. He was fired from Missouri State on March 3, 2018.

Creighton

Following his firing from Missouri State, Lusk joined the coaching staff of

Greg McDermott Greg McDermott (born November 25, 1964) is an American basketball coach who has been the head coach of the Creighton Bluejays men's basketball, Creighton Bluejays men's basketball team since 2010. Previously, McDermott served as the head coach a ...

at Creighton.

Return to Purdue

On April 12, 2021, Lusk returned to Painter's staff at Purdue.

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lusk, Paul 1971 births Living people American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Illinois College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Creighton Bluejays men's basketball coaches Dubuque Spartans men's basketball coaches Missouri Southern Lions men's basketball coaches Missouri State Bears basketball coaches People from Clinton County, Illinois Purdue Boilermakers men's basketball coaches Southern Illinois Salukis men's basketball coaches Southern Illinois Salukis men's basketball players Sportspeople from Greater St. Louis Basketball players from St. Clair County, Illinois 20th-century American sportsmen