Sherman Dillard

Position: Assistant Coach Experience: Third Season Alama Mater: James Madison, 1978

Coach Sherman Dillard Photo Gallery

Sherman Dillard is in his third year with the University of Iowa men's basketball staff bringing a wealth of expertise on and off the court.

Dillard has helped revitalize the Iowa basketball program the last two seasons. Not only has the attendance at Carver-Hawkeye Arena increased by more than 20 percent, but Dillard and the Hawkeye coaching staff guided the team to the 2012 National Invitation Tournament and the program's first postseason victory since 2003. Additionally, the coaching staff led Iowa to four wins over top 25 teams a year ago, something only three other Big Ten teams accomplished.

He helped coach the Hawkeyes to 18 wins in 2012, which was seven more victories than the previous season, which ties for the fourth-best turnaround, after the second year, of a new coaching staff in Iowa men's basketball history. The seven-win turnaround was the third-best in the Big Ten in 2012. Furthermore, Dillard helped coach the Hawkeyes to four more Big Ten victories in 2012 than a year ago, which is the best improvement for an Iowa team since 1994 to 1995.

Dillard helped mentor Melsahn Basabe, Bryce Cartwright, Matt Gatens and Aaron White to all-Big Ten status the past two seasons.

Dillard has nearly three decades of coaching experience, serving as a college assistant or head coach for 27 years. He spent his first 15 years as an assistant coach at three institutions. Dillard began his coaching career under Head Coach Lefty Driesell at Maryland, spending six seasons (1979-85). He helped coach the Terrapins to four 20-plus win seasons and six postseason appearances, including five NCAA Tournament berths. The 1980, 1984 and 1985 squads reached the Sweet 16, while the 1984 team won the ACC Tournament.

He then spent three years at California (1985-88) under Lou Campanelli, who was his collegiate coach at James Madison. The Bears posted two third-place Pac-10 finishes and two NIT appearances during his tenure in Berkeley. After three seasons at California, he returned to the ACC and Georgia Tech for six seasons (1988-94). While in Atlanta, he helped Head Coach Bobby Cremins lead the Yellow Jackets to six winning seasons and postseason appearances. Georgia Tech played in five NCAA Tournaments, including the Final Four in 1990 and Sweet 16 in 1992.

Dillard received his first head coaching opportunity at Indiana State of the Missouri Valley Conference (1994-97). During his three seasons in Terre Haute, the Sycamores improved each season and posted a 29-52 record. He then left Indiana State to return to his alma mater. He replaced Driesell, who served as head coach the previous nine seasons (1988-97). Dillard was the Dukes' head coach for seven years (1997-2004). He posted a 93-106 record, sharing a league title and recording three first-division finishes in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). During his tenure, he earned CAA Coach of the Year and NABC District Coach of the Year laurels. His 10-year head coaching record stands at 122-158.

Dillard, a three-time academic all-American and four-time honorable mention all-American by the Associated Press, played guard at James Madison (1973-78). He led the Dukes in scoring in each of his four years (missed 1976-77 with an injury) and was the team's top rebounder as a freshman. Dillard is the second-leading scorer (2,065 points) in James Madison history, and his academic excellence merited him an NCAA post-graduate scholarship. After his collegiate career, he was drafted by the Indiana Pacers in the 1978 NBA Draft. Additionally, Dillard was honored as a CAA "Legend" in 2009.

Dillard worked as a basketball marketing representative for Nike for six years (2004-10). He served as Global Camp Director, responsible for administrative and operational facets of a series of highly acclaimed camps and academies sponsored by Nike. Those camps included the Nike All-America Camp and select skills academies hosted by NBA stars such as Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Vince Carter, Amaré Stoudemire and LeBron James (until January, 2009).

Dillard is a 1978 magna cum laude James Madison graduate earning a bachelor's degree in physical education and minor in business, and is a member of the school's sports hall of fame.

Dillard and his wife Dena have two sons, Ben (19) and Langston (17). His son Ben is a sophomore on the UALR basketball team.