Scott Garson

Scott Garson
Garson as College of Idaho head coach in 2016.
Current position
TitleAssistant coach
TeamSanta Clara
ConferenceWCC
Biographical details
Born (1976-04-24) April 24, 1976 (age 48)
Tarzana, California
Alma materUC Santa Barbara
Utah
Playing career
Basketball
1994–1995Washington University
Baseball
1995Washington University
Position(s)Guard, pitcher
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1996–1998Santa Barbara HS (JV/asst. varsity)
1999–2002Utah (GA)
2002–2003Utah (VC)
2003–2004Utah (assistant)
2006–2013UCLA (assistant)
2013–2018College of Idaho
2018–presentSanta Clara (assistant)
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
1998–1999Pepperdine (admin. asst.)
Head coaching record
Overall129–42
Tournaments6–4 (NAIA D-II)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
As head coach:

As assistant coach:

Awards
As head coach:

As assistant coach:

  • 2× NCAA Final Four (2007, 2008)

Scott Jon Garson (born April 24, 1976) is an American basketball coach who is currently an assistant coach at Santa Clara University.

Prior to that, Garson was an assistant men's basketball coach at UCLA and the University of Utah. From 2013 to 2018, Garson was head coach at the College of Idaho.

Early life and education

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Born in Tarzana, California, Garson grew up in a Jewish family in Calabasas and graduated from Harvard-Westlake School in 1994.[1][2] After high school, Garson initially attended Washington University in St. Louis and played at guard in basketball and pitcher in baseball in 1994–95.[1] In 1995, Garson transferred to the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). He graduated from UCSB in 1999 with a B.A. in law and society.[3]

While a student at UCSB, Garson was a production assistant for The Jim Rome Show in the summer of 1996 and worked for the United States Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs in the summer of 1997.[4] From 1996 to 1998, Garson was a varsity basketball assistant coach and junior varsity head coach at Santa Barbara High School.[4]

In 2003, Garson completed a M.S. in exercise and sports science with an emphasis in sport psychology from the University of Utah.[3]

Coaching career

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College

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Garson, who was hired in April 2018, spent his previous five seasons as head coach at the College of Idaho where he led the Yotes to a 129–42 record, three Cascade Collegiate Conference regular season championships, three league tournament titles and four NAIA national tournament appearances, including a run to the 2015 national quarterfinals and 2018 semifinals.

Prior to his time at the College of Idaho, Garson was on Ben Howland’s staff at UCLA for nine seasons, worked under Rick Majerus at Utah for 5 years and spent 1 season at Pepperdine University under Lorenzo Romar. During his 21 seasons in college basketball at 5 different schools, Coach Garson has been a part of 20 winning seasons, 17 postseason berths and 10 conference championships.

Garson led the Yotes to both the CCC regular-season and tournament titles in 2014, 2015 and 2018. He became the first coach at the school to win back-to-back league crowns since the 1950s. His 2014–15 team posted a 30–6 record, which was then the second-most single-season victories in the school’s 105-year men’s basketball program history. The 2017–18 squad matched that total when they finished 30–7.

Garson was the recipient of the 2015 Red Auerbach National Coach of the Year Award, and was named the 2014 and 2018 CCC Coach of the Year. He coached six NAIA All-Americans, two CCC Players of the Year and three CCC Defensive Players of the Year. In all, 17 players under Garson earned All-CCC honors and 13 secured Academic All-CCC selections.

His College of Idaho teams enjoyed home cooking, posting a 76–10 mark at J.A. Albertson Activities Center. During his tenure, home attendance nearly doubled, with the Yotes leading the NAIA in home attendance during the 2014–15 campaign and finishing second during 2015–16 and 2016–17.

During Garson’s tenure at UCLA, the Bruins amassed a record of 222–90, including four Pac-10/Pac-12 Conference regular season titles (2006, 2007, 2008, 2013), and two Pac-10 tournament titles (2006, 2008). The Bruins qualified for six NCAA Tournaments and made trips to the Final Four in 2006, 2007 and 2008 – reaching the 2006 national championship game.

Garson was responsible for the development of the UCLA perimeter players – including current NBA players, Russell Westbrook, Arron Afflalo, Darren Collison, Jrue Holiday, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Shabazz Muhammad, Kyle Anderson, and Norman Powell. Garson also was responsible for the recruitment of Zach LaVine, the 13th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft and 2-time NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion. Garson was instrumental in the recruiting efforts for the Bruins, who claimed ESPN’s No. 1 class in both 2008 and 2012.  A total of 16 players recruited or coached by Garson have been selected in the NBA draft.

Garson spent five seasons at the University of Utah under hall-of-fame coach and mentor, Rick Majerus. Garson served as a graduate assistant, video coordinator and, in his final year, assistant coach for Majerus. The Utes won three Mountain West Conference titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament four times during Garson’s time there, while amassing a record of 112–47.   

International

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In the European Maccabi Games 2015, Garson was an assistant coach for the under-18 US men's basketball team.[5]

Head coaching record

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Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
College of Idaho Yotes (Cascade Collegiate Conference) (2013–2018)
2013–14 College of Idaho 28–6 16–2 1st NAIA D-II first round
2014–15 College of Idaho 30–6 14–4 T–1st NAIA D-II Quarterfinals
2015–16 College of Idaho 17–13 12–8 4th
2016–17 College of Idaho 24–10 15–5 2nd NAIA D-II Sweet 16
2017–18 College of Idaho 30–7 18–2 1st NAIA D-II Fab Four
College of Idaho: 129–42 75–21
Total: 129–42

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

References

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  1. ^ a b "Scott Garson". UCLA Bruins. Archived from the original on November 10, 2014. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  2. ^ Davis, Carin (March 14, 2008). "Bruin coach is ready for March Madness". Jewish Journal. Archived from the original on March 16, 2008.
  3. ^ a b "Scott Garson". College of Idaho Yotes. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Scott Garson". Utah Utes. Archived from the original on February 24, 2004. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  5. ^ "Coach Garson blogs about Maccabi Games experience". College of Idaho. July 24, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
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