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Justin Wetzel is in his first season as an assistant coach for men’s basketball at Montana State University Billings. Prior to MSU-Billings Wetzel was most recently head coach in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) for the Butte Daredevils. When he was hired by the Daredevils in early 2008, he was the youngest head coach in professional basketball in the United States.
Despite being half the age of most of the opposing CBA coaches and coaching against former NBA stars such as Kenny Anderson, Michael Ray Richardson and Vincent Askew, Wetzel quickly gained respect around the league for his team’s hardnosed competitive play and effort. The Daredevils showed immediate benefits as they improved their offense by six points a game while allowing eight fewer points per game.
In October of 2006, Wetzel was hired as an assistant coach for the Great Falls Explorers of the CBA. In the Explorers first year, led by head coach Steve Aggers, they were runner-up in the West Division to eventual CBA champions, Yakima Sunkings, and Wetzel helped Explorer Travis Garrison (University of Maryland) earn CBA Rookie of the Year. In 2007, Wetzel was named Director of Player Personal for the Explorers and that same season as an assistant coach, Wetzel worked under former NBA sharp shooter and two-time world champion (Boston Celtics) Scott Wedman.
In his time in professional basketball Wetzel coached over 30 Division 1 athletes from numerous conferences including the ACC, Pac 10, SEC, Big East, and Big 12.
Wetzel got his start in the coaching ranks as an assistant coach for the boys varsity at Joliet High School (MT) in 2002-03. During the 2003-04 season he was an assistant coach for boys and girls varsity at Ryegate High School. In the fall of 2004, Wetzel got his first opportunity to be a head coach, taking over the boys varsity program at Broadview/Lavina High School.
A native of Cut Bank, Mont., Wetzel played two years at Dawson Community College. He has a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Montana State Billings. Wetzel is scheduled to finish his master’s in sports management this spring from MSUB. He is single and resides in Billings.
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