Completed Event: Men's Basketball at Utah on February 24, 2026 , Win , 75, to, 59
Final
Men's Basketball
75
Utah
59
Iowa State University Athletics
Photo by: LUKE LU @KL6PHOTO
Otzelberger Finalizes 2026-27 Coaching Staff
07.06.2026 | Men's Basketball
AMES, Iowa – Iowa State Men's Basketball Head Coach T.J. Otzelberger has finalized his staff for the 2026-27 season.
Chuck Ruffing has been named an assistant coach, while Richardson Maitre and Fletcher McGarvey have been added as graduate assistants. In addition to the three latest newcomers to the staff, Thomas Pollard has been moved to the Director of Recruiting, while Diante Garrett is now the Director of Player Development.
Ruffing spent the 2025-26 season as an assistant coach at Western Illinois. The two previous seasons, Ruffing was the head coach at Bryant & Stratton College in Wisconsin, leading the Bobcats to two of the most successful seasons in program history. His 2023-24 team went 23-10 and played in the regional championship game. The next season, the Bobcats made history with a 29-7 overall record and 21-1 record in regional play. After winning the NJCAA Region 4 Championship, Bryant & Stratton advanced to the NJCAA National Tournament for the first time in program history. The Bobcats beat Orange County C.C. in the consolation round for their first national tournament win in program history.
Prior to his two years leading the Bobcats, Ruffing served as an assistant coach at NCAA Division III programs Marian, Wisconsin Lutheran and Rockford. While at Marian, he helped the Sabres to their second NCAA Tournament appearance in school history. Ruffing also spent one season as the head coach of the West Bend East High School boys' basketball team.
The De Pere, Wisconsin native played collegiately at Marian and Concordia Chicago. He appeared in 50 games for Marian, while he was a NACC Scholar-Athlete in his time at Concordia Chicago.
Maitre joins the staff as a graduate assistant for the 2026-27 season. Maitre spent two seasons at Indian Hills C.C. before transferring to Florida Atlantic. In two seasons with the Owls, Maitre appeared in 63 games with 46 starts. He averaged 9.7 points per game in 2019-20. Maitre spent his final two collegiate seasons at Samford, where he appeared in 45 games with 15 starts. Maitre has also played professionally in Spain and Portugal, while he coached at the 2025 Canada Senior Men's National Training Camp. Â
McGarvey joins the staff as a graduate assistant after spending the last three seasons as a manager for the team. During his time as a manager, McGarvey assisted with player development, skill training, and organizing practice plans and scouting reports. He also worked with Sportscode, Synergy and other film software to aid in practice prep and scouting. McGarvey spent the 2025-26 season coding live games and practices, while contributing to the in-game replay system at the bench.
2026-27 Iowa State Men's Basketball Staff
Head Coach: T.J. Otzelberger (UW-Whitewater, '01, Sixth Year)
Assistant Coach: Tim Buckley (Bemidji State, '86, First Year)
Assistant Coach: Erik Crawford (Northern Iowa, '06, Fifth Year)
Assistant Coach: Allan Hanson (Milwaukee, '15, First Year)
Assistant Coach: Chuck Ruffing (Concordia-Chicago, '15, First Year)
Assistant Coach: Nate Schmidt (Denison, '14, Sixth Year)
Director of Basketball Operations: Micah Byars (West Florida, '06, 16th Year)
Director of Recruiting: Thomas Pollard (Iowa State, '22, Fifth Year)
Director of Strength & Conditioning: Pete Link (Iowa State, '07, Sixth Year)
Director of Player Development: Diante Garrett (Iowa State, '11, Third Year)
Graduate Assistant: Richardson Maitre (Samford, '22, First Year)
Graduate Assistant: Fletcher McGarvey (Iowa State, '26, First Year)
Tuesday, June 30
Tuesday, June 30
Tuesday, June 30
Tuesday, June 09
