Mike Bargen joining Bradley men's basketball staffhttp://www.pjstar.com/article/20150429/SPORTS/150428897/11130/SPORTSPosted Apr. 29, 2015 at 7:53 PM
PEORIA — Mike Bargen, head men’s basketball coach at Butler Community College (Kan.) the past eight seasons, will join Brian Wardle’s staff at Bradley, the Journal Star has learned.
Bargen, a college teammate with Wardle at Marquette in the late 1990s, is expected to be announced as a BU assistant and complete Wardle’s staff on Thursday.
Bargen has posted a 164-93 mark at Butler County during his tenure, including a 75-22 record the past three seasons.
The Grizzlies were 29-4 last season, winning the Jayhawk West Conference championship and earning an at-large berth to the NJCAA national tournament. They would be ranked as high as No. 4 in the NJCAA Division I poll, finishing at No. 7.
The rest of the Bradley staff — Drew Adams, Jimmie Foster and Rick Karius — has been in place for a few weeks. Wardle repeatedly said he was saving the last spot for Brian Barone, his associate head coach on the Green Bay staff.
Health problems within the Barone family were believed to be the reason for the delay.
Barone’s father, Tony, Sr., a former assistant coach to Dick Versace at Bradley in the 1980s who went on to coach at Creighton, Texas A&M and work in the front office of the Memphis Grizzlies, has been battling cancer for some time.
A native of Hutchinson, Kan., Bargen grew up in a basketball family. His father, Gary, served as head coach at Hutchinson Community College from 1978-86. His team finished third in the 1986 national tournament.
At Marquette, Bargen played from 1995-99 and was a two-year starter. As a senior, he was team captain, leading the team in rebounds and blocks and ranking second in scoring.
Bargen’s coaching career began under Dana Altman at Creighton, where he spent three years as the graduate manager while finishing his Master’s in Business Administration.
He spent the next three seasons as an assistant coach at Butler County before taking over the program reins in 2007.