BASKETBALL

INFORMATION

ROSTER

STATS

SCHEDULE
RESULTS

COACHES

QUESTIONNAIRE

ATHLETIC HOME

Head Coach Samantha Ezell

Women's coach Samantha Ezell enters the third year at the helm at WNMU with and boy oh boy, what a difference a couple of years makes.  After taking over a program that went winless in 2000-01, Ezell came in with little time for adding to the roster, much less overcoming a schedule that saw the Mustangs play before the home crowd just five times. That number continues to grow, just like the win column does. The Mustangs narrowly missed a .500 season in 2002-03, but more importantly established itself once again as a place that "players" would go and just as importantly ... stay. The 2003-04 season could very well be a breakout year for the program. 

Coach Ezell, a 32-year-old Arizona State University graduate played for the highly successful Central Arizona College. The Vaqueras finished third and seventh in her two years at Casa Grande. The Yuma, Arizona native is currently continuing her knack for being involved with highly successful programs at Bloomsburg, where she recruited student-athletes that led the Division II Huskies to the NCAA Sweet 16 twice in the last five years. 

"I think we have a great opportunity to succeed here," said Ezell. "We play a very, very competitive schedule and go to some nice places to play. The faculty at the University is very supportive and the University gives us the tools to win. We started a turnaround last year that is only going to build momentum for the future, and I'm glad to be a part of it."

Assistant Coach Brent Hansen

Brent Hansen is in his first year as an assistant coach with the Mustangs.  His primary duties include film exchange, recruiting, and on-floor coaching.  Hansen comes to Western New Mexico University from Fresno State, where he served as an assistant coach with the women's basketball team from 1999-2001.  While with the Bulldogs, he was in charge of scouting opponents, pre-season and post-season conditioning, camps and clinics.  He also coordinated community events.

A native of Ridgecrest,  California, Hansen attended graduate school at Fresno State obtaining a master's degree in kinesiology.  During the Summer of 2002, he worked basketball camps at Stanford, UCLA, and Utah.  He also has experience teaching summer camps at BYU, St. Mary's and Arizona State.

"Brent has valuable experience that will be a positive influence on the program.  He is excellent in the realm of film exchange and his West Coast recruiting contacts will be tremendous asset to the team," said Head Coach Samantha Ezell on Coach Hansen.

Hansen graduated from Brigham Young University in 1999 with a degree in physical education.  He was married in the spring of 2001.  He and his wife Heather are expecting their first child in February 2004.