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Brian Newhall | |
Head Men's Basketball Coach / Assistant Director of Athletics bnewhall@oxy.edu 323 259 2690 |
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Brian Newhall, the winningest coach in school history, returns for his 21st season with 306 career victories and a 100% team graduation rate. During his tenure, the Tigers have earned regional and national rankings, produced the only perfect 14-0 record in SCIAC history and triumphed in two NCAA playoff games to reach the NCAA III Elite 8.
Newhall, a 1983 Occidental graduate, endorses the
scholar-athlete experience. "I was raised on equal parts
Socrates and basketball. My parents were fans of the sound
mind-sound body philosophy." True to the tradition, Newhall played
point guard for four seasons, garnering a degree in American
Studies. "It was a formative experience for me. Some of my lifelong
friends were team mates." Team MVP twice and SCIAC Player of the
Year, Newhall captained the Tigers to a SCIAC championship his
senior year. "Varsity athletes get double-teamed," he laughs. "The
coaches and professors both challenge you. The Occidental athlete
gets a complete education---on the court, in the residence halls
and in the classroom."
As a player-coach in Europe, Newhall added a global outlook to his
winning strategy. After two successful seasons in southern France,
he returned to Occidental as an assistant coach for Bill Westphal.
"Inclination and opportunity converged. It was an ideal
scenario---an NBA coach to learn from and the junior-varsity team
to coach." Newhall maintains strong international ties, placing
numerous players on European Basketball Club Teams.
Continuity and community are benchmarks of Newhall's success. Alumni support is at an all time high. "Staying in touch with my own players and meeting those of earlier generations is one of the rewards of my career." Newhall has reached out to scholar-athletes across six decades of Tiger Basketball. "Their collective achievements are the best recommendation for Occidental." Newhall credits Oxy legend, Coach Grant Dunlap, with "inspiration and guidance" in energizing the alumni network. "It embodies the heart and history of our program." Newhall has expanded Oxy's Hall of Fame to include 29 honorees, dating back to 1935. And the flourishing Alumni Basketball Association Sunday Night League keeps team-mates connected and involved with the current program. "Their best shots, now, are e-mails to critique my coaching." What's the coach's lament? "If they care when you win, they care when you lose!"
Newhall, who has an MA in Education, also developed and directs Occidental's acclaimed Youth Basketball Camps. In addition, Newhall lends his coaching talent to the YMCA and AYSO youth sports programs and is an active volunteer with the South Pasadena School District.
Newhall and his wife, Amy, Oxy alum and Scripps College
psychology professor, have an twelve-year old daughter, Rachel,
and six year old twins, Emily and David.
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Brad Hall | |
Assistant Coach |
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Brad Hall returns to the Tiger coaching staff
for his 8th season after 20 years as the head coach at Pasadena
Polytechnic High School. Brad led Pasadena Poly to eight
league championships, seven CIF final fours, five CIF finals and
two CIF titles. This includes six different teams that
attained a #1 ranking in the state rankings and seven teams that
won twenty games. Brad received Coach of the Year Awards from
Pasadena Star News, Southern California Coaches Association,
Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles and selected California
State Coach of the Year by Cal-Hi Sport Magazine. Brad has
coached thirty All-CIF players as well as numerous college players
at Poly including Oxy standout David Newhall. Most recently
Brad spent a sabbatical year as an assistant coach at Los Angeles
City College helping LACC to a 34-3 record culminating in nine
players signing DI scholarships. Brad is a graduate of UC
Berkeley. Brad is married to Kim Weber '96 and recently
became the proud father of a baby boy.
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Jim Hennacy | |
Assistant Coach |
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Jim Hennacy returns to Oxy for his 8th season
bringing along with him twenty-five years of previous high school,
community college, university and professional coaching
experience. Most recently Jim spent four years as the top
assistant at local powerhouse Los Angeles City College helping lead
them to four league championships, three final 8 appearances and
one state championship. Jim is no stranger to SCIAC
basketball. Prior to coaching at LACC Jim spent six years as
the top assistant at the University of La Verne. During his
tenure at La Verne Jim was instrumental in helping turn the program
around and guiding the Leopards to three SCIAC championships and
advancing to the NCAA DIII Sweet Sixteen in 1993. As the Head
Coach, Jim led Blair High School to two CIF Finals and won numerous
league championships and coach of the year awards. Jim
received his BA from UCLA and his Masters Degree from Point
Loma. Jim is married and resides in Pasadena.
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John Tingley | |
Assistant Coach |
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John Tingley joined the Occidental Staff four
years ago after serving four years with the US Army, including two
tours of duty in Iraq with the 82nd Airborne where he earned the
Army Commendation medal and the Purple Heart. John was a starting
point guard and also played baseball at Aragon High School in San
Mateo, CA. He also played basketball at Gavilan College in Gilroy,
CA, under Jim Mastin (former head coach at Whitman College, WA).
John is now in his second year as full time Supervisor of the
Stockroom with the Facilities Department at Occidental College. He
and his wife, Jamee, have two sons, James (5) and Jayden (3) and
currently reside in Burbank. John will assist Reiner Kolodinski,
and his primary responsibilities will center around individual
development with Oxy Junior Varsity guards and forwards.
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Reiner Kolodinski | |
Assistant Coach |
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Reiner Kolodinski '81 returns for his 8th
season as Oxy assistant coach. An assistant coach at Duarte High
School for the past five years, Reiner brings more than 15 years of
high school, college and professional coaching experience to the
Tiger Basketball program. Reiner is an outstanding coach and has a
passion for teaching the game and developing players. Regarded as
one of the finest point guards in Oxy history, Reiner transferred
to Occidental after playing two years at El Camino College. He led
the Tigers to the 1980 SCIAC Championship and a berth in the NCAA
Division III Tournament, setting school records in free throw
percentage (92.9%) and season assists (154). Reiner was a two-time
All-SCIAC point guard and was named to the NCAA Division III
All-District team in 1980. He went on to play professionally for
ASC46 Goettingen in the German Bundeslinga, winning the German Cup
in 1983. Reiner is a full-time teacher and chair of the history
department at Duarte High School, where he was named "Teacher of
the Year" in 2003. Reiner earned his teaching credential and
master's degree from Occidental in 2001. Married for 23 years, he
and his wife Janice live in Eagle Rock and have three children:
Jonathan, 22; Natalie, 18; and Andrew, 18. Reiner enjoys traveling,
modern jazz, reading, gardening and old movies.








