Mark Madsen enters his fourth season as the head coach of the Utah Valley men's basketball team.
Madsen is a two-time NBA champion, former Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach, and a Stanford Athletics Hall of Famer. He is just the third head men's basketball coach in UVU's 16-year Division I history.
Madsen led his team to a 20-win season in 2021-22, finishing with a 20-12 overall record. His team finished its home slate with an impressive 11-2 record at home, which included a 72-65 overtime win over 12th-ranked crosstown rival BYU. The win over BYU marked the team's first win over a nationally ranked opponent. Madsen has led the Wolverines to a 19-6 record at home over the past two seasons.
Under Madsen's guidence, Fardaws Aimaq earned back-to-back WAC Defensive Player of the Year honors. He also earned First Team All-WAC honors and WAC All-Defensive team honors for a second straight season. Aimaq's 27 double-doubles during the 2021-22 season ties Pascal Siakam for the WAC single season record in category and ranked third in the nation. His 13.6 rebounds per game ranked second in the nation. Aimaq came up just three rebounds shy of Paul Millsap's all-time WAC single season rebounds record. Aimaq's 27 double-doubles during the 2021-22 season tied him for the fifth-most double-doubles in NCAA history with Siakam, Oscar Robertson, Lew Alcindor, Artis Gilmore, and Bill Walton. Aimaq was UVU's first-ever player to be named to the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Watch List.
Madsen's team also upset Pac-12 foe Washington on the road in Seattle during the 2021-22 season. The win marked UVU's third win over a team from a Power 6 conference.
Utah Valley won the SoCal Challenge championship during the 2021-22 campaign, defeating both Idaho and Nicholls State to claim the championship skimboard trophy in San Juan Capistrano, California.
Madsen's team went an impressive 9-3 in non-conference play last season, including wins over Pepperdine, Long Beach State, Idaho, Nicholls State, Denver, No. 12 BYU, and Washington.
Madsen's team has become the first NCAA Division I program to wear a jersey patch in the fight against cancer. His team partnered with 5 For the Fight, debuting the patch in its win over No. 12 BYU.
In Madsen's second season with UVU in 2020-21, UVU returned just two players and welcomed in 16 newcomers. His team was picked seventh in the WAC preseason polls entering the 2020-21 season. Despite the odds against the team, Madsen led the Wolverines to a WAC regular season title, just the second WAC title in UVU history and its first since the 2014 season. The Wolverines were one of the most unselfish teams in the nation, averaging 16.8 assists per game, which ranked 11th nationally. Madsen's 2020-21 team was the only team in the WAC to defeat every team in the league.
Four of Madsen's players earned All-WAC honors in 2021, including first team, second team, and honorable mention awards. Under his tutelage, Fardaws Aimaq became the first player in UVU history to earn both WAC Player of the Year honors and the WAC Defensive Player of the Year award. Aimaq became the first player in 40 years to average 15 rebounds a game and was the nation's leader in total rebounds, rebounds per game, and defensive rebounds per game. Aimaq also earned All-District honors and was named a finalist for both the Lou Henson Player of the Year award and the Lefty Driesell National Defensive Player of the Year award. Aimaq won Riley Wallace Award, which is given annually to the top transfer in Division I college basketball.
Madsen enjoyed a successful first year at UVU during the 2019-20 season. His team fought through injuries and adversity to pick up 11 wins, including a 68-62 win at North Dakota State, which finished the season with a 13-1 home mark, won the Summit League, and was on its way to the NCAA Tournament. UVU was the only team to defeat the Bison at home during the 2019-20 season. The Wolverines played tough on the road during the 2019-20 season, picking up wins at North Dakota State, UAB, Wyoming, and Grand Canyon.
Madsen's 2019-20 team was the first since the 2013-14 WAC Championship UVU team to sweep Grand Canyon, picking up a 73-69 win GCU and a 92-80 win over the 'Lopes at home. The Wolverines also nearly knocked off No. 9 Kentucky on the road, coming back from a 16-point deficit to cut the UK lead to just one point, 68-67, with 3:26 to play. UVU's TJ Washington scored 22 points and was featured on ESPN SportsCenter's Top-10 plays after the game that night.
During Madsen's first season, UVU broke the all-time single season team blocks record with an impressive 157 swats. Emmanuel Olojakpoke broke the single season individual UVU blocks record with 81 swats and set the single season UVU field goal percentage mark at 69.1 percent. UVU's Brandon Averette earned WAC All-Newcomer Team honors.
Madsen's first year was cut short due to the corona virus. The Wolverines were unable to play in the WAC Tournament because of the pandemic.
Prior to Utah Valley, Madsen spent six seasons as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers. He was a two-time NBA champion as a player with the Lakers (2001 and 2002), and he played for the Minnesota Timberwolves for six seasons.
Following his playing career, Madsen served as an assistant coach during the 2009-10 season with the Utah Flash of the NBA G League before returning to his alma mater, Stanford University, where he earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business in 2012. That same year, he was named an assistant coach at Stanford on Johnny Dawkins' staff and spent the 2012-13 season working in recruiting, opponent game planning, and player skill development.
Madsen spent four years as a player at Stanford (1996-2000), where he earned All-American honors in each of his final two seasons while helping the Cardinal to four NCAA Tournament appearances, including the 1998 Final Four. He gained the nickname "Mad Dog" while at Stanford for his aggressive style of play. The nickname stayed with him throughout his NBA career. Madsen averaged 10.9 points and 7.0 rebounds per game during his four seasons with the Cardinal. He ranks fourth all-time in field goal percentage (58.7) and sixth in rebounds (857). During his time at Stanford, the team compiled an impressive 105-24 overall record.
A native of Danville, Calif., Madsen earned his undergraduate degree in economics in 2000. He graduated from San Ramon Valley High School and served a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Spain. He and his wife Hannah, have two sons (William and Leroy) and one daughter, Alexandria.
PLAYING CAREER
1996-00 Stanford University
2000-03 Los Angeles Lakers
2003-09 Minnesota Timberwolves
COACHING CAREER
2009-10 Assistant Coach, Utah Flash
2012-13 Assistant Coach, Stanford University
2013 Head Coach, Los Angeles D-Fenders
2013-19 Assistant Coach, Los Angeles Lakers
2019- Head Coach, Utah Valley University
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
WAC Regular Season Title (Utah Valley, 2020-2021)
NBA Championship (Los Angeles Lakers, 2001)
Goodwill Games Gold Medal (2001)
NBA Championship (Los Angeles Lakers, 2002)
First Team All Pac-10 (2000)
NABC All-America (Third team, 1999)
First Team All Pac-10 (1999)
Summer Universiade Gold Medal (1999)
NCAA Final Four (Stanford, 1998)
