Missouri Valley Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)
By Joey Loose
6. Missouri Valley Basketball coach – Bruce Weber (Southern Illinois, 2000-2003)
Prior to Weber’s hiring in 1998, Southern Illinois had been a solidly decent program, though they had slipped in the previous few seasons. Weber was fresh off two decades under legendary coach Gene Keady, mostly at Purdue, but was certainly ready for a shot running his own program. Suffice to say, choosing Weber was a smart choice for the Salukis.
By the time the century began, Southern Illinois was competing near the top of the MVC again. In each of Weber’s five seasons, the Salukis won double-digit conference games. His teams made NCAA Tournaments in both 2002 and 2003, with that 2002 team the most successful of the bunch. Weber coached an 11-seed to the Sweet Sixteen, racking up 28 wins during an impressive campaign. The following season, his Salukis won the MVC title outright, though they were unable to pull a postseason upset for a second time.
Weber left for Illinois in 2003, entrusting the program with former assistant Matt Painter (and eventually Chris Lowery). What he left behind was a program headed in an impressive direction in a short period of time. The MVC was one of the best mid-major conferences and Southern Illinois spent a good part of that decade at or near the top of it. When you considered that Weber was in the national title game just two years later with Illinois, it’s clear to see that he’s a fantastic coach.