Steve Alford (born November 23, 1964) is the current head coach of the University of Iowa Hawkeye men's basketball team. Alford was born in Franklin, Indiana and he grew up in New Castle, Indiana.

Playing Career

Alford played basketball at the high school level for his father, who was coach at the Chrysler High School in New Castle. As a high school senior, he average 37.7 points per game, which led to his being named Indiana's Mr. Basketball in 1983.

Alford attended Indiana University. During his time there, he played basketball under head coach Bobby Knight. During his time at Indiana he became the all time leading scorer with 2,438 points. Alford was the first player to be named the team's MVP four times. He was also a first team all American, and was named Big Ten MVP during his senior year of college. In the Legends of College Basketball by The Sporting News Alford was no. 35 on the list of the 100 greatest Divison One college basketball players.

During his final three seasons Alford earned first team all-Big Ten honors. He earned all-America honors as a junior. As a sophomore Alford was named to the NIT all-tourney team after the Hoosiers finished second to UCLA. Alford's free throw percentage of .897 (535-596) is fourth best in the history of the NCAA, and as a freshman he led the nation in free throw percentage.

For the 1984 Olympics Alford was selected to play on the U.S. Basketball Team, coached by Bobby Knight. Alford averaged 10.3 points per game, was second in assists, and shot .644 from the field. He and his teammates went on to win the gold medal at the 1984 games. In this game Alford played alongside men such as Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Sam Perkins, Chris Mullin and Waymon Tisdale . Alford has recounted that during the Olympic training camp, Jordan bet him $100 that he would not last four years on Knight's Indiana team.

Following college, Alford played for four years at the professional level. During his time in the NBA, he played for the Dallas Mavericks and Golden State Warriors. He scored 744 points, had 176 assists, and shot free throws with an accuracy of 87 percent.

Alford co-wrote a book, Playing for Knight -- My Six Seasons with Coach Knight, about his college and Olympic basketball experiences.

Coaching Career

After his time in the NBA, Alford began his coaching career.

Manchester College

Alford began his coaching career in North Manchester, Indiana. He started in 1992 as head coach of the Divison III Manchester College's basketball program. During his four seasons with the team, Alford had a record of 78-29. When Alford began coaching that team, the team had lost its first eight games. During his first season there Alford won four of 20 games. In his first full season as coach the team posted a record of 20-8. In the next season Manchester posted a record of 23-4, and in his fourth and final season his team posted a record of 31-1.

In 1994 and 1995 Manchester won conference titles in 1994, and in Alford's final three seasons the team competed in the NCAA Division III Tournament. Under Alford the team won three straight conference tournament titles. In 1995 the team advanced to the Division III championship game. The team placed second in the nation after suffering its first defeat in 32 games. 95 before suffering its first defeat in 32 games to place second in the nation.

In 1993, 1994 and 1995 Alford was named the Indiana Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year. In the 1994-95 season the Manchester team was inducted into the Hall of Fame. In 1999 Alford was inducted into Manchester's Hall of Fame.

Southwest Missouri State

Following his time at Manchester, Alford was named the head coach of the Southwest Missouri State. He began his position there in the 1995-96 season, and would remain there until 1999. During his time at Southwest Missouri State his team posted a 78-48 record. In 1999 the team advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament before losing to Duke University.

Iowa Hawkeyes

Steve Alford was named the head coach of the University of Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball program on March 22, 1999.

News Items

Indiana's head coach Bobby Knight was fired in May of 2000 for his treatment of a student who had offended him - which violated the school's "zero tolerance" policy that the administration had adopted in regards to his behavior. At the time there was speculation that Alford would be offered the head coaching job at his alma mater. Alford responded by stating that he intended to remain at Iowa, and after the 2001 season he signed a contract extension that runs until 2009.

Recently, the behavior of Hawkeye team member Pierre Pierce has attracted much attention both in and outside of the University Community. Following an incident in West Des Moines, Iowa in which Pierce was alleged to have broken in to the town house of his former girlfriend and assualted her, Alford dismissed Pierce from the team. Most have sided with Alford in his decision to dismiss Pierce, however others feel that Pierce was denied due process. Pierce has appealed Alford's decision to remove him from the team.

External Links

• Steve Alford's Biography on Hawkeye Sports