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Former Rutgers-Newark
assistant coach Brian
Wischusen has been named the head men’s basketball coach at Rutgers-Camden.
“It’s exciting to have the opportunity to run my own program,” Wischusen
said. “To be the final decision-maker on the basketball end of things is
pretty fun.
“I’ve coached with, and for, a lot of good people. I’ve learned a lot.
I’ve always been a vocal assistant coach. Every coach I have worked for
has encouraged me to keep pursuing my head coaching dream. I look forward
to helping the next generation of coaches come along and try to get to the
level of coaching they want.”
Wischusen served as an assistant coach at Rutgers-Newark during both the
2003-04 and the 2005-06 seasons. Between those two stints, he was an
assistant at Division II University of Massachusetts-Lowell. He was active in recruiting with Rutgers-Newark, and already has
hit the ground running at Rutgers-Camden.
“There definitely are enough players in South Jersey that kind of go
untapped,” Wischusen said. “It’s an untapped market. Some players make
all-conference and don’t get recruited. I’ll use the style of recruiting
we incorporated in the North. I’ll meet players and become familiar with
their families. We’ll do a lot of targeting of whole programs and make
sure that they know who I am.”
Wischusen takes over the program from Bill Culbertson, who served three
years as the Scarlet Raptors head coach before resigning at the end of the
season.
“We’re excited to have Brian on board,” said Rutgers-Camden Director of
Athletics Jeff Dean. “He brings a lot of enthusiasm. Coming from
Rutgers-Newark, he’s familiar with the Rutgers environment. We’re excited
about a new era in Rutgers-Camden basketball.”
A 1997 Boston College graduate with a major in Sociology and a minor in
Black Studies, Wischusen received his Masters of Social Work from BC in
1998. He is employed as a Social Worker.
Wischusen started his coaching career as the head JV and assistant varsity
boys’ basketball coach at Union Catholic Regional High School in Scotch
Plains, where he spent two seasons from September 1998 through May 2000.
He spent the next two seasons (June 2000 to August 2002) as the assistant
varsity boys’ basketball coach at Marist High School in Bayonne, then
served in the same capacity at Hillside High School for the 2002-03
season.
In June of 2003 he joined the collegiate ranks as an assistant at
Rutgers-Newark. The next year he worked in a similar capacity at UMass
Lowell before returning to Rutgers-Newark. Last season with the Scarlet
Raiders he served in numerous capacities, from scouting to developing
practice and game strategies, and from recruiting to assisting
with the academic program and monitoring the academic progress of specific
players. He also started work on the first Rutgers-Newark High School Team
Tournament, which begins this summer. With his two stints at
Rutgers-Newark, Wischusen is very familiar with the competitive nature of
NJAC competition.
“In this league, you’re coaching against some of the best Division III
coaches in the country,” he said.
You’re also recruiting against some of the best Division III programs in
the country, which is why Wischusen has jumped into his new job
full-blast.
“It’s about relationship-building,” Wischusen said. “That’s the most
important part. It’s about working day in and day out.”
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