Ben McCollum is the current men's basketball

Northwest Missouri Bearcats men's basketball

The coach for the Northwest Missouri Bearcats men's basketball team starting in 2009-2010 is Ben McCollum who played on the school's 2002-03 Elite 8 team under long time coach Steve Tappmeyer.-National championship game:...

 head coach at Northwest Missouri State University

Northwest Missouri State University

Northwest Missouri State University is a state university in Maryville, Missouri. Founded in 1905 as a teachers college, it offers both undergraduate and graduate programs. The campus, based on the design for Forest Park at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair, is the official Missouri State Arboretum....

 in Maryville, Missouri

Maryville, Missouri

Maryville is a city in Nodaway County, Missouri, United States. The population was 10,581 at the 2000 census. The town, organized on February 14, 1845, was named for Mrs. Mary Graham, wife of Amos Graham, then the county clerk. Mary was the first Caucasian woman to have lived within the boundaries...

.

McCollum was born in Storm Lake, Iowa

Storm Lake, Iowa

Storm Lake is a city in Buena Vista County, Iowa, United States. The population was 10,600 in the 2010 census, an increase from 10,076 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Buena Vista County. Storm Lake is home to Buena Vista University, originally Buena Vista College...

 and played basektball for two years at North Iowa Area Community College

North Iowa Area Community College

The North Iowa Area Community College is a community college in Mason City, Iowa.-History:NIACC began as Mason City Junior College in 1918, becoming the first public two-year college in Iowa. The first year there were 28 students, six instructors, and five fields of study under Principal James Rae...

 before transferring to Northwest in 2001 where he played for Steve Tappmeyer

Steve Tappmeyer

Steve Tappmeyer served 21 seasons as basketball coach of the Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats men's basketball team. Tappmeyer was the longest serving coach for the school and had the most wins . He is currently the head coach for the University of Missouri-St...

 as the school made its first Elite Eight appearance. He graduated in 2003 from Northwest with a degree in business finance and then received a masters in athletic administration from the school in 2004. He was an assistant coach at Emporia State University

Emporia State University

Emporia State University is a university in the city of Emporia in Lyon County, Kansas, just east of the Flint Hills.- History :...

from 2004 to 2008 when he came to Northwest as head coach in 2009.

External links

• http://www.nwmissouri.edu/sports/mensbball/coachingstaff.htm