BRN Interview with Kelly Schultz and Mike Boschee

Mike Boschee has been named the 16th head coach of the Bemidji State University men’s basketball program. Director of Athletics Dr. Rick Goeb today announced the hiring of Boschee, a 22-year veteran in the coaching profession, most recently as the head coach at Central College in Pella, Iowa.

“Mike is a great fit for the men’s basketball program at Bemidji State University,” Goeb said. “He is extremely well respected in basketball circles. He’s developed winning traditions at Central College and Gustavus and he’s done the it the right way, with quality student-athletes.”

We are very fortunate to have Mike Boschee as our new basketball coach.”

Boschee (BOE-she), who officially begins his duties at BSU immediately, replaces Matt Bowen, who resigned in May after a six year tenure (2006-12) capped by a program-best 22 wins and BSU’s second appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament.

“My family and I are thrilled to be apart of Bemidji State and the community,” Boschee said. “I’m honored Rick and the BSU administration have chosen me to lead the program into the future. This is an exciting time to continue building a tradition of good basketball with people who are committed to being successful.”

I look forward to meeting everyone associated with Bemidji State University, especially our current players. They are what coaching is all about and I can’t wait to starting working with them.”

Boschee completed his ninth season as head coach at Central College in 2011-12 and guided the Dutch to an 18-8 overall record and a 10-6 mark in Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) play to finish fourth in the league standings. Producing a .500 record or better in four of the past five seasons, he compiled a 115-115 career record at Central (third all-time in wins) after inheriting a program that failed to reach .500 in the eight seasons previous to Boschee stepping on campus as head coach. He led the Dutch to a 14-10 record in 2007-08, the first winning campaign in 12 seasons, before establishing a new program record for wins in a season in 2009-10.

Boschee and the Dutch posted a 23-5 record in 2009-10 and brought the first outright IIAC championship to the Central campus in 25 years. In addition to the league championship, the squad made its ninth appearance in the NCAA Division III tournament after winning the program’s first-ever IIAC Tournament Championship. At the conclusion of the season, Boschee was rewarded for his efforts and was named coach of the year in the IIAC, Iowa Basketball Coaches Association and D3hoops.com West Region.

Under Boschee, 17 student-athletes earned all-conference laurels, including a conference most valuable player, while three team members were named academic all-conference. He also recruited and guided the school’s all-time assist, 3-point and field goal percentage leaders.  In addition, he served as an instructor in exercise science at Central.

Prior to his time at Central College, Boschee served as an assistant men’s basketball coach at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn. from 1993-2003. During his tenure for the Gusties, the team posted NCAA Division III National Tournament bids in seven seasons, including a national runner-up performance in 2003. Gustavus totaled a 221-83 record, won four conference tournaments and two regular-season conference championships during Boschee’s 10 seasons in St. Peter. He also served as the women’s golf coach from 1995-2003 and guided the Gusties to their first national tournament appearance in 2003. He was named women’s golf coach of the year by the Minnesota Women’s Collegiate Golf Association (MWGCA) in 1998 and by the conference in 2000 and 2003. Boschee also served as a instructor in the Department of Health and Exercise Science at Gustavus.

Boschee earned a Master of Arts in Teaching at Northern State University in Aberdeen, S.D. in 1993. During his graduate work he served as a graduate assistant for a men’s basketball team that won the 1992-93 Northern Sun Conference Championship and finished as National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Runners-up.

A 1991 graduate of University of North Dakota, Boschee earned his bachelor’s degree in recreation management. During his undergraduate career, he was a four-year letterwinner for the UND men’s basketball team, where he played for former BSU head men’s basketball coach Dave Gunther (1995-2001) and BSU Athletic Hall of Fame member Rich Glas. He earned all-conference and all-region honors as a student-athlete, while captaining a squad that earned conference and regional championships, en route to a third place finish at the NCAA Division II National Tournament in 1990. He finished his career among the top 10 in scoring and still remains in the top 25, while holding on to the career free throw percentage record with an 88.0 percent clip from the line. The 1989-90 men’s basketball team was inducted into the UND Athletic Hall of Fame in 2009.  

Boschee and his wife, Amy, have three sons and a daughter.