Paul Sather

American college basketball coach

Paul SatherCurrent position

Title| Head coach
Team| North Dakota
Conference| Summit League
Record| 73–115 (.388)
Biographical details
Born|  (1971-08-28) August 28, 1971 (age 53)
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
Playing career
1990–1994| Northern State
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1996–1997| Sidney HS (assistant)
1997–1998| Wayne State (NE) (GA)
1998–2004| Northern State (assistant)
2004–2005| Colorado (assistant)
2005–2010| Black Hills State
2010–2019| Northern State
2019–present| North Dakota
Head coaching record
Overall| 355–266 (.572)
Tournaments| 3–2 (NAIA)
5–3 (NCAA Division II)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
As a coach

* 2 NSIC North Division (2018, 2019)
* 2 NSIC regular season (2018, 2019)
* 2 NSIC tournament (2018, 2019)
* 2 DAC regular season (2009, 2010)
* DAC tournament (2009)

As a player

* NSIC regular season (1993)

Awards

* 2× NSIC Coach of the Year (2018, 2019)
* NABC Central Region Coach of the Year (2018)
* DAC Coach of the Year (2009)

Paul Robert Sather (born August 28, 1971) is an American college basketball coach, currently head men's basketball coach at the University of North Dakota.[1]

## Early life

[edit]

Sather, from Princeton, Minnesota, played college basketball for Northern State in Aberdeen, South Dakota from 1990 to 1994.

## Coaching career

[edit]

### Early coaching career

[edit]

Following his college career, he entered coaching, first as an assistant coach at Sidney High School in Nebraska, then as a graduate assistant at Wayne State College under Greg McDermott, where he also obtained a master's degree in sports administration. In 1998, Sather returned to Northern State as an assistant coach, where he served for six years. For the 2004–05 season, Sather joined Ricardo Patton’s staff at Colorado.[2]

### Black Hills State

[edit]

In 2005, Sather was named head coach of Black Hills State University in Spearfish, South Dakota.[3] In his five seasons at Black Hills State, he led the Yellow Jackets to a 94–62 record. His 2008–09 team went 30–5, setting a school season record for wins.[4] In the 2008–09 season, he also won the DAC Coach of the Year.[5]

### Northern State

[edit]

Sather was then hired to lead the program at his alma mater, Northern State, replacing Don Meyer. His teams went 188–89 in nine seasons. During this time, Sather won back to back Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) coach of the year awards and the Wolves played in the championship game of the 2018 NCAA Division II tournament, narrowly losing to Ferris State.[6] That team finished 36-4 and set a school record for single season wins and consecutive wins with 18.[7]

### North Dakota

[edit]

On May 30, 2019, Sather was announced as the new head coach for the North Dakota Fighting Hawks of the Summit League.[8] He picked Jamie Stevens and Zach Horstman, who were assistants under him at Northern State, as assistant coaches.[9] During his first season, Sather led the Fighting Hawks to the Summit League tournament championship game for the first time in school history, subsequently losing to North Dakota State.[10] On March 14, 2023, it was announced that Sather was hired to a two year extension through the 2025–26 season.[11]

## Head coaching record

[edit]

Statistics overview  Season  | Team  | Overall  | Conference  | Standing  | Postseason

|
|
|
|
|

Black Hills State Yellow Jackets (Dakota Athletic Conference) (2005–2010)
2005–06  | Black Hills State  | 17–14 | 10–4 | 2nd |
2006–07  | Black Hills State  | 10–19 | 5–9 | 7th |
2007–08  | Black Hills State  | 16–14 | 8–7 | 4th |
2008–09  | Black Hills State  | 30–5 | 13–1 | 1st | NAIA Division II Final Four
2009–10  | Black Hills State  | 21–10 | 10–3 | 1st | NAIA Division II first round
Black Hills State: | 94–62 (.603) | 46–24 (.657) |
Northern State Wolves (Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference) (2010–2019)
2010–11  | Northern State  | 12–14 | 7–14 | T–10th |
2011–12  | Northern State  | 13–13 | 9–13 | T–8th |
2012–13  | Northern State  | 20–11 | 14–8 | T–5th |
2013–14  | Northern State  | 18–11 | 13–9 | 8th |
2014–15  | Northern State  | 23–9 | 15–7 | 4th | NCAA Division II first round
2015–16  | Northern State  | 18–12 | 13–9 | 4th |
2016–17  | Northern State  | 22–8 | 17–5 | T–2nd |
2017–18  | Northern State | 36–4 | 20–2 | 1st | NCAA Division II Runner-up
2018–19  | Northern State | 26–7 | 18–4 | 1st | NCAA Division II first round
Northern State: | 188–89 (.679) | 126–71 (.640) |
North Dakota Fighting Hawks (Summit League) (2019–present)
2019–20 | North Dakota | 15–18 | 7–9 | 6th |
2020–21 | North Dakota | 9–17 | 8–8 | 5th |
2021–22 | North Dakota | 6–25 | 2–16 | 10th |
2022–23 | North Dakota | 13–20 | 6–12 | 9th |
2023–24 | North Dakota | 18–14 | 10–6 | T–2nd |
2024–25 | North Dakota | 12–21 | 5–11 | T–6th |
2025–26 | North Dakota | 0–0 | 0–0 |  |
North Dakota: | 73–115 (.388) | 38–62 (.380) |
Total: | 355–266 (.572) |

National champion         Postseason invitational champion
Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
Conference tournament champion

## Career stats

[edit]

Legend    GP  | Games played  |   GS  | Games started  |  MPG  | Minutes per game

|
|
|
|
|

FG%  | Field goal percentage  |  3P%  | 3-point field goal percentage  |  FT%  | Free throw percentage
RPG  | Rebounds per game  |  APG  | Assists per game  |  SPG  | Steals per game
BPG  | Blocks per game  |  PPG  | Points per game  |  Bold  | Career high

### College

[edit]

Year  | Team  | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1990–91  | Northern State  | 14 | 0 |  | .86 |  | 1.00 | 0.60 | 0.07 | 0.14 | 0.14 | 0.90
1991–92  | Northern State  | 6 | 0 |  | .33 |  | .40 | 0.66 | 0.00 | 0.16 | 0.33 | 1.33
1992–93  | Northern State  | 36 | 18 |  | .58 | 1.00 | .57 | 3.88 | 0.94 | 0.97 | 0.61 | 7.16
1993–94  | Northern State  | 34 | 34 |  | .59 |  | .61 | 5.58 | 1.44 | 0.97 | 0.55 | 9.97

[12]

## Coaching tree

[edit]

Assistant coaches under Sather who became NCAA or NBA head coaches

* Sundance Wicks – Missouri Western (2018–2020), Green Bay (2023–2024), Wyoming (2024–present)
* Steve Smiley – Northern Colorado (2020–present)
* Justin Wieck – Minnesota Duluth (2018–present)
* Randall Herbst – Minot State (2025–present)

## Personal life

[edit]

He has two children, Sam and Becca, and a wife named Kelsie.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Paul Sather". fightinghawks.com. Retrieved April 29, 2025.
2. ^ "Sather named head men's basketball coach". North Dakota Fighting Hawks. May 30, 2019. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
3. ^ Centineo, Peter (March 30, 2005). "Paul Sather named head coach at Black Hills State University". Black Hills Pioneer. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
4. ^ Holland, Jim (March 18, 2010). "Sather to resign as BHSU men's basketball coach, replace Meyer at Northern State". Rapid City Journal. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
5. ^ Nordbye, Jake (March 24, 2009). "Men's basketball: Jackets remember their best season". Rapid City Journal. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
6. ^ Borg, Zach (May 30, 2019). "Paul Sather Leaves Northern State To Take Over At North Dakota". kild.com. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
7. ^ Miller, Tom (May 30, 2019). "Sather says becoming UND men's basketball coach an 'incredible honor'". Jamestown Sun. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
8. ^ Miller, Tom (May 30, 2019). "UND names Northern State's Paul Sather as next head men's basketball coach". Grand Forks Herald. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
9. ^ "Paul Sather rounds out coaching staff with pair of hires". North Dakota Fighting Hawks. July 2, 2019. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
10. ^ Zimmer, Matt (March 9, 2020). "Summit League tournament: It'll be North Dakota vs. North Dakota State for men's title". Argus Leader. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
11. ^ Miller, Tom (March 14, 2023). "UND coach Paul Sather signs extension through 2025-26 season". Grand Forks Herald. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
12. ^ "Men's Basketball Statistics". Northern State University Athletics. Retrieved July 6, 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* North Dakota profile

* v
* t
* e

Men's basketball head coaches of the Summit League

* Tim Bergstraser (Denver)
* Marvin Menzies (Kansas City)
* Paul Sather (North Dakota)
* David Richman (North Dakota State)
* Chris Crutchfield (Omaha)
* Kory Barnett (Oral Roberts)
* John Tauer (St. Thomas)
* Eric Peterson (South Dakota)
* Bryan Petersen (South Dakota State)

Links to related articles

* v
* t
* e

Black Hills State Yellow Jackets men's basketball head coaches

* Lyle Hale (1910–1917)
* William Nade (1917–1919)
* James Loman (1919–1920)
* Everett Niday (1920–1924)
* Ward H. Bell (1924–1926)
* Dan Root (1926–1928)
* Paul Rose (1928–1936)
* G.T. Birkeland (1936–1942)
* Ray Abel (1945–1946)
* Ollie Olson (1946–1948)
* Don Young (1948–1951)
* William Fulleton (1951–1958)
* Maurice Fitzgerald (1958–1964)
* Thurmon Wright (1964–1965)
* Bill Hauck (1965–1968)
* Tommy Matthews (1968–1970)
* Walt Cook (1970–1981)
* Jim Sutherland (1981–1990)
* Mike Olson (1990–1999)
* Michael Krusynski (1999–2005)
* Paul Sather (2005–2010)
* Bradd Schafer (2010–2014)
* Jeff Trumbauer (2014–2018)
* Ryan Thompson (2018– )

* v
* t
* e

Northern State Wolves men's basketball head coaches

* Fred W. Smith (1902–1909)
* Paul M. Young (1909–1910)
* Raymond L. Quigley (1910–1913)
* Frank L. Sieh (1913–1914)
* Clyde Fullerton (1914–1915)
* Lloyd R. Brown (1915–1916)
* Arthur L. Strum (1916–1917)
* William Wallace (1917–1918)
* Coach Gillis (1918–1919)
* Verne Collinge (1919–1920)
* Jacob Speelman (1920–1926)
* Joe Swetland (1926–1927)
* Telfer L. Mead (1927–1929)
* Robert Campbell (1929–1934)
* William L. Carberry (1934–1938)
* Harley L. Robertson (1938–1942)
* William L. Carberry (1942–1944)
* No team (1943–1944)
* William L. Carberry (1945–1946)
* Clark Swisher (1946–1955)
* Bob Wachs (1955–1985)
* Bob Olson (1985–1999)
* Don Meyer (1999–2010)
* Paul Sather (2010–2019)
* Saul Phillips (2019–2025)
* Matt Wilber (2025– )

* v
* t
* e

North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's basketball head coaches

* George Sweetland (1904–1908)
* David L. Dunlap (1908–1912)
* Charles Armstrong (1912–1913)
* Fred V. Archer (1913–1914)
* Thomas Andrew Gill (1914–1918)
* Harry Caldwell (1918–1919)
* Paul J. Davis (1919–1924)
* Dutch Houser (1924–1925)
* Clement W. Letich (1925–1943)
* No team (1943–1944)
* Charles A. West (1944–1945)
* Red Jarrett (1945–1946)
* Cookie Cunningham (1946–1949)
* Red Jarrett (1949–1951)
* Louis D. Bogan (1951–1962)
* Bill Fitch (1962–1967)
* Jimmy Rodgers (1967–1970)
* Dave Gunther (1970–1988)
* Rich Glas (1988–2006)
* Brian Jones (2006–2019)
* Paul Sather (2019– )

* v
* t
* e

Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year

* 1969: Ekker
* 1970: Olson
* 1971: Skaar
* 1972: Hutchins, Wothke
* 1973: Wothke
* 1974: Haddorff
* 1975: Wothke
* 1976: Olson
* 1977: Glas
* 1978: Glas
* 1979: Raymond
* 1980: Gappy
* 1981: Schellhase
* 1982: Fischer, Schellhase
* 1983: Fischer, Lewis
* 1984: Fischer, Wachs
* 1985: Wachs
* 1986: Race
* 1987: Race
* 1988: Race
* 1989: Race
* 1990: Race
* 1991: Olson
* 1992: Race
* 1993: Olson
* 1994: Ford
* 1995: Olson
* 1996: Olson
* 1997: Race
* 1998: Olson
* 1999: Leaf
* 2000: McDermott
* 2001: Miles
* 2002: Meyer
* 2003: Meyer
* 2004: Guiot
* 2005: Leaf
* 2006: Leaf
* 2007: Leaf
* 2008: Leaf
* 2009: Stemen
* 2010: Margenthaler
* 2011: Margenthaler
* 2012: Bowen
* 2013: Bigler
* 2014: Margenthaler
* 2015: Walthall
* 2016: Billeter
* 2017: Bigler
* 2018: Sather
* 2019: Sather
* 2020: Johnson
* 2021: Phillips (north), Kaminsky (south)
* 2022: Billeter
* 2023: Phillips
* 2024: Margenthaler
* 2025: Fletcher

*[GP]: Games played
*[GS]: Games started
*[MPG]: Minutes per game
*[FG%]: Field goal percentage
*[3P%]: 3-point field-goal percentage
*[FT%]: Free-throw percentage
*[RPG]: Rebounds per game
*[APG]: Assists per game
*[SPG]: Steals per game
*[BPG]: Blocks per game
*[PPG]: Points per game
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template