Oct. 2, 2008
Miami University head men's basketball coach Charlie Coles and former women's basketball standout Monica Niemann Zumstein were two of nine individuals inducted into the Greater Cincinnati Basketball Hall of Fame on Oct. 1.
Coles is entering his 13th season guiding the Miami program and in his 19th season as a collegiate head coach. During his Miami head coaching tenure, the RedHawks have made six postseason appearances--NCAA 1997, 1999, 2007; NIT 2005, 2006; CBI 2008--and Coles has mentored 17 players who have garnered 25 all-MAC awards, including eight first-team honorees. Over the past five seasons, Miami has had five players capture a combined six first-team all-MAC accolades and is the only MAC men's basketball program to have at least one first-team honoree each of the last five years.
Coles owns a 207-155 record as the RedHawks' mentor and ranks second at Miami in wins and sixth in winning percentage (.572). Coles is just nine wins shy of tying Darrell Hedric for the most wins in program history. He also has won three MAC regular-season crowns (1997, 1999, 2005), while making appearances in the championship game of the MAC Tournament his first five years. The RedHawks won the league's tourney title in 1997 and 2007.
Over 18 seasons as a head coach in the MAC--six at Central Michigan and 12 at Miami--Coles has amassed a 299-239 (.556) overall record and a 183-126 (.592) MAC mark. His 183 career MAC wins rank second in league history and are 11 away from tying former Toledo head coach Bob Nichols' league-record 194 conference wins. His 299 career wins rank third all-time among MAC coaching leaders.
A native of Yellow Springs, Ohio, Coles was the leading high school scorer in the state as a senior at Bryan High School, averaging 42.1 points per game, which is thought to be the second-highest single-season average in Ohio boys' basketball history. He scored 40 points or more 15 times his senior year, including a school-record 55 points against Shawnee. His lowest output of the season was a 23-point performance. In the fall of 2000, Yellow Springs retired his jersey.
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Coles then went on to earn three letters at Miami under coach Dick Shrider from 1963-65. He earned Second-Team All-MAC honors as a junior and senior and was a member of Miami's MAC co-championship team in 1964-65. Coles averaged double figures in scoring all three seasons, including an 18.5 ppg average as a junior. He led Miami with a .503 field goal percentage that season (167-of-332).
Coles, who was inducted into Miami's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1990, ranks 28th on Miami's career scoring list with 1,096 points.
Niemann ('95), who was inducted into the Miami Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005, was a dominant presence in the Miami women's basketball frontcourt from 1991-95, earning four varsity letters and capturing All-MAC plaudits three times during her career. She earned First-Team All-MAC honors as a senior and went on to be named Miami's Female Athlete of the Year and the Leann Davidge Memorial Award winner, which is regarded as Miami's highest honor for a female student-athlete. The Davidge Award is presented to an upperclass female student-athlete who excels in athletics, academics and leadership.
Upon completing her impressive career in 1995 by leading Miami to a MAC Championship game appearance and earning MAC All-Tournament honors for the second time in her career, Niemann was Miami's career record holder for points (1,608), rebounds (923), free throws made (450) and double-doubles (35). Her career totals for rebounds and double-doubles continue to serve as Miami's career standards. During the Cincinnati native's four seasons, Miami compiled a 68-44 record and advanced to the MAC Tournament Semifinals or beyond twice.
Joining Coles and Niemann in the Greater Cincinnati Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2008 were Tyrone Hill, Paul Cluxton, Michelle Cottrell Marston, Corie Blount, Bob Sagers, Tom Thompson and Shelby Linville.
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