UNews - Brad Karren

California recruits join Horns

trevor.kenney — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 19:47:46 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Pronghorns men's basketball team has solidified its back court with the signing of two American guards out of the California junior college circuit. Head coach Dave Adams recently introduced Daryl Cooper and Alex Fletcher as the newest Horns for this coming season.

The additions of Fletcher and Cooper continues the Horns overhaul this off-season, where the squad has added seven players, all with ties to winning programs. Earlier this off-season Adams secured four players from the national silver medalists Lethbridge College Kodiaks, as well as Tyson McIntyre from the Alberta 4A champion Raymond Comets.

Basketball Operations Manager Brad Karren was the first to identify Cooper and Fletcher during the California JUCO Final Four and did the majority of the leg work leading up to their visits.

"Brad did a great job identifying Daryl and Alex as two guys that would fit in to what we are trying to build here," says Adams. "We were able to work both of them out and really liked what we saw."

Cooper, a 6'1" point guard, spent the last two seasons at City College of San Francisco, where the team finished the season with a 32-1 record and won the California JUCO Championship. Cooper averaged just over 7 points per game and accumulated an impressive 2.95 to 1 assist to turnover ratio.

"Daryl is a pass first, score second point guard with incredible basketball IQ, work ethic, skill and leadership qualities," says Adams. "He will immediately address our deficiencies at the point guard position."

A 6'2" shooting guard, Fletcher is no stranger to his fellow California recruit, as Fresno City College was the lone team to beat Cooper's team last season. In both seasons in Fresno, Fletcher was a member of the Central Valley Conference champions and had trips to the California JuCo Final Four, where Fresno lost in the semifinals.

As a sophomore starter, Fletcher was a Central Valley first team all-star, averaging 11.06 points per game while hitting a remarkable 47.5 per cent of his shots from behind the arc. He also set a school record last season, hitting 12 three-pointers in a single game. An exceptional student, Fletcher had a 3.68 GPA in his two years at Fresno City College.

"Alex is an unselfish hard working blue collar basketball player," says Adams. "He shot a high percentage from three-point land and will immediately address our weakness there from last season. He will also immediately infuse an uncompromising work ethic into our locker room."

The Horns open training camp Aug. 29 and will kick off the 2011-12 Canada West Schedule Nov. 4-5, traveling to Winnipeg to face the Wesmen. The Horns home opener is Nov. 11 versus UBC – Okanagan Heat.

Karren takes on recruitment portfolio

trevor.kenney — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 22:02:06 +0000

The recipe for Brad Karren's success was always pretty simple - work the phones harder than anyone else and reap the rewards down the road.

Karren built a powerhouse women's basketball program at Lethbridge College by being the best recruiter in western Canada, bar none. When he made the move to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge as an assistant to Pronghorns men's head coach Dave Adams this past fall, it only seemed natural that Karren would assume some of the recruiting responsibilities for the Horns program. Recently, the Horns made it official, naming Karren the Pronghorns Basketball Operations Manager.

"We are looking at this as our first step in introducing and recruiting great southern Alberta basketball players to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, and Pronghorns Basketball," says Sandy Slavin, executive director of Sport and Recreation Services. "Basketball is the fastest growing sport in Canada West, and many schools are already utilizing the services of paid Operations Managers/Assistant Coaches to assist with recruiting. As the league continues to grow, we need to compete at the same level as the other schools for the top recruits."

Karren will continue as an assistant to Adams but will lead recruiting efforts for both the men's and women's programs.

"I'm excited, it's something I've done for a long time and had some success at, so hopefully I can help out and bring some strong players into Horns basketball," says Karren.

Another major focus of Karren's role will be to co-ordinate all the Horns' youth basketball programs, reaching out into the southern Alberta community with a consistent message and focus.

"It's a really important part of this position," says Karren. "What we're trying to do is build a better base of interest in Pronghorns Athletics, and if we can get out there in the community and run our programs well, it should generate that interest. If we can start getting kids interested in basketball and the Pronghorns at a little younger age, hopefully we can get back to where these kids all want to be Horns athletes."

His natural ties with Lethbridge College will also be utilized. The Horns and Kodiaks have worked hard in recent years to establish a relationship where select players can begin their post-secondary careers at the college level before moving on to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ. It benefits both the athlete and the student.

"There are some kids who could play CIS basketball right out of high school but there are only so many spots available," explains Karren. "So does it help a kid to sit the bench and not play at the CIS level where they could be playing significant minutes and developing their games at the college level?
"And academically speaking, it's a little easier step to go to college first, and that speeds the transition to the university level once they get here."

Slavin sees Karren's acquisition as an ideal fit for the vision of the Horns program going forward.

"Brad provides us with a unique set of qualifications, having been involved at a high level with both the men's and women's games," she says. "We are very excited to have Brad joining the Pronghorns basketball program in this role."

GET THE FACTS

• Karren spent 11 seasons at Lethbridge College, guiding the Kodiaks women's program to three provincial titles and one national championship (2003-04).

• He compiled a 182-46 conference record while coaching the Kodiaks. He was named ACAC South Coach of the Year on five occasions and was the 2008-09 CCAA National Coach of the Year.

• Karren is a native of Magrath, Alta. and continues to live in the southern Alberta community.

For a look at the February issue of the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Horns men's basketball to host coaching clinic

trevor.kenney — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 17:46:41 +0000

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Pronghorns men's basketball is hosting its Southern Alberta Coaching Clinic Saturday, Oct. 2 at the 1st Choice Savings Centre gymnasium.

The clinic sees the return of former Pronghorns head coach Dave Crook as one of the keynote presenters. He'll join current head coach Dave Adams, along with assistant coach Brad Karren. All three coaches have won national coaching honours.

Registration for the clinic is $90 per participant, which includes an Adidas Horns t-shirt (first 50 registered people) and a ticket to the Alumni game that night. Receipts will be issued to educators for PD reimbursement.

To register, call the Customer Service Centre at 403-329-2706.

Following is the itinerary for the clinic.

8:30 a.m. – Registration
9 a.m. – Opening remarks. Session #1: Individual workouts for your players (Dave Adams)
10 a.m. – Session #2: Man-to-Man Defense (Dave Crook)
11a.m. – Session #3: Fastbreak into Man-to-Man Half-court Offenses (Brad Karren)
Noon – Lunch
1 p.m. – Session #4: Zone Attack (Dave Crook)
2 p.m. – Session #5: Zone Defenses in the Full-court and Half-court (Brad Karren)

Alumni Game

The Horns will hold their annual Alumni Game later that evening, with tip-off scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Crook will coach the Alumni squad (Bob White, Remington Stemler, Rob Cooper, Mike Myers, and Tim Rollingson Jr. have confirmed their participation) as it battles the 2010-11 edition of the Horns.

After the Alumni Game, a short Meet the Players event will be held in PE 264, followed by the first Friends of Horns Men's Basketball AGM.

UNews - Brad Karren

California recruits join Horns

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Karren takes on recruitment portfolio

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Horns men's basketball to host coaching clinic

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