Michael Brooks begins his fourth season as head coach of the Bradley women’s basketball team and sixth year overall with the program after taking over the head coaching reigns in July 2012.
Bradley, which averaged a school record 1,422 fans per game in 2013-14, has ranked in the top three in scoring in the MVC in two of his first three seasons as head coach. Brooks, who was named the eighth women’s basketball head coach in program history on July 6, 2012, was a member of the BU coaching staff for the first two postseason appearances in program history before assuming the head coaching duties.
The 2014-15 squad featured six freshmen and a total of eight newcomers. The Braves battled injuries through most of the season, not having a full complement of players until the Missouri Valley Conference opener and had all 11 players in uniform for just 11 contests. The non-conference slate, which included five consecutive road games, was highlighted by a 76-64 home victory over Southeastern Conference member Missouri.
Bradley got a boost in mid-December from Washington State transfer Whitney Tinjum when she made her debut against Chicago State and combined with senior Michelle Young to give the Braves a pair of double figure scorers. Young, who wrapped up her career 13th in career scoring at 1,062 career points, averaged a team-best 12.0 points per game and joined Shelli Braud as the only players in program history with 1,000 career points, 275 made free throws, 120 assists and 185 or more steals. A 38-point outburst by Young at Columbia tied the Bradley single-game scoring record and she earned First-Team MVC Scholar-Athlete honors for the second straight year.
Tinjum added 11.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game in 22 outings in addition to becoming the 11th player in program history to reach 200 career points in their first 17 games or fewer. Freshman center Tamya Sims was limited to 21 games due to injury, but had a late season surge in which she averaged 11.2 points, 8.2 boards and 2.5 blocks per tilt over the final six games. The first Bradley freshman to average eight points, six rebounds and two blocks, Sims was the first freshman to lead the team in rebounding since 1999-2000 and her 6.4 rebounds-per-game average is fourth among Bradley freshman marks.
With just eight scholarship players for the 2013-14 season, Brooks led Bradley to a school record 12 games decided by five points or less. The 2013-14 squad featured one of the most balanced offensive attacks in program history, with a school record six individuals scoring 8.0 points per game or more. The Braves also led the MVC with a school record 512 made free throws in his second season as head coach and scored a league-high 24.5 percent of their points at the charity stripe.
Young, helped pace the Braves attack as a junior and earned honorable mention MVC Scholar-Athlete honors after posting the highest season scoring average (14.3 ppg) at BU since 2001-02. In addition, Leti Lerma was named to the Valley’s All-Freshman team after averaging 6.9 points and 6.6 rebounds per game in league play.
His first season as head coach was an exciting one, with the squad posting its best conference record (8-10) and finish (6th) since the 2009-10 season. The 2012-13 season saw the Braves rank 21st in the country in scoring with a league-best 71.3 points-per-game average. Bradley also led the MVC in steals (10.4 per game) in addition to shooting a school record 78.1 percent from the free throw line to rank eighth in the country.
Bradley’s all-time leader in three-point field goals, Katie Yohn made a successful move into the post in her final season under Brooks’ tutelage after playing on perimeter her first three seasons on The Hilltop. A Second-Team All-MVC pick and First-Team MVC Scholar-Athlete, Yohn was the only player in the Valley in 2012-13 and first player in program history to collect 300 points, 175 rebounds, 70 assists, 25 blocks and 70 steals. In addition, Bradley produced a league-high four MVC scholar-athlete honorees in Brooks’ first season as head coach.
Prior to being named head coach, Brooks was an assistant coach (2011-12) and director of operations (2009-10) with the Braves. His two previous years with the program combined with team’s 14-16 overall mark in his first season as head coach helped the Braves finish a five-year stretch with 85 total wins for the most wins in a five-year period in program history.
Brooks was an assistant coach at Bradley in 2011-12, helping the Braves to an 18-16 overall record, the fifth-best single-season win total in program history, and the program's first-ever postseason home victory en route to the second round of the Women's Basketball Invitational. He was the team's Director of Operations in 2009-10 when the Braves posted a 17-14 overall record, finished third in the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season standings with a 12-6 league record and earned the program's first-ever postseason appearance. Bradley advanced to the second round of the inaugural Women's Basketball Invitational by defeating 2009 NCAA Tournament runner-up Louisville in the Cardinals' final game at Freedom Hall.
In between his two years on the Bradley staff, Brooks was the women's basketball co-head coach at Central Methodist University during the 2010-11 season, managing all aspects of the varsity and junior varsity squads while specializing in defensive strategy and post play. He also served as an assistant coach for the Eagles during the 2008-09 and 2006-07 seasons.
Brooks is a 2004 graduate of Western State College in Gunnison, Colo., where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications and theatre. He was a two-year member of both the football and track teams at Western State after transferring from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Brooks earned his master's degree in education from Central Methodist in 2009.
A four-year football letterwinner, Brooks began his coaching career on the gridiron in 2005 as an assistant coach at Quincy University. He first arrived at Central Methodist as a football assistant in 2006, coaching running backs and special teams, while also serving as the strength and conditioning coordinator, before transitioning into the women's basketball staff.
During his first year on the Central Methodist women's basketball staff, Brooks also coached the boys' and girls' track teams at Glasgow (Mo.) High School. During the 2007-08 season, Brooks stepped away from collegiate basketball to work as an assistant coach for both the boys' and girls' basketball teams at Glasgow, while continuing to serve as the track and field head coach. The boys' basketball team was the 2008 Missouri Class 1 state tournament runner-up.
A native of Omaha, Neb., Brooks is married to the former Andi Sutherland, who was an assistant coach with the Braves during the 2004-05 season and served as the Director of Basketball Operations in 2003-04. The couple has a seven-year old daughter: Britain; and their son Jase was born in November 2013.