Austin Hansen joined the South Dakota staff in the spring of 2014 following a one-year stint as an assistant coach at Northern Colorado and five years as an assistant at his alma mater, South Dakota State. Hansen began his career as an assistant coach at Minnesota State from 2003-08.
In his three seasons in Vermillion, Hansen has helped lead the Coyotes to their first winning season in four years, the program’s first Summit League Tournament victory, and most recently, the program’s first Summit League Regular Season Championship.
South Dakota won 17 games in Hansen’s first season in 2014-15 while tying for fourth in the Summit League Standings. He also coached Tyler Larson, who became the first Coyote to earn First Team All-Summit League honors. In the 2015-16 season, USD defeated Minnesota on its home court to snap the Gopher’s 47-game nonconference home winning streak.
The 2016-17 season was a historic one as South Dakota claimed the program’s first Summit League Regular Season Championship, going 12-4 in league play and 22-12 overall.
At Northern Colorado, Hansen helped lead the Bears to an 18-14 record and a trip to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. In addition to his coaching duties, Hansen served as recruiting coordinator and academic coordinator with UNC.
At SDSU, Hansen served as the lead recruiter for Nate Wolters, the 38th pick of the 2013 NBA Draft who played two seasons in the NBA. He also helped the Jackrabbits to back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths in 2012 and 2013. South Dakota State won two Summit League Tournament Championships and a regular season title with Hansen on staff.
Hansen was a four-year letter winner and two-time captain at South Dakota State from 1998 to 2003. He was named South Dakota Men’s College Player of the Year in 2003 and earned all-region honors following both his junior and senior seasons. He remains the second-leading 3-point shooter and the third-leading scorer in program history.
Hansen led the Jackrabbits in scoring in each of his four seasons, and as a junior, led SDSU to a North Central Conference (NCC) regular season and postseason championship. He finished his career as a three-time All-NCC honoree.
In five seasons with Minnesota State, Hansen helped the Mavericks post a 116-37 record with four-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. Hansen coached 12 All-NCC honorees, including two Most Valuable Players, and placed five on the Academic All-NCC team.
Hansen grew up in Valley Springs, South Dakota, where he was named South Dakota High School Mr. Basketball in 1998. He and his wife, Andrea, have three daughters: Hannah, Hadlee and Harper.
