Long Beach State University Athletics
Chris Acker Announces Coaching Staff Joining Long Beach State
4/25/2024 10:23:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Long Beach State Men’s Basketball adds three assistant coaches to the program.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – New Head Men's Basketball Coach Chris Acker has completed his staff, and the trio assistant coaches will begin work at the Beach immediately. Joining the staff will be John Montgomery, Anthony Santos and Phillip Scott.
JOHN MONGTOMERY
John Montgomery makes a major shift inside of the Big West Conference, joining the Long Beach State coaching staff after nine seasons on Eran Ganot's staff at Hawai'i, including serving as the team's Associate Head Coach for the past three seasons. At the Beach, he will have an emphasis on the offense while supporting the program in recruiting, scouting and development.
Montgomery's primary responsibilities at Hawai'i were oversight of the defense and post players while working as the program's Associate Head Coach. Acker and Montgomery both coached together at Hawai'i, including the program's 2015-16 NCAA Tournament run where the Rainbow Warriors won their first NCAA Tournament game and a school-record 28 wins. In eight of his nine seasons at Hawai'i, the Rainbow Warriors finished with a winning record. Additionally, under his guidance the Hawai'i defense ranked third in scoring defense, holding opponents to under 70 points per game in 2023-24 after ranking in the nation's Top 10 in effective field goal percentage in 2022-23.
After starting his coaching career as an assistant coach at Furman, Montgomery moved to the West Coast where he spent six seasons at Cal, three as the Director of Operations for the Golden Bears before three seasons as an assistant coach. During his six seasons at Cal, the program went to six straight postseason appearances, four NCAA tournament appearances as well as two selections into the NIT.
In his playing career, Montgomery was a four-year letterwinner for Loyola Marymount, where he graduated in 2007 before immediately moving into coaching.
ANTHONY SANTOS
Anthony Santos joins the Long Beach State coaching staff following 12 seasons with Big West rival Cal State Fullerton, where he helped guide the Titans to two of their four all-time NCAA Tournament appearances. With Long Beach State, Santos will work as the program's defensive coordinator while assisting with game preparation and recruiting.
With Cal State Fullerton, Santos spent two seasons as the team's Associate Head Coach under Dedrique Taylor, climbing the ranks with the Titans throughout his career in Orange County. In his first season as the Associate Head Coach, Santos helped guide the Titans to a second-straight Big West Championship game appearances, winning six straight games prior to the title game defeat.
That came following a title game appearance in 2021-22, when Cal State Fullerton outlasted Long Beach State in the Big West Championship title game, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in his tenure. The first time came during the 2017-18 season, as the Titans went 20-12 led by star Kyle Allman, Jr., who was a First Team All-Big West selection in addition to an NABC All-District selection and the Big West Championship Most Outstanding Player.
Over his time in Orange Country, Santos led the Titans to four conference championship games, three 20-win seasons and saw over 30 players earn All-Big West honors.
Santos earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Cal State Fullerton, and served as the team's Director of Basketball Operations following his first degree before moving into the coaching staff in 2017.
PHILLIP SCOTT
Phillip Scott joins the coaching staff at Long Beach State after long history of collaborating with Chris Acker in player development. Scott has spent the last three years serving as the Director of Los Angeles Premier prep, a local basketball academy which he co-founded along with former NBA player and Chris Acker's brother, Alex Acker. While at Long Beach State, Scott will continue in his area of expertise, working as the program's coordinator of player development as the emphasis in his work as an assistant coach.
One of the most sought out individual trainers in Southern California, Scott also brings coaching experience from the junior college ranks at San Diego City College, where he was the Associate Head Coach for three years, helping guide SDCC to the 2017 CCCAA State Championship. Prior to his time at San Diego City, Scott had other stops at both West Los Angeles College and Citrus College in the junior college ranks, including a stint as the interim head coach at WLAC in 2015-16.
Scott earned his Master's Degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration from Concordia University of Irvine and his bachelor's degree from Prairie View A&M, where he was a guard with the Men's Basketball program.
QUOTES
"In hiring a staff, I knew I had to have several key components that were non-negotiable. I wanted my staff to have a willingness to help our student athletes succeed in the classroom and on the court. I wanted my staff to be in line with my vision of both supporting and protecting the mental health of our student athletes. I wanted them to have experience in developing guys and helping them reach the next level of playing professional basketball. I wanted them to be champions at the collegiate level and have had experience competing in the NCAA tournament. These were all keys in hiring this particular staff and I couldn't be more thrilled to have John, Anthony, and Phillip here with me at Long Beach State".
~Men's Basketball Head Coach Chris Acker
"I'm elated to start a new chapter at Long Beach State. I have a proud family legacy in Long Beach, with my grandfather Jack serving as the first Athletic Director and my father Mike, who also played for the program, having been inducted into the Athletics Hall of Fame. Being able to join that legacy and build on it while reuniting with Coach Acker is an absolute dream. I'm excited to join the rest of the staff and create something special at the Beach."
~Assistant Coach John Montgomery
"I'm thrilled to begin this new journey at Long Beach State. It's a place where there is so much history, and you have the ability to attract talent from all over the world. I can't wait to work alongside Coach Acker and the rest of the staff to build something special and elevate Long Beach State basketball to new heights of success."
~Assistant Coach Anthony Santos
"I was blessed to serve under Coach Acker as his Associate Head Coach at the junior college level and it's truly a blessing to have the opportunity to work with him again. Everything we do is to win. Trusting the process will be key to our championship driven culture."
~Assistant Coach Phillip Scott
JOHN MONGTOMERY
John Montgomery makes a major shift inside of the Big West Conference, joining the Long Beach State coaching staff after nine seasons on Eran Ganot's staff at Hawai'i, including serving as the team's Associate Head Coach for the past three seasons. At the Beach, he will have an emphasis on the offense while supporting the program in recruiting, scouting and development.
Montgomery's primary responsibilities at Hawai'i were oversight of the defense and post players while working as the program's Associate Head Coach. Acker and Montgomery both coached together at Hawai'i, including the program's 2015-16 NCAA Tournament run where the Rainbow Warriors won their first NCAA Tournament game and a school-record 28 wins. In eight of his nine seasons at Hawai'i, the Rainbow Warriors finished with a winning record. Additionally, under his guidance the Hawai'i defense ranked third in scoring defense, holding opponents to under 70 points per game in 2023-24 after ranking in the nation's Top 10 in effective field goal percentage in 2022-23.
After starting his coaching career as an assistant coach at Furman, Montgomery moved to the West Coast where he spent six seasons at Cal, three as the Director of Operations for the Golden Bears before three seasons as an assistant coach. During his six seasons at Cal, the program went to six straight postseason appearances, four NCAA tournament appearances as well as two selections into the NIT.
In his playing career, Montgomery was a four-year letterwinner for Loyola Marymount, where he graduated in 2007 before immediately moving into coaching.
ANTHONY SANTOS
Anthony Santos joins the Long Beach State coaching staff following 12 seasons with Big West rival Cal State Fullerton, where he helped guide the Titans to two of their four all-time NCAA Tournament appearances. With Long Beach State, Santos will work as the program's defensive coordinator while assisting with game preparation and recruiting.
With Cal State Fullerton, Santos spent two seasons as the team's Associate Head Coach under Dedrique Taylor, climbing the ranks with the Titans throughout his career in Orange County. In his first season as the Associate Head Coach, Santos helped guide the Titans to a second-straight Big West Championship game appearances, winning six straight games prior to the title game defeat.
That came following a title game appearance in 2021-22, when Cal State Fullerton outlasted Long Beach State in the Big West Championship title game, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in his tenure. The first time came during the 2017-18 season, as the Titans went 20-12 led by star Kyle Allman, Jr., who was a First Team All-Big West selection in addition to an NABC All-District selection and the Big West Championship Most Outstanding Player.
Over his time in Orange Country, Santos led the Titans to four conference championship games, three 20-win seasons and saw over 30 players earn All-Big West honors.
Santos earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Cal State Fullerton, and served as the team's Director of Basketball Operations following his first degree before moving into the coaching staff in 2017.
PHILLIP SCOTT
Phillip Scott joins the coaching staff at Long Beach State after long history of collaborating with Chris Acker in player development. Scott has spent the last three years serving as the Director of Los Angeles Premier prep, a local basketball academy which he co-founded along with former NBA player and Chris Acker's brother, Alex Acker. While at Long Beach State, Scott will continue in his area of expertise, working as the program's coordinator of player development as the emphasis in his work as an assistant coach.
One of the most sought out individual trainers in Southern California, Scott also brings coaching experience from the junior college ranks at San Diego City College, where he was the Associate Head Coach for three years, helping guide SDCC to the 2017 CCCAA State Championship. Prior to his time at San Diego City, Scott had other stops at both West Los Angeles College and Citrus College in the junior college ranks, including a stint as the interim head coach at WLAC in 2015-16.
Scott earned his Master's Degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration from Concordia University of Irvine and his bachelor's degree from Prairie View A&M, where he was a guard with the Men's Basketball program.
QUOTES
"In hiring a staff, I knew I had to have several key components that were non-negotiable. I wanted my staff to have a willingness to help our student athletes succeed in the classroom and on the court. I wanted my staff to be in line with my vision of both supporting and protecting the mental health of our student athletes. I wanted them to have experience in developing guys and helping them reach the next level of playing professional basketball. I wanted them to be champions at the collegiate level and have had experience competing in the NCAA tournament. These were all keys in hiring this particular staff and I couldn't be more thrilled to have John, Anthony, and Phillip here with me at Long Beach State".
~Men's Basketball Head Coach Chris Acker
"I'm elated to start a new chapter at Long Beach State. I have a proud family legacy in Long Beach, with my grandfather Jack serving as the first Athletic Director and my father Mike, who also played for the program, having been inducted into the Athletics Hall of Fame. Being able to join that legacy and build on it while reuniting with Coach Acker is an absolute dream. I'm excited to join the rest of the staff and create something special at the Beach."
~Assistant Coach John Montgomery
"I'm thrilled to begin this new journey at Long Beach State. It's a place where there is so much history, and you have the ability to attract talent from all over the world. I can't wait to work alongside Coach Acker and the rest of the staff to build something special and elevate Long Beach State basketball to new heights of success."
~Assistant Coach Anthony Santos
"I was blessed to serve under Coach Acker as his Associate Head Coach at the junior college level and it's truly a blessing to have the opportunity to work with him again. Everything we do is to win. Trusting the process will be key to our championship driven culture."
~Assistant Coach Phillip Scott
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