Meet Gary Waters
Experience: 7th year
College: Ferris State, ’75
Career record: 307-235 (.566)
Cleveland State: 136-100 (.576)
2013-14 Season Outlook
-The Vikings finished the 2012-13 season with a record of 14-18 (5-11 Horizon League).
-In the Horizon League preseason poll the Vikings are predicted to finish third in the nine-team League; behind Green Bay and Wright State, respectively.
Cleveland State Background
-Cleveland State has posted 20 or more wins four times during Waters’ tenure.
-Led the team to back-to-back 20-win seasons (2007-08, 2008-09) for the first time since 1986-88, including 26 wins in 2008-09, the second highest win total in program history.
-Vikings won the Horizon League Men’s Basketball Regular Season Championship during the 2010-11 season, a first in program history.
-A 2002 inductee into the Ferris State Athletic Hall of Fame and a 2006 member of the Kent State Varsity "K" Hall of Fame.
You’re in your seventh season at Cleveland State. You stepped into a program that had just three winning seasons in the prior 13 campaigns. How difficult was it to build the program to where it's at today?
It wasn’t as difficult as people think it is, because we had a plan in place. If you go in and you’re just there to build the program and you don’t see what you’re building, then it is very difficult. We had a vision and it was where we want to go and how we want to get there. The first thing I had to do when I got there was to change the culture. From there, we moved into what we wanted the culture to be. Our whole thing was working hard so we had to go from the secretary on down to understand you have to work hard. I think now we’ve transformed it into something pretty special.
Last year the team was hit hard by injuries. Among others, Anton Grady went down with a knee surgery, Terry Lewis suffered a hand injury and Ludovic N'Daye suffered a hip injury. How frustrating is it when the injury bug hits a team like that?
It’s tough, but that alone I don’t think can really change your whole season around. I thought what caused us a little concern was having youth and injuries because we were the youngest team in the country last year and when you’re in teaching mode with the youth but don’t have all your pieces there to teach it makes it very difficult.
The Vikings have won 20 or more games four of the last six seasons. What would you attribute the success and winning tradition you’ve established in your tenure at Cleveland State?
One of the primary reasons is we brought in quality student-athletes, that’s number one. Number two is our emphasis on defensive which has allowed us to play quality basketball over the six years.
Miami Heat point guard Norris Cole has won two NBA Championship rings in his first two seasons. How special is it to see a former Viking (2007-11) have success at the next level?
That gives promise for everyone else in your program and he represents our program extremely well.
Cleveland State has a date lingering with Kentucky on Nov. 25 in Lexington, Ky. How do games like this prepare the team for League play?
It really gets you to go into a difficult environment and compete so when we go into League games it can’t be as difficult as going into Kentucky.
You’ve strived to let the city of Cleveland “be a part of the program.” Why is that so important?
I think it’s vital; they represent what you are as a program. When you’re recruiting you have to let them realize your environment is a part of your institution. So I’ve always wanted Cleveland to be at the forefront of what we do. Another reason, we are the only team in Cleveland to put 'Cleveland' across our chest.
At Eastern Michigan you coached Anton Grady’s uncle Earl Boykins, who had a successful 14-year NBA career. Earl is 5’5”, Anton is 6’8”. Do they possess any similarities?
One similarity is their approach to the game. Anton doesn’t think there is anyone he can’t handle or beat and the same thing with Earl. I mean he was small, but he felt like he could go up against anyone. When we go and take on Kentucky I’m not as worried because I got Anton on my side.
Your record at the Wolstein Center is 70-24. That record includeds a program record 17 wins during the 2010-11 season. How important is it to protect the home court?
Home court is the key to this League, in my estimation. Primarily, it’s with all the emphasize put on the backend for the Horizon League Tournament and who gets home court. You want your fans to be a part of you and one way to do that is to win games at home, which helps you out.
What’s your favorite thing to do when you’re not on the court or on the recruiting trail?
I got a number of hobbies. I play a little golf, and my wife and I love to go to shows and watch movies. Another thing is we travel which I consider a hobby. We go to Puerto Vallarta which I really like. But you name it, we’ve been; Italy, Germany, Japan, I’ve been to a lot of places.
In your high school days, you were all-city in football, basketball, and track and field at MacKenzie High School in Detroit, Mich. If you could’ve played any other sport collegiately instead of basketball at Ferris State (1972-74), what would it have been?
It probably would’ve been football. To be honest with you, I was better in football then I was in basketball. It’s a funny story, I started as a 10th grader in football and the next year as a junior I was going to be the captain of the team. During the summer, they want you to do football and I wanted to play in the summer basketball league. The coaches put all that pressure on me and I said, well I’m through with it, I’m going to play basketball from now on and I stopped playing football. As a player, I would’ve been a better football player then basketball player.
Tags: Cleveland State - Men's Basketball
