|
 “I could not be more excited to welcome Mitch and his family to
our program,” Muller said. “Since his days at Peoria Notre Dame
(High School), Mitch has been a highly successful and driven player,
student, coach and person. He represents everything I want our
program to stand for and is a terrific addition to our already very
strong staff. This is an absolute home run for Illinois State
Basketball.”
A Morton, Ill., native, Gilfillan was most recently an assistant
coach at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville during the
2013-14 season. Before that, he served as an assistant at Ball State
for three seasons – from 2010-13 – after working as the Cardinals’
Director of Basketball Operations in 2009-10. Gilfillan, who was a
four-year letter winner at Lehigh, will draw upon his vast
basketball experience in his new role at Illinois State.
“My family and I are ecstatic to be at Illinois State working with
Coach Muller and his staff,” Gilfillan said. “The mindset, culture
and vision at ISU are at a championship-caliber level. In addition,
Coach Muller is one of the elite young head coaches in the country,
and he knows I appreciate the opportunity. I will embrace all tasks
with energy and a positive attitude. Go Redbirds!”
As an assistant coach at SIUE last season, Gilfillan helped the
Cougars qualify for their first-ever Ohio Valley Conference
Tournament appearance in the school's Division I era. Gilfillan also
significantly contributed to the Cougar's recruiting efforts by
helping them sign the most highly-touted class in SIUE history,
which was led by Mike Chandler of Hill College. Chandler ranked
second in blocks per game and 11th overall in rebounding at the
junior college level.
After serving a year at Ball State as the Director of Basketball
Operations in 2009-10, Gilfillan was elevated to assistant coach at
age 26, making him the youngest assistant coach in the Mid-American
Conference at the time. In his first year as an assistant, the
Cardinals finished 19-13, marking the 11th-most wins in a single
season in Ball State history. Gilfillan was also the lead recruiter
on Zavier Turner, who went on to earn MAC Rookie of the Year honors
in 2014. Along with his recruiting responsibilities, Gilfillan was
involved in scouting, game preparation, practice planning, academics
and community relations.
[to top of second column] |
Prior to joining Ball State’s staff, Gilfillan was a four-year
letter winner as a basketball student-athlete at Lehigh University.
After earning Patriot League All-Rookie honors as a freshman,
Gilfillan helped Lehigh claim its first-ever Patriot League regular
season and tournament championships as a sophomore, which led to a
berth in the 2004 NCAA Tournament. As a senior captain, Gilfillan
led the league in assist-to-turnover ratio and helped the Mountain
Hawks finish with a 19-12 record. His class set the mark for most
wins in a four-year span in school history at the time of his
graduation.
Off the court at Lehigh, Gilfillan earned the Undergraduate Merit
Award, Outstanding Service Award, Coaches Award and the Southside
Booster Award. He graduated in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in
political science before earning a Juris Doctor from Valparaiso
University School of Law in 2009.
Gilfillan graduated from Peoria Notre Dame High School in 2002,
after earning 11 varsity letters. As a three-sport student-athlete,
Gilfillan garnered all-state honors in basketball and soccer. He was
named a McDonald’s All-American nominee and was a member of the St.
Louis Eagles AAU team.
Gilfillan’s parents – Paul and Jeri – are both Illinois State
graduates, and his father played football at ISU. Gilfillan is
married to Ashley Gilfillan, and the couple just welcomed a
daughter, Hadley Rose.
[Text received; JOHN TWORK, ILLINOIS
STATE UNIVERSITY]
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