As he begins his 22nd full season leading the Central Washington University men's basketball program, Greg Sparling is the third winningest coach in the program’s illustrious 103-year men’s basketball history.
Sparling is a five-time conference coach of the year, with five conference championships to his credit, he trails only the legendary father-son duo of Leo (505 wins) and Dean Nicholson (609 wins) on the school’s all-time coaching victories list. Sparling has also guided the CWU men to the NCAA Division II tournament in five of the past nine years and eight times in its 16 seasons as a NCAA member.
As far as experience within the Great Northwest Athletic Conference is concerned, Sparling has the longest tenure of any men's basketball coach at his current institution. He chaired the GNAC men’s basketball coaches committee for two years and was a member of the NCAA Division II West Region Rating Committee for two more years.
During each of the first nine seasons of Sparling’s tenure, and in 16 of 19 full seasons overall, Central Washington finished above the .500 mark. The Wildcats went 24-5 during the 1998-99 season -- their first full year as a NCAA Division II member -- and followed that performance with a record of 21-7 the next season. Sparling's best season came in 2010-11, when he guided CWU to a 26-4 record, a No. 5 national ranking, and the right to host the NCAA Division II West Regional Tournament.
Sparling took over as the Wildcats’ head coach late in the 1994-95 campaign, when his predecessor and mentor, the late Gil Coleman, became ill. He guided Central to a 2-1 record after being named the interim head coach. In his first full season at the helm the following year, the Wildcats went 15-15 and advanced to the semifinals of the Pacific Northwest Athletic Conference tournament.
A 1993 graduate of CWU, with a degree in art and a minor in art history, Sparling is a former Wildcat player and assistant coach as well. He was a member of the 1989-90 and 1990-91 teams and served as a co-captain his senior season. He averaged 9.0 points and 5.7 rebounds per game as a senior. He received the team’s Most Inspirational Player award both season he played in the Crimson and Black. He then spent three years as an assistant coach in the Wildcat program under Coleman.
Sparling was also at a standout player at both Highline Community College (HCC) and Juanita High School prior to coming to Central. He was a two-year team captain and he earned all-Northwest Athletic Association of Ccommunity College honors during his sophomore season at HCC.
Born June 4, 1968, Sparling married former CWU track and field standout Kristin Lesparance in August 1995. The couple has two sons, Coleman (17) and Jacob (15).
Started at CWU:
1991
Experience:
1995-Present: Central Washington University (Ellensburg, WA) -- Head Men's Basketball Coach
1995: Central Washington University (Ellensburg, WA) -- Interim Head Men's Basketball Coach
1992-1995: Central Washington University (Ellensburg, WA) -- Assistant Men's Basketball Coach
1991-1992: Central Washington University (Ellensburg, WA) -- Men's Basketball Junior Varsity Coach
Playing Experience:
1989-1991: Central Washington University -- Basketball (Forward)
1987-1989: Highline Community College -- Basketball (Forward)
Education:
Central Washington University, 1993 -- B.A. in Art
Highline Community College, 1989 -- A.A.
Juanita High School (WA), 1986
Hometown:
Kirkland, WA
SPARLING'S YEAR-BY-YEAR COACHING RECORD AT CENTRAL WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY:
|
OVERALL |
CONFERENCE |
Home |
Away |
Neutral |
| YEAR |
W |
L |
PCT |
W |
L |
PCT |
PLACE |
W-L |
W-L |
W-L |
| 1994-95 |
2 |
1 |
.667 |
|
|
|
|
1-0 |
0-0 |
1-1 |
| 1995-96 |
15 |
15 |
.500 |
3 |
9 |
.250 |
T-6th |
6-5 |
6-8 |
3-2 |
| 1996-97 |
18 |
13 |
.581 |
9 |
1 |
.900 |
1st |
9-2 |
5-8 |
4-3 |
| 1997-98 |
19 |
11 |
.633 |
7 |
3 |
.700 |
1st |
9-1 |
4-8 |
6-2 |
| 1998-99 |
24 |
5 |
.828 |
17 |
1 |
.944 |
1st |
11-1 |
9-3 |
4-1 |
| 1999-2000 |
21 |
7 |
.750 |
12 |
2 |
.857 |
T-1st |
8-1 |
9-3 |
4-3 |
| 2000-01 |
18 |
10 |
.643 |
12 |
6 |
.667 |
3rd |
9-1 |
4-5 |
5-4 |
| 2001-02 |
16 |
10 |
.615 |
9 |
9 |
.500 |
T-4th |
8-3 |
4-6 |
4-1 |
| 2002-03 |
16 |
11 |
.593 |
10 |
8 |
.556 |
T-4th |
7-3 |
4-7 |
5-1 |
| 2003-04 |
9 |
18 |
.333 |
6 |
12 |
.333 |
7th |
4-8 |
3-7 |
2-3 |
| 2004-05 |
11 |
16 |
.407 |
7 |
11 |
.389 |
7th |
7-3 |
2-10 |
2-3 |
| 2005-06 |
15 |
13 |
.536 |
10 |
8 |
.556 |
T-4th |
7-6 |
6-4 |
2-3 |
| 2006-07 |
15 |
12 |
.556 |
10 |
6 |
.625 |
T-3rd |
5-3 |
6-4 |
4-5 |
| 2007-08 |
21 |
7 |
.750 |
15 |
3 |
.833 |
2nd |
11-3 |
7-2 |
3-2 |
| 2008-09 |
18 |
7 |
.720 |
12 |
4 |
.750 |
2nd |
10-1 |
5-4 |
3-2 |
| 2009-10 |
16 |
11 |
.593 |
10 |
6 |
.625 |
3rd |
7-3 |
5-4 |
4-4 |
| 2010-11 |
26 |
4 |
.867 |
16 |
2 |
.889 |
1st |
13-2 |
8-1 |
5-1 |
| 2011-12 |
15 |
13 |
.536 |
8 |
10 |
.444 |
6th |
8-5 |
3-6 |
4-2 |
| 2012-13 |
15 |
13 |
.537 |
8 |
10 |
.444 |
6th |
7-4 |
3-6 |
4-3 |
| 2013-14 |
12 |
14 |
.462 |
8 |
10 |
.444 |
T-6th |
8-5 |
3-6 |
1-3 |
| 2014-15 |
17 |
9 |
.654 |
12 |
6 |
.666 |
3rd  |
10-2 |
5-5 |
2-2 |
| 2015-16 |
18Â |
8 |
.692 |
13 |
7 |
.650 |
5th |
9-3 |
7-4 |
2-1 |
| TOTALS |
357 |
228 |
.610 |
214 |
134 |
.614 |
|
174-65 |
109-111 |
74-52 |
Updated 17/12/16
