Former Asbury hoops coach hired at IU-East

When former Asbury College men’s basketball coach Jim Aller told his players at his final athletics awards banquet that he would “be watching from afar,” he apparently didn’t mean very afar.

Straight out of the didn’t-see-that-one-coming bin comes this story from the Richmond, Ind. newspaper. Aller was hired by Indiana University-East as the school’s first-ever cross-country coach. He will also serve as assistant athletics director and —here’s the kicker — assistant basketball coach.

If IU-East sounds familiar, it should. That is the school that Asbury played when the team traveled to Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis for a game two years ago. Last year, the schools were scheduled to play a home-and-home, but the game in Richmond was canceled.

If the IU-East Red Wolves sounds familiar, it shouldn’t. The school changed its mascot from the Pioneers this season as a kind of rebirth of the athletics program. IU-East made the jump to the NAIA last season, and it will be competing in a new conference — the KIAC, meaning the two schools will meet twice a year in conference rivalry matchups and possibly a third time in the tournament.

All that to say we will be seeing more of Aller pretty soon. His return to the Luce Center will come less than a year after he was let go from the program. Looking at IU-East’s athletics page, they are going to have a much-improved basketball team than what we have seen from them the last two years. Plus, you have to believe they will have Asbury pretty well scouted.

I’m going to try and get an interview with IU-East Athletics Director/Head Basketball Coach Mark Hester tomorrow so he can give his take on the hire. I’m particularly interested in who contacted whom to make this happen.

It’s been a busy offseason.