SEAN BOSTON
Hutch Post
TOPEKA, Kan. — Hutchinson native and current Washburn University men's basketball coach, Brett Ballard, has been named the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association (KBCA) Four-Year Coach of the Year for the 2024-25 season.
Ballard led the Ichabods to the NCAA Division II Final Four, before falling to eventual national champion, Nova Southeastern in the semifinals. The Ichabods finished the season with a 30-4 record, going 17-2 in the MIAA, and a perfect 16-0 inside of Lee Arena.
Ballard finished up his eighth season in Topeka and guided the Ichabods to the MIAA regular season title and the No. 1 seed in the Central Region.
He is a 1998 graduate of Hutchinson High School. He then played one season at Cowley College and one at HutchCC, where he graduated in 2000. Ballard then played his final two seasons at Kansas under Roy Williams.