SPARTA – Matt Bradley has a vision for the Highland girls basketball program.
After being approved as the Scots’ next head coach by the Highland Local School Board at its meeting on Wednesday, April 21, Bradley will have the opportunity to carry out that vision.
It didn’t take him long to share his vision with returning high school players and incoming freshmen. He met with them on Thursday.
“We talked a lot about the culture and the identity of our program,” Bradley said. “At the end of the day, if we’re … serving others, learning and growing and living with joy, we’re going to be successful.”
Highland athletic director Mike DeLaney did not have to go far to find someone interested in the position.
“We never opened the position,” he said. “We ended up going in-house first. He applied for it and he interviewed for it. When we got done with the interview, we thought there was no doubt that he was the guy.”
Bradley was the varsity assistant under previous coach Whitney Levering Smith, who resigned after six seasons leading the Scots.
“Our Highland girls basketball players specifically were just a joy to coach last year,” Bradley said. “That’s what made this position so appealing. I know these kids; I know these girls. They’re just awesome to be around.”
Highland finished 8-15 overall and 4-10 in the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference last season. They fell to River Valley in the second round of the Division II district tournament after a first-round bye.
“I think the big thing is his approach to the game of basketball in terms of the way he teaches it and the culture that he’s going to create in the program — both from a competitive standpoint and a growth standpoint for the girls,” DeLaney said. “He’s very patient. In terms of teaching the game of basketball, I think that he’ll really fit with them and get them to the next level. Coach Levering Smith left our program in really good shape, and I think he’ll be able to build on that and really take us to the next level (as) we move into the (Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference next season). I think that was an important consideration too.”
Bradley currently serves as the middle school principal. Having a full calendar is not going to be a new way of life.
“My wife and I affectionately refer to it as the Bradley Circus,” he said. “We’re constantly moving. I’ve always coached — whether it’s when I was teaching as a head coach at Wapakoneta (from 2009–13) or the boys coach here (from 2013–16).
“I’ve been the assistant at MVNU (from 2016–20). That included some Tuesday night trips to Indiana Wesleyan and getting back super-late. So coaching has always been a part of who I am. I can’t imagine not doing it. I think if I were home that often, I think my wife would go crazy herself.”
Bradley said he learned a lot from Jared Ronai and Levering Smith over the five seasons since his last stint as a head coach.
“I can’t say enough about Coach Ronai and what he has done and continues to do with the MVNU program,” Bradley said. “I learned so much in those four, four and a half years of working with him. A number of things — from individual skill development to game planning to scouting to practice planning to recruiting. We do have some of our girls that do want to play at the next level, and I think experiencing that aspect ... I think I can be more helpful and knowledgeable than I was (before).
“I learned a lot from Whitney. What she’s done to establish some consistency and continuity in the girls program, I hope to continue that. Obviously, there’s multiple ways to skin a cat, so it may not look exactly the same. From a continuity standpoint and an interest standpoint, I think our girls program is ready to take off, and that’s to her credit.”
