Kim Anderson
Head Coach

In his 10th season at the University of Central Missouri, Kim Anderson has built the Mules’ program into one of the most respected programs in the MIAA and all of NCAA Division II.

He has won more games than any other coach in school history with a 203-74 (.733) career record. He has guided the Mules to two Final Fours, three MIAA Regular Season championships, three MIAA Tournament titles and has won at least 24 games five times. His three MIAA crowns are the most for a Mule coach since Tom Scott won three from 1938-42. Anderson’s .733 overall winning percentage ranks fifth among all active NCAA-II coaches.

Last season, he led the Mules an 18-11 record, including 13-9 and a fifth place finish in the MIAA.

In 2009-10, Anderson guided the Mules a 27-4 overall mark and their first outright MIAA regular season title since 1984 with an 18-2 conference mark. The Mules made their fifth NCAA Tournament appearnce in the past six seasons and advanced to the Sweet 16 before falling in the South Central Regional Final. UCM’s on-court success in 2009-10 earned Anderson his second MIAA Coach of the Year award.

The 2008-09 Mules won the second most games in school history finishing with a 30-5 overall mark. After a second place MIAA regular season finish, Central Missouri captured the MIAA Tournament title, the South Central Regional championship and advanced to the NCAA-II Final Four for the second time in three seasons.

The 2006-07 squad won a school-record 31 games finishing at 31-4 overall. The Mules captured their second MIAA regular season championship under Anderson, won the South Central Regional crown and advanced to Anderson’s first Final Four and UCM’s first since 1984.

Anderson’s 2005-06 Mules finished 24-8 overall and second in the MIAA with an 11-5 conference mark. The squad won the first NCAA Tournament game since 1996 advancing to the second round of the South Central Regional.

In 2004-05, the Mules won their first MIAA championship under Anderson and the school’s first since 1984-85 with a 14-4 conference record. UCM qualified for its first NCAA Tournament since the 1996-97 season. For his efforts, Anderson was named Wilson/MIAA Coach of the Year.

Central Missouri is 22-10 in postseason play under Anderson, going 11-5 in both the MIAA and NCAA Tournaments during his nine years. The Mules have hosted the NCAA-II South Central Regional twice during that span. UCM hosted a regional for the first time since 1991 during the 2006-07 season. A total of 15,700 fans packed the Multi to watch the Mules, including a crowd of 6,300 that saw UCM cut down the nets following a 67-54 win over Southeastern Oklahoma in the Regional Final. It was Central Missouri’s first regional championship since 1984. The Mules hosted the regional for a second time following the 2008-09 season, drawing nearly 14,000 fans. UCM once again hoisted the regional championship trophy after a 98-63 win over Southwest Baptist in the Regional Final.

Over the past eight years the Mules have won more MIAA games than any other school posting a 108-42 conference record. They also have the most wins and the highest overall winning percentage during that time with a 190-59 record and a .763 winning percentage.

Anderson has coached three All-Americans that garnered a combined eight All-American awards in Michael Hicks, Zack Wright and Sanijay Watts.

Hicks became the first Mule to play professionally since 1995 (Armando Becker) when he signed a contract with France’s ALM Evreux in the summer of 2006. Nine more Mules since have signed professional contracts to play in Europe (Zach Wright, Theo Jones, Darryl Sommerset, Wadale Williams, Alonzo Brooks, De’Andre Byrd, Alex Moosmann, Sanijay Watts and Esian Henderson).

Under Anderson’s watch the Mules have transformed the UCM Multipurpose Building into one of the best home courts not only in the MIAA, but in all of NCAA Division II. Attendance has risen from just over 900 fans per game the season before Anderson’s arrival to a Division II leading 3,640 fans per game in the 2006-07 season. Last year, the Mules were 12th in NCAA-II in attendance averaged just over 2,100 fans per contest. During Anderson’s tenure the Mules are 116-18 at the Multipurpose Building, including 99-8 over the last seven seasons.

Prior to coming to Warrensburg, Anderson spent two seasons as assistant commissioner of the Big XII Conference in Dallas, Texas. He was hired in July of 1999 as the Director of Basketball Operations. His duties included organizing and directing the men’s postseason basketball tournament, serving as the conference liaison for the men’s basketball coaches and overseeing the men’s and women’s officiating programs.

Anderson served two stints as an assistant coach at his alma mater, the University of Missouri. Under his college coach, the legendary Norm Stewart, he was a part of two Big 8 regular season championships (1983 and 1994), a Big 8 Tournament title (1993), six trips to the NCAA Division I Tournament and an Elite Eight appearance in 1994. He was a graduate assistant with the Tigers from 1982-85 and a full-time assistant from 1991-99.

In between stints with Missouri, Anderson spent six seasons (1985-91) as an assistant coach at Baylor under former Pittsburg State head coach Gene Iba. The Bears made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 38 years in 1988.

Anderson played collegiately at Missouri from 1973-77, where he was a part of Norm Stewart’s first Big 8 Conference championship team in 1976. He led the league in scoring and was named Big 8 Player of the Year in 1977. Anderson scored 1,289 points in his career to rank among Missouri’s top-20 all-time scorers. Anderson was an Academic All-Big 8 selection in 1975 and 1977 and won Missouri’s George Edwards Award three times. An award given for basketball excellence, academic ability, citizenship and character. Anderson received his bachelor’s and master’s degree in education from Missouri in 1979 and 1981, respectively.

He is a member of the University of Missouri Athletic Hall of Fame and the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in Springfield and in 2005 was named to the Mizzou Basketball All-Century Team.

Anderson was drafted in the second round of the 1977 NBA Draft by the Portland Trailblazers. He played the 1978-79 season for the Trailblazers and also played professionally in France and Italy for a total of three seasons.

Anderson was a prep standout at Sedalia (Mo.) Smith-Cotton High School, where he had his jersey retired after twice being named to the all-state team.

His sister, Kathy, was a standout basketball player for Central Missouri from 1976 to 1980 and was a member of the first class inducted into Central Missouri’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992. She is now Senior Associate Athletic Director for Internal Operations at UCM. His father, Keith, graduated from Central Missouri in 1954.

Anderson has been married to his wife, Melissa, a Lee’s Summit, Mo. native for 34 years. The couple has two sons, Ryan, a first-year graduate assistant in the UCM Athletic Media Relations office and Brett, a sophomore at Missouri.