Coach Mark Turgeon (right) talks with assistant coaches Scott Spinelli (left) and Bino Ranson (center) during the Terps’ 78-77 loss to Connecticut in their season opener on Nov. 8, 2013 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Terrapins men’s basketball assistant coach Scott Spinelli has accepted a similar position at Boston College, coach Mark Turgeon announced yesterday.
Spinelli worked under Turgeon for the past eight seasons, dating back to Turgeon’s stint at Wichita State. A Massachusetts native who played at Boston University in the late 1980s, Spinelli has strong recruiting ties in New England.
The assistant helped the Terps bring in a pair of forwards from Massachusetts: Jake Layman and Evan Smotrycz.
“Scott and I have known each other for a long time and have worked together for the last eight years,” Turgeon said in a news release. “He is an outstanding coach and recruiter and has been a great member of my staff while at Wichita State, Texas A&M and Maryland. This is a great personal and professional opportunity for Scott and it’s a chance for his family to move back to the New England region.”
Spinelli interviewed for several head coaching jobs during his tenure in College Park but was never offered that position at a Division I program.
“I want to thank Mark for the great opportunity,” Spinelli said in the release. “I enjoyed working with him over the past eight years and I am proud of our accomplishments. I had a tremendous experience at Maryland and sincerely enjoyed working closely with the basketball staff, student-athletes and the athletics department.”
The Terps will need to fill both Spinelli’s spot on staff and the director of basketball operations job, which opened up last season after assistant coach Dalonte Hill resigned and former manager Dustin Clark was promoted. The Terps coaching staff now consists of Clark, assistant coach Bino Ranson and Juan Dixon, special assistant to the head coach.
