Mike MacDonald enters his ninth season as the head basketball coach of the Canisius College Golden Griffins.
Under his direction, the program has become known for developing student-athletes both on the court and in the classroom. Two of the last four New York Lottery MAAC Scholar Athletes of the Year have come from Canisius as Brian Dux won the award in 2002 and Toby Foster received the honor in 2004.
On the court, MacDonald has led Canisius to the semifinals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament two of the last five years, including an appearance in the finals in 2001. The 39-year-old owns a 7-8 MAAC Tourney record and has won six games the last five years. Nine players have been named to the all-conference team, two have received all-tournament honors and two have been named to the all-rookie squad.
Canisius has made many improvements to its basketball program during MacDonald's tenure, including the renovations to the Koessler Athletic Center and the upgrading of the Golden Griffins' schedule. Last year, the Griffs made a late-season run, winning 10 of their last 19 games, including a victory over Marist in the first round of the MAAC Tournament.
The Blue and Gold played six teams that qualified for postseason play in 2003-04 (4 NCAA Tournament, 2 NIT), highlighted by the school's first-ever appearance in the Great Alaska Shootout. Canisius struggled at times and finished the campaign with a 10-20 record with wins over NCAA Tournament participant Pacific and local rival the University at Buffalo along with the school's fifth victory against St. Bonaventure at the Reilly Center.
The Griffs endured plenty of hardships during the 2002-03 campaign, including the loss of two starters for the entire season before the Blue and Gold's first game. Canisius began the year with a 5-2 record and an 89-69 victory at Niagara, the largest margin of victory for the Griffs at Niagara in school history. Canisius also led Syracuse at halftime in the Carrier Dome and trailed the Orangemen 70-66 with less than five minutes to play before falling to the eventual national champions. It was the second time during MacDonald's tenure that the Griffs played the eventual national champion during the regular season (Kentucky, 1997-98).
In 1998-99, the Griffs posted an eight-game conference winning streak and 11 league wins -- the second-highest total in school history. In 2000-01, the Griffs completed an amazing turnaround, finishing 20-11 after a 10-20 season the year before, and advancing to the MAAC title game before falling to Iona. The 20-win season was only the sixth in the 101-year history of Canisius basketball, and MacDonald was named the Basketball Coaches Association of New York Co-Coach of the Year. He was also selected one of Western New York's outstanding young leaders as Business First named him to its 2001 "40 Under Forty" honor roll.
In 2001-02, the Ridgefield, Conn., native led the eighth-seeded Griffs to an 85-84 overtime MAAC Tournament quarterfinal victory over top-seeded Rider in one of the most memorable Canisius games in recent history.
He enters 2005-06 with a record of 99-133 (.427 winning percentage) in his seven seasons.
A 17-year coach in the Canisius program, Mike began his career as a graduate assistant in 1988 and was elevated to full-time status in 1990. His role as an assistant varied during his tenure under Marty Marbach and current West Virginia coach John Beilein.
Over time, MacDonald was involved with every aspect of the program but concentrated much of his efforts on recruiting, on-floor coaching and monitoring academic progress. Canisius has made three postseason appearances during his tenure with the Griffs.
MacDonald also spent six summers coaching the Western Region Open Squad in the Empire State Games. His teams won the Gold Medal in 1994, 1995 and 1997, the silver in 1998 and the bronze in 1996. MacDonald is currently on the Board of Directors of the Basketball Coaches Association of Western New York and a member of the Board of Directors of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Western New York.
A 1988 graduate of St. Bonaventure with a degree in sociology, MacDonald received his master's from Canisius in physical education in the spring of 1994.
Mike married the former Maura Heary, whose late father Tom played at Canisius from 1957-60, in June of 1993. They reside in Eggertsville with their sons, Matt (10), Patrick (9) and Nicholas (5).
