William Lange (born February 11, 1972) is an American

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

coach, currently the men's head coach at

Saint Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a private Jesuit university in Philadelphia and Lower Merion, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1851 as Saint Joseph's College. Saint Joseph's is the seventh olde ...

. He was previously an assistant head coach with the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

. Prior to joining the 76ers, he was the associate head coach at

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinians in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Sa ...

and head coach of the

Navy Midshipmen The Navy Midshipmen are the athletic teams that represent the United States Naval Academy. The academy sponsors 33 varsity sports teams and 12 club sport teams.Haddon Heights, New Jersey Haddon Heights is a borough in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 7,495, an increase of 22 (+0.3%) from the 2010 census enumeration of 7,473, in turn a decline of 74 (− ...

, Lange played high school basketball at

Bishop Eustace Preparatory School Bishop Eustace Preparatory School is a Catholic high school in Pennsauken Township, New Jersey. Founded in 1954 by the priests and brothers of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate (The Pallottines), the school operates under the auspices of th ...

Pennsauken Township, New Jersey Pennsauken Township is a township in Camden County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township's population was 37,074, reflecting an increase of 1,189 (+3.3%) from the 35,885 count ...

and then played collegiately at

Rowan University Rowan University is a public research university in Glassboro, New Jersey, with a medical campus in Stratford and medical and academic campuses in Camden. It was founded in 1923 as Glassboro Normal School on a site donated by 107 residents. ...

. He started his coaching career with a single season at his alma mater, Bishop Eustace, replacing his father in the role.

Coaching career

In 1996, Lange began his collegiate coaching career as an assistant under Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame coach

Herb Magee Herb Magee (born June 20, 1941), commonly referred to as the Shot Doctor, is an American former men's college basketball coach, who coached for 54 seasons at NCAA Division II Thomas Jefferson University. The school was established in its current ...

Philadelphia University Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its heritage, the univer ...

. After two seasons with Magee, Lange moved on to Division I ball, going crosstown and earning an assistant coaching job at

La Salle University La Salle University () is a private, Catholic university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The university was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools and named for St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle. History La ...

in 1998. While at La Salle, Lange helped the Explorers earn a 13–15 record during the 1998–99 season before being offered the head job at the

United States Merchant Marine Academy The United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA or Kings Point) is a United States service academy in Kings Point, New York. It trains its midshipmen (as students at the academy are called) to serve as officers in the United States Merchant ...

Kings Point, New York Kings Point is a village located on the Great Neck Peninsula in the Town of North Hempstead in Nassau County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 5,005 at the 2010 census. History The Village of Ki ...

. Lange's first two years of collegiate head coaching were extremely successful. In his first season, Lange guided his Mariners to a 1999–2000

Skyline Conference The Skyline Conference is a college athletic conference based in the New York City area that competes in the NCAA's Division III. The league was originally chartered on May 16, 1989, as a men's basketball conference and now sponsors 17 sports (ni ...

regular season title and came up a game short in making the Division III NCAA Tournament, losing in the Skyline Conference tournament. However, the squad earned a record of 17–11, including a 13–3 mark in conference. Lange's second year at USMMA, however, would prove to be historic, as his team compiled a 22–8 record, including 15–1 in-conference. The 2000–01 Mariners won both the regular season and conference tournament championships, and made it all the way to the Division III Sweet 16, the first time a USMMA team had ever advanced beyond the first round of the tournament. Lange returned to Division I ball when he accepted an assistant coaching position at

. From 2001 to 2004, Billy worked under Jay Wright, while the Villanova Wildcasts enjoyed great success. Lange earned his first Division I head coaching assignment in 2004 as he became the coach at the United States Naval Academy in

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

. Lange inherited a team that had gone only 5–23 the previous year. His teams showed improvement on the court, including a 16–14 record in 2007–08, the school's first winning season in seven years and a 19–11 mark in 2008–09. Lange left his post at Navy to rejoin Wright as his associate head coach on May 9, 2011. After two seasons at Villanova, Lange was hired by the Philadelphia 76ers as a player development coach for the 2013–14 season. Prior to joining

Brett Brown Brett William Brown (born February 16, 1961) is an American professional basketball coach who is an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Brown is a former college basketball player who previously ...

's staff, Lange reportedly turned down a head coaching opportunity with the

Rio Grande Valley Vipers The Rio Grande Valley Vipers are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Edinburg, Texas, and are affiliated with the Houston Rockets. The Vipers play their home games at the Bert Ogden Arena. The Vipers have won f ...

, the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

, or D-League, affiliate of the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

. While with the Sixers, Lange elevated into a lead assistant with roles that included player development and coordinating the team's offense. Lange left his position with the 76ers to be the men's basketball head coach at

on March 28, 2019. He was hired to replace

Phil Martelli Philip Martelli Sr. (born August 31, 1954) is an American college basketball coach, who is currently the associate head coach for the Michigan Wolverines men's basketball, Michigan Wolverines. As the former head coach of the Saint Joseph's Hawks ...

after 24 years at head coach of Saint Joseph's.

Personal life

Lange has a wife, Alicia, and four sons, Will, Matt, Marc, and Jake. He is the son of Bill Lange, Sr., a retired history teacher and head boys' basketball coach for

Lenape High School Lenape High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Medford Township in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. It is the oldest of the four high schools that comprise the Lenape Regional High School District, ...

Mount Laurel, New Jersey Mount Laurel is a township in Burlington County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia and part of the South Jersey region. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 41,864, reflecting an increase of 1 ...

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lange, Billy 1972 births Living people American men's basketball coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from New Jersey Basketball players from New Jersey Bishop Eustace Preparatory School alumni College men's basketball head coaches in the United States High school basketball coaches in the United States La Salle Explorers men's basketball coaches Merchant Marine Mariners men's basketball coaches Navy Midshipmen men's basketball coaches People from Haddon Heights, New Jersey Philadelphia 76ers assistant coaches Philadelphia Rams men's basketball coaches Rowan Profs men's basketball players Saint Joseph's Hawks men's basketball coaches Sportspeople from the Delaware Valley Villanova Wildcats men's basketball coaches