Shane Sweany earned the head coaching position for the Spartans in August 2023. He had been an assistant men’s basketball coach since 2021.

During his time at Southwestern, Sweany has played a key role in recruiting and coaching three ICCAC all-region players; maintaining a 3.0 or above team GPA each season; receiving top 25 votes during the 2021-22 season; and achieving at least five wins each season against top 20 teams in the nation.

Kim Bishop, Southwestern athletic director, is looking forward to watching Sweany transition to the head coaching job.

“Shane has been a dedicated, respected, and involved coach since arriving on campus two years ago,” said Bishop. “He values and builds relationships with SWCC’s student-athletes and I can’t wait to see him excel as a head coach. The continuity of keeping him on staff will be a tremendous asset with his players and his peers.”

Prior to Southwestern, Sweany began his coaching career while in the master’s program at Doane University in Crete, Nebraska. As a graduate assistant, he was involved in all aspects of administering a collegiate basketball program.

Sweany earned a Bachelor of Science degree in sports management/marketing in 2020 from the University of Central Missouri (UCM) in Warrensburg, Missouri. He was a student-assistant at UCM, where he assisted the coaching staff with practice, team travel, meals, and video work. He also helped organize UCM’s annual Elite Camp for potential student-athletes.