Jordan Altman is in his second season as a graduate manager with the Sycamore basketball program under head coach Kevin McKenna.
In 2009-10 the Sycamores overcame a ton of adversity to still put together its best season in nearly a decade under the professional leadership of the Sycamore coaching staff. Despite only having its full compliment of student-athletes for just 28 minutes of the rough and tumble Missouri Valley Conference slate, the Sycamores still recorded its first winning season since 2001 as they finished 17-15. ISU also finished the year with a 9-9 record in league play, bolstering the Sycamores out of the MVC Opening Round at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament by securing the league's No. 6 seed after finishing in a tie for fifth in the standings.
Starting guard Jake Kelly suffered a season ending knee injury with 12 minutes left in the conference opener at Southern Illinois and subsequently also lost Dwayne Lathan and Harry Marshall for extended periods over the course of the year.
Marshall, who was the heart and sole of the team, led the MVC in scoring in league contests with a 16.0 ppg average. Marshall was tabbed Second Team All-MVC and was named to the MVC's All-Defensive Team after turning in shutdown performances against most of the league's all-conference opposition. Running a well-rounded program, the Sycamores also two representatives on the MVC's Scholar Athlete Team as both Jordan Printy and Aaron Carter took those plaudits.
The payoff for the Sycamores continued as ISU reached postseason play for the first since 2001 when they accepted a bid to the 2010 College Basketball Invitational, appearing in a road contest at Saint Louis.
With a keen attention to details that most coaches think of as an afterthough, the Sycamores concentrated on extreme efficiency on the court, finishing the year as the nation's second leading free throw shooting team. ISU's 76.9 percent mark at the line finished just behind NCAA qualifier BYU on the NCAA Division I list for the best free throw shooting teams in the country.
Additionally, the Sycamores overcame a 24-point deficit in the second half at Missouri State before falling in overtime. The 24-point comeback in front of a national television audience was the largest in the history of the MVC by a team that at least forced overtime.
Altman joined the staff after spending the past year working in private business in Omaha, Neb.
In the year prior, Altman was a graduate assistant at Wayne State where his duties included recruiting, on the court coaching and scouting.
Altman spent four seasons during his time as a collegian at Creighton working as a basketball liaison. With the Bluejays, he helped orchestrate the team's interactions with Quest Center Omaha management, served as a host for visiting teams and coordinated the staff of student managers.
A 2007 graduate of Creighton with a bachelor's degree in Journalism, Altman is pursuing a master's degree in coaching at Indiana State. Altman is a native of Omaha, Neb., and is a 2002 graduate of Millard West High School.
