McKowen a good fit as Kennedy coach

 CEDAR RAPIDS - Marty McKowen has had a hall of fame career as head boys' basketball coach at Wapsie Valley High School.

More than 500 wins in 31 years don't lie.But did you know he's a hall of fame babysitter as well?

Ask his son, Jon, about that. Jon McKowen was hired as Cedar Rapids Kennedy's head coach last April, and he and his wife, Jody, lived with mom and dad in Fairbank for a month last summer.Jon and Jody sold their house in Kansas a little earlier than expected and hadn't yet found a place to live in their new hometown.

They have three little boys, by the way, all seven years old and younger.Kind of sounds like a sitcom plot.

"At that point, we didn't have any daycare, either. So the kids were with my folks 24 hours a day," laughed Jon McKowen. "My sister (Brittney) and my dad really helped out a lot with that. It was interesting, but it was good. I think mom and dad enjoyed it ... for the first two weeks."

You see members of Team McKowen at virtually every Kennedy game. Jody and the boys (Trey, Drew and Cade) are always there. Marty and Marti make it when schedules permit, same with Brittney and younger brother, Brooks, the head coach at Upper Iowa University.

"I talk to my dad every day and my brother most every day, depending on if our practice schedules line up and things," Jon said. "I have someone who answers the phone, unless he's in the middle of class or a parent meeting, that has over 500 wins, so I'm going to use that and probably abuse that at some points. But it goes all three ways."

With Brooks at the college level, we're trying to develop these kids over the summer and stuff, it's really nice to call him and ask 'What are you looking for?' When he's watching our teams, he sees it from a totally different perspective than what high school coaches do. But it brings a lot to my coaching and brings a lot to my team."

It's a team that enters its Class 4A substate semifinal Friday night at home against Cedar Rapids Washington with a 16-5 record. There has been a seamless transition from previous coach Bob Fontana (who left to take the head coaching job at new Ankeny Centennial) to McKowen, who led Ottawa High School and Duke freshman Semi Ojeleye to a Kansas state championship in 2013.

Their playing preferences are vastly different: Fontana preferred a half-court game to McKowen's up-and-down, 3-point style. But the results for this traditionally strong program have been the same.

"This is the third time I've started with a new school, and every time, the first thing you have to do is win over your seniors. Make sure they are going to buy in," said McKowen, who coached at Cedar Falls NU High before moving to Kansas. "It's their season. Like every year, it's the seniors' season. They didn't know what to expect. I was fortunate enough to be here from day one in the summer. The hiring process was quick, we were able to move quick ... So we got to know each other."

"I think there's a fire in him," said senior center Austin Holzer. "He knows when to be serious and when to have fun. Off the court, he's a really good guy, loves to have a good time. But when he gets on the court, in between the lines, it's all serious. Which I really like."

McKowen also mentioned his ability to retain longtime assistants like Jeff Hrubes and Larry Williams. They are good coaches, love Kennedy and have been able to help translate the new coach's terminology to the players.The Cougars are not a physically large team, are very guard oriented, which seems to fit McKowen's system well.

"Coach McKowen wants us to push it on the offensive end, be more loose and uptempo. I like that," said leading scorer A.J. Carter. "He is a fun guy on and off the court, but he can be tough at times. You really look for that as a coach. He really pushes you to get the best of your ability. He's one of the best coaches I've ever had."

"The seniors bought in from day one," McKowen said. "They never questioned what we were doing. That's why it has looked like it has been a smooth transition. They were really excited to learn new stuff and play a different speed. It was more half court before, whether that was personnel or personality. But with our personnel this year, we had to be uptempo, beat people between the 3-point lines."

No question this has been a great marriage thus far. If McKowen has anything to say about it, a long one, too.He was asked if he has any desire to follow his brother to the college ranks someday."I am very happy right here," he said. "You never know what you're going to do, but I envision myself coaching my kids at Kennedy."