The last time the Illinois State men's basketball team participated in the NCAA Tournament, Dan Muller was the leader on the floor. He is striving to repeat that accomplishment, this time from the sideline, as ISU's head coach. Muller was named the 19th men's basketball coach in school history May 8, 2012.

In his first year at Illinois State, Muller led the Redbirds to an 18-win season, with at least one victory against nine of the Missouri Valley Conference's 10 teams. Muller also guided ISU to the Valley Tournament semifinals for the fifth time in six years.

During the regular season, Illinois State earned a marquee win at No. 16 Creighton, 75-72, in front of a sellout crowd of 18,494 at CentryLink Center Omaha. The Bluejays went on to win the Valley regular-season and tournament titles. The victory was ISU's first over a nationally ranked team on the road since topping No. 17 Tulsa in 1985.

Under Muller's tutelage, ISU was awarded two All-Missouri Valley Conference selections for the first time since 2010, as senior forward Jackie Carmichael received first-team recognition, and senior guard Tyler Brown garnered second-team accolades.

Additionally, Carmichael earned All-Valley Tournament and Valley All-Defensive Team honors, and he was named to the 2013 Lou Henson All-America Team. Muller also helped sophomore guard Johnny Hill land a spot on the Valley Most-Improved Team after Hill increased his offensive and rebounding productivity by nearly six points and three rebounds per game.

For Muller's first-year efforts, he was named one of 10 national finalists for the 2013 Joe B. Hall Award, which is presented annually to the top first-year coach in Division I college basketball.

Before becoming Illinois State's leader, Muller spent 12 years as an assistant coach at Vanderbilt. Under former Illinois State head coach Kevin Stallings, Muller was regarded as one of the top assistant coaches in the country. As Vanderbilt's recruiting coordinator, Muller spearheaded the program's recruiting efforts since 2006, which were the highest-rated recruiting classes in the history of the program.

Since 2006, the Vanderbilt men's basketball program signed six four-star recruits and Rivals 150 Prospects, in addition to five-star recruit John Jenkins in 2009, the nation's leading high school scorer and a PARADE and Reebok All-American.

During Muller's tenure, Vanderbilt had 18 players named to the All-Southeastern Conference First and Second teams and a player named to the All-SEC Defensive Team three consecutive years (2010, 2011 and 2012).

Since Muller joined the Vanderbilt staff in 2000, the staff and team accomplished seven 20-win seasons. Starting in 2003, Vanderbilt has been recognized nationally as a top-25 team in the Associated Press Poll for a total of 51 weeks. In 2007-08, Vanderbilt was ranked in the AP Top-25 for the most consecutive weeks in school history.

Muller's efforts, both on-and-off the court, helped propel the Commodores to the 2012 SEC Tournament Championship, the Commodores' first league tournament title since 1951. In addition, Vanderbilt appeared in six NCAA Tournaments, including five in the last six seasons, and posted two Sweet 16 appearances.

Along with his recruiting, scouting and on-court responsibilities, Muller directed the student-athlete's academic progress. During that time, Vanderbilt collected a 100 percent senior graduation rate and one of the highest APR's in NCAA Division I college basketball.

As a player, Muller guided Illinois State to two regular season and Missouri Valley Conference Tournament championships and four postseason appearances, including trips to the NCAA Tournament in his final two seasons (1997 and 1998).

Muller ranks 11th in career scoring with 1,445 points, while leading the Redbirds to a 91-37 overall record, and he still owns the school record with 128-consecutive starts (every game of his career). Muller was also a two-time MVC Defensive Player of the Year and was named the MVP of the Valley Tournament as a senior. In 2009, he was inducted into the Illinois State Athletics Percy Family Hall of Fame.

Off the court, Muller was just as successful. He was a two-time GTE Academic All-American and a recipient of the NCAA's Post-Graduate Scholarship. He also was named a Bone Scholar, the highest academic honor at ISU, and he is the only men's basketball student-athlete to earn the award.

After playing for the Redbirds, the Lafayette, Ind., native spent two years playing professionally, including a stint with the NBA's Vancouver Grizzlies.

Muller is a 1998 graduate of Illinois State and graduated cum laude with a bachelor's degree in organizational leadership. He later earned his master's in business administration from Florida in 2003. He is married to Melissa Muller and has one stepson, Sib.

WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT DAN MULLER:

Kevin Stallings, head basketball coach at Vanderbilt
"Illinois State is getting the same thing that they got when Dan was a player. He will do all aspects of the job extremely well. He will bring a great energy level and a great passion to the team and to the program, much like he brought to the teams that he played on at Illinois State. Most of all, he brings the same pursuit of excellence and commitment to excellence that he had as a student-athlete, where he achieved not only the highest level of success in the classroom by being a Bone Scholar and an academic All-American, but also by setting several school records, many of which he still holds, and starting every game of his college career.
"I'm very happy for Illinois State, and I'm very happy for Dan. He's worked hard for this opportunity, and I think that the fans, the players, the program and the administration will be very, very pleased and feel very fortunate to have him as their head coach."

Matt Painter, head basketball coach at Purdue
"Dan Muller will do an outstanding job as head coach at Illinois State. He's learned the game as both a player and assistant under one of the best coaches in America in Kevin Stallings. He'll be a great representative of his alma mater for years to come."

Roy Williams, head basketball coach at North Carolina
"Dan Muller is an outstanding choice for Illinois State. He was a great player there and will also be a great coach. He has the entire package a head coach needs, and I'm sure the Illinois State fans will enthusiastically welcome home one of their own."

Shaka Smart, head basketball coach at VCU
"Dan Muller has the entire package as a basketball coach. He excels in recruiting, teaching the game, game planning and most importantly relationships. He will be hugely successful at Illinois State."

Buzz Williams, head basketball coach at Marquette
"My instincts tell me that Coach Muller is going to be a star in our industry! His friendly demeanor and intellect tends to cover up a layer of toughness that I believe will separate him as he leads Illinois State to great things. His playing experience as a Redbird will be helpful to him as he begins, but he has earned and prepared for this opportunity over the last decade. I am excited to watch the growth of Illinois State, because I am a Dan Muller fan."