MERCED, Calif. – University of California, Merced head men's basketball coach Gary Stewart will be one of eight coaches nationally to coach in the Operation Hardwood Classic Basketball Tournament hosted by Feherty's Troops First Foundation this week (Aug. 3-6) at Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota.
The Operation Hardwood Classic brings together current and retired NCAA and professional basketball coaches with currently serving military service members and civilians. Stewart will coach in the tournament for the fourth time. His first three Operation Hardwood Classic's were in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kuwait.
"I'm humbled and honored to be selected to coach in the Operation Hardwood Classic Basketball Tournament," Stewart said. "The opportunity to spend this week with America's greatest team – our military, is so inspiring. Their servitude, attitude, relentless spirit, and unwavering commitment to the greater good is beyond measure."
Stewart was selected to coach this year alongside former Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Hornets head coach Tim Floyd and former Kentucky head coach and national champion Tubby Smith.
Each coach will have a team and compete in a single-elimination three-day tournament. Games start on Tuesday, August 4.
Stewart is a 2x Operation Hardwood Champion.
Past Operation Hardwood coaches have included Rick Barnes (current head coach at Tennessee), Mike Brey (current assistant coach for the Atlanta Hawks and former Notre Dame head coach), Jeff Bzdelik (former head coach of the Denver Nuggets), Tom Izzo (national champion and current head coach at Michigan State), Steve Lavin (former head coach at UCLA, St. John's, San Diego), Jeff Nix (longtime New York Knicks executive), the late Skip Prosser (former head coach at Loyola, Xavier, and Wake Forest), Kelvin Sampson (current head coach at Houston), and Gary Williams (national champion and former Maryland head coach).
Stewart is believed to be the only small college basketball coach (NCAA Div. II, NCAA Div. III, NAIA, USCAA & NCCAA levels) to ever be selected.
