LEBANON, Ill. – McKendree University Athletics Director
Anthony Francis has announced the hiring of longtime NCAA Division I women's basketball coaching veteran
Paula Buscher as the school's Interim Assistant Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator.
Buscher comes to McKendree after spending the past 35 years coaching women's basketball at both the NCAA Division I and Division II levels. Most recently, she spent nine years (2012-2021) as the head women's basketball coach at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.
"We are beyond excited to welcome Paula to the Bearcat Athletics family," Francis said. "Her experience working as a collegiate women's basketball coach and college athletics, in general, for nearly 35 years will make her successful in this position and I'm glad to have her skill set and experience on board to help out our athletics department."
In her nine seasons at SIUE, Buscher, who was the second-longest tenured coach in the Cougars history, posted a 117-152 record, including 75-79 record in the Ohio Valley Conference. Her 2017-18 Cougars squad posted a 17-15 record and advanced to the NCAA Division I postseason for just the second time in the program's history as SIUE played in the Women's Basketball Invitational.
"I look forward to working with the student-athletes and coaches here at McKendree University," Buscher said. "I want to thank Anthony (Francis) for this opportunity to serve as the Assistant Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator in an interim capacity."
During her time at SIUE, the Cougars won 14 or more games in five of her nine seasons, including a 19-12 record and a 13-3 mark in the OVC in 2014-15. In 2015-16, SIUE went 18-13 overall and 12-4 in the OVC.
Prior to becoming the head coach at SIUE, Buscher spent 12 seasons (2000-12) at Bradley University in Peoria, Ill. In her time with the Braves of the Missouri Valley Conference, Buscher won 167 games, which at the time was ninth most in MVC history. In addition, she led Bradley to 91 conference wins, which were also ninth most in MVC history. Her 167 wins with the Braves are a school record.
During her time at Bradley, Buscher coached seven First-Team MVC Scholar-Athletes, six CoSIDA Academic All-District selections, four first-team All-MVC selections, two MVC Defensive Players of the Year and one Prairie Farms/MVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
One of Buscher's assistants at both SIUE and Bradley was current McKendree University head women's basketball coach
Kari Kerkhoff, who spent six seasons at Bradley and three seasons at SIUE before being named McKendree's head coach in March of 2015.
Buscher rebuilt the Bradley program during her 12 seasons with the program as her 2008-09 squad set a school record for wins with 21. Her teams advanced to the Women's Basketball Invitational twice, including in 2009-10, when the Braves reached the quarterfinals of the WBI and defeated defending NCAA Tournament runner-up Louisville in the Cardinals' final game at iconic Freedom Hall.
During her coaching career, she served on numerous committees, including serving as the MVC captain for the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) and was on the Region 6 Coach of the Year Committee and was also a member of the Division I Women's Basketball Regional Advisory Committee.
Buscher holds a career coaching record of 322-378 (.460) as before going to Bradley, she spent two seasons (1998-00) as the head coach at Nebraska-Omaha and one season (1997-98) as the head coach at then Mankato State (now called Minnesota State). Over those three seasons, Buscher went 43-38 combined at those two Division II schools that were members of the North Central Conference.
During her time in Peoria, Buscher was named one of Peoria's "40 Leaders Under 40" in 2002 and was awarded the Exemplary Service Award from the Bradley Parents Association in 2001.
She earned her bachelor's degree from Missouri State University in 1986 after playing two seasons (1983-85) of basketball and softball for the Bears. She began her coaching career as a graduate assistant under Hall of Fame Coach Jill Hutchison at Illinois State University.
Buscher earned her master's degree in physical education with an emphasis in athletic administration from Illinois State and then spent nine seasons as an assistant coach at Nebraska-Omaha, before being hired as Mankato State's head coach in 1997. She began her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Illinois State in 1986-88.
A native of Peoria, Ill., Buscher was a standout high school basketball and softball player at Peoria Richwoods High School. In basketball, she was a member of the school's 1980-81 IHSA Class AA State Tournament runner-up team and then played both basketball and softball for Hall of Fame coach Lorene Ramsey at Illinois Central College. As a basketball player at Illinois Central, she helped lead the team to a fifth-place finish during the 1981-82 season and a third place finish during the 1982-83 season. In softball, she helped Illinois Central to the 1982 NJCAA National title and was inducted into the Peoria Sports Hall of Fame in 1987 as a member of that national championship team and was inducted as an individual into the Peoria Sports Hall of Fame in 2014 and was the 2010 Tri-County Female Coach of the Year.
