Hawaii’s Montgomery Heads South to Long Beach State for First Time Since Ganot Era

Hawaii men’s basketball associate head coach John Montgomery will be joining Chris Acker’s new staff at Long Beach State. This was confirmed by sources to Spectrum News. Montgomery, who had been the last remaining staff member from UH coach Eran Ganot’s first season in 2015-16, was responsible for overseeing the team’s defense and post players.

Montgomery was reached out to by Spectrum News, while Acker declined to comment when contacted via phone. Ganot expressed his appreciation for Montgomery’s contributions, stating that Montgomery had been with the team since the beginning and wished him and his family the best in the future.

According to The Field of 68’s Jeff Goodman, Acker’s staff at Long Beach State includes John Montgomery from Hawaii, Anthony Santos from Cal State Fullerton, Phillip Scott from Premier Prep/San Diego City, DOBO Ali Tavakol from San Diego State, and Director of player relations Josh Calbert from Little Rock. Montgomery and Acker had previously worked together as assistants under Ganot for two seasons in Manoa before reuniting at Long Beach State. Montgomery had been a constant presence on the UH coaching staff over the past nine years, eventually being promoted to associate head coach in 2021.

With Montgomery joining him at Long Beach State, the two will now face UH as conference rivals at least twice a season, with one matchup taking place at the Stan Sheriff Center. Montgomery brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to Acker’s coaching staff at Long Beach State. Brian McInnis