Bowling Green State University Athletics
Ali Mann is returning to BGSU as an assistant coach under Jennifer Roos (photo courtesy Colgate Univ.)
Mann Returns to BGSU Program
May 08, 2012 | Women's Basketball
Roos adds former Falcon great to coaching staff
One of the greatest players in Bowling Green State University women's basketball history is returning to the program. Head coach Jennifer Roos has announced the hiring of Ali Mann as an assistant coach. Mann, a captain of the Falcons' 'Sweet Sixteen' team, officially begins her duties at her alma mater on May 23.
“Ali is one of the top young assistants in the coaching profession,” said Roos. “She has gained valuable experience recruiting the Midwest region as well as nationally at two Division I institutions. Ali has performed a myriad of duties at both institutions and has excelled with those responsibilities.
“Along with her recruiting experience, her passion and knowledge of our culture and system at BGSU make her a great fit for our staff. She knows first-hand what it takes to be a champion on the court, and her drive to succeed also extended into the classroom as an undergraduate. She achieved great success while living out her dreams here at BGSU as a student-athlete; I am confident she will do the same as a coach, reconnecting with a campus and a community that has meant so much to her.”
Mann returns to BGSU after spending the 2011-12 season as an assistant coach at Colgate. Her coaching experience also includes over two years (2008-10) as an assistant at IPFW as well as a head-coaching stint with the Quinta dos Lombos under-19 team in Portugal in 2010-11.
“I couldn't be more excited to return to Bowling Green,” said Mann. “Jennifer Roos has been a mentor and role model for me, both as a student-athlete and as a coach. I'm looking forward to learning even more from her and continuing the success of the BGSU women's basketball program.”
In addition to coaching the U19 team, Mann played professionally with the main club at Quinta dos Lombos in 2010-11. She was appointed a captain within the first month of joining the team, and helped the club become the first in Portuguese basketball history to win the Federation Cup, the Portugal Cup and the national title all in the same year.
Mann's professional playing experience also includes a stint with AB Contern in Luxembourg immediately after graduation, as well as five months with Clube Propaganda de Natacao in 2008. She led that Portuguese team in scoring and rebounding, with 26 points and 12 boards per game, and earned all-league first-team honors. Additionally, she was named to the All-Defensive Team and also earned MVP honors as the Portuguese All-Star game.
A four-year starter at BGSU, Mann helped Curt Miller's program return to the top of the Mid-American Conference. She helped the Falcons to an average of over 25 wins per year, as BG went 103-25 during her tenure. The Falcons won MAC regular-season and tournament titles in each of her final three seasons, and won a pair of NCAA Tournament games against Oklahoma State and Vanderbilt in 2007, becoming the first MAC women's team to advance to the Round of 16.
Mann finished her career ranked second in school history in career scoring and third in rebounding, with 1,825 career points and 911 boards. She earned all-conference honors in each of her four seasons, and became just the sixth player in MAC history to be named MAC Player of the Year, MAC Freshman of the Year and MAC Tournament MVP during her career. Currently, Mann ranks third in school history in both career scoring and rebounding.
As a freshman on the 2003-04 club, she averaged nearly 13 points and eight rebounds per game, helping the Falcons to a 21-10 record. The victory total was a nine-win improvement over the prior season, one of the top turnarounds in the country. BGSU, picked to finish last in the MAC's West Division, finished just a game out of first. Mann was named MAC Freshman of the Year and helped the Brown and Orange all the way to the championship game of the MAC Tournament.
It would be the first of four-straight trips to the league tourney title game for Mann and the Falcons, as BGSU won league regular-season and tournament crowns in each of her final three seasons. After earning all-league honorable mention as a freshman, Mann was an All-MAC Second-Team pick as a soph, as she averaged 13.8 ppg and 7.4 rpg. Mann led the Falcons in both categories in league games, with 15.0 ppg and 7.8 rpg as the Falcons won the league regular-season crown. She scored in double digits 24 times on the season.
In her junior year, Mann became the Falcons' first All-MAC First-Team selection in six years, and also was named the MAC Tournament MVP as BGSU won league regular-season and tourney crowns for the second-straight year. Mann averaged a team-best 14.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, scoring in double digits in 27 of BG's 31 games. Also that year, Mann reached the 1,000-point mark for her career, becoming the fourth-fastest player to hit that milestone. She was named to the Academic All-District Third Team that year.
Mann and her teammates enjoyed a storybook season in 2006-07, winning a MAC-record 31 games and advancing to the “Sweet Sixteen” of the NCAA Championships. Mann repeated as an all-league first-team selection, and was the MAC's co-Player of the Year after averaging 15.5 ppg and 5.7 rpg. She scored in double digits in 33 of the team's 35 games, and shot better than 44 percent from three-point land.
Mann had 20 points in the MAC Tournament championship-game win over Ball State, and then hit two of the biggest shots in school history the following weekend. First, she knocked down a last-minute jumper in the lane as the Falcons defeated Oklahoma State in the first round of the NCAA Championships. Two days later, Mann hit a late three-pointer to help the Falcons over #7/8 Vanderbilt in the second round.
Mann earned Kodak/WBCA All-America honorable mention that season, after being named to the all-region team. She was the first Falcon to earn that honor in nearly a decade. A tri-captain for the second year in a row, Mann was named to the MAC All-Tournament Team for the third time in her career, and was listed among 30 candidates nationally for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. She was a repeat selection to the Academic All-District Third Team, and was voted to the Academic All-MAC Team for the third year in a row.
In her career, Mann scored in double digits in 103 of her 128 career contests. She left school as the BGSU career record-holder in both free throws made (482) and attempted (677), and still ranks third on both of those lists. Mann remains fourth on the BGSU career list for three-point field-goal percentage, having made nearly 40 percent of her long-range attempts as a Falcon.
The daughter of John and Anne Mann of Chelsea, Mich., Mann was a supply chain management major at BGSU, and graduated with a 3.49 cumulative GPA. In the 2010-11 season, she was one of 13 players to be named to the All-Anderson Team.
“Ali is one of the top young assistants in the coaching profession,” said Roos. “She has gained valuable experience recruiting the Midwest region as well as nationally at two Division I institutions. Ali has performed a myriad of duties at both institutions and has excelled with those responsibilities.
“Along with her recruiting experience, her passion and knowledge of our culture and system at BGSU make her a great fit for our staff. She knows first-hand what it takes to be a champion on the court, and her drive to succeed also extended into the classroom as an undergraduate. She achieved great success while living out her dreams here at BGSU as a student-athlete; I am confident she will do the same as a coach, reconnecting with a campus and a community that has meant so much to her.”
Mann returns to BGSU after spending the 2011-12 season as an assistant coach at Colgate. Her coaching experience also includes over two years (2008-10) as an assistant at IPFW as well as a head-coaching stint with the Quinta dos Lombos under-19 team in Portugal in 2010-11.
In addition to coaching the U19 team, Mann played professionally with the main club at Quinta dos Lombos in 2010-11. She was appointed a captain within the first month of joining the team, and helped the club become the first in Portuguese basketball history to win the Federation Cup, the Portugal Cup and the national title all in the same year.
Mann's professional playing experience also includes a stint with AB Contern in Luxembourg immediately after graduation, as well as five months with Clube Propaganda de Natacao in 2008. She led that Portuguese team in scoring and rebounding, with 26 points and 12 boards per game, and earned all-league first-team honors. Additionally, she was named to the All-Defensive Team and also earned MVP honors as the Portuguese All-Star game.
A four-year starter at BGSU, Mann helped Curt Miller's program return to the top of the Mid-American Conference. She helped the Falcons to an average of over 25 wins per year, as BG went 103-25 during her tenure. The Falcons won MAC regular-season and tournament titles in each of her final three seasons, and won a pair of NCAA Tournament games against Oklahoma State and Vanderbilt in 2007, becoming the first MAC women's team to advance to the Round of 16.
As a freshman on the 2003-04 club, she averaged nearly 13 points and eight rebounds per game, helping the Falcons to a 21-10 record. The victory total was a nine-win improvement over the prior season, one of the top turnarounds in the country. BGSU, picked to finish last in the MAC's West Division, finished just a game out of first. Mann was named MAC Freshman of the Year and helped the Brown and Orange all the way to the championship game of the MAC Tournament.
It would be the first of four-straight trips to the league tourney title game for Mann and the Falcons, as BGSU won league regular-season and tournament crowns in each of her final three seasons. After earning all-league honorable mention as a freshman, Mann was an All-MAC Second-Team pick as a soph, as she averaged 13.8 ppg and 7.4 rpg. Mann led the Falcons in both categories in league games, with 15.0 ppg and 7.8 rpg as the Falcons won the league regular-season crown. She scored in double digits 24 times on the season.
Mann and her teammates enjoyed a storybook season in 2006-07, winning a MAC-record 31 games and advancing to the “Sweet Sixteen” of the NCAA Championships. Mann repeated as an all-league first-team selection, and was the MAC's co-Player of the Year after averaging 15.5 ppg and 5.7 rpg. She scored in double digits in 33 of the team's 35 games, and shot better than 44 percent from three-point land.
Mann had 20 points in the MAC Tournament championship-game win over Ball State, and then hit two of the biggest shots in school history the following weekend. First, she knocked down a last-minute jumper in the lane as the Falcons defeated Oklahoma State in the first round of the NCAA Championships. Two days later, Mann hit a late three-pointer to help the Falcons over #7/8 Vanderbilt in the second round.
Mann earned Kodak/WBCA All-America honorable mention that season, after being named to the all-region team. She was the first Falcon to earn that honor in nearly a decade. A tri-captain for the second year in a row, Mann was named to the MAC All-Tournament Team for the third time in her career, and was listed among 30 candidates nationally for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. She was a repeat selection to the Academic All-District Third Team, and was voted to the Academic All-MAC Team for the third year in a row.
In her career, Mann scored in double digits in 103 of her 128 career contests. She left school as the BGSU career record-holder in both free throws made (482) and attempted (677), and still ranks third on both of those lists. Mann remains fourth on the BGSU career list for three-point field-goal percentage, having made nearly 40 percent of her long-range attempts as a Falcon.
The daughter of John and Anne Mann of Chelsea, Mich., Mann was a supply chain management major at BGSU, and graduated with a 3.49 cumulative GPA. In the 2010-11 season, she was one of 13 players to be named to the All-Anderson Team.
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