Niekamp, Oilers Title Team Enter Hall on Saturday

Former Oilers men's basketball coach Ron Niekamp will be among 11 players and coaches, two teams and one official who will be inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame's 2013 class.

Niekamp will join Randy Ayers, Brad Daugherty, Fran Guilbault, Howard Jolliff, Kenyon Martin, Jim Morgan, Wally Szczerbiak, Barbara Turner, Bill Uhl and Tamika Williams Raymond in the hall's 2013 class.

Dayton Belmont High School's 1964 state champion boys team and The University of Findlay's unbeaten 2009 NCAA Division II national championship squad will also be inducted along with Mt. Blanchard native Steve Trout, who was picked to be honored by his fellow officials.

Selections are made by a panel of Ohio college All-Americans, NBA Hall of Fame players, Ohio high school and college coaches and the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame Board of Directors.

The eighth annual induction ceremony will be held May 18 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

Ayers and Niekamp, both former Miami University players, were selected for their achievements as college coaches.

Ayers was head coach at Ohio State University for eight years. He was the NCAA Division I coach of the year in 1991 and Big Ten coach of the year in 1991 and 1992.

Niekamp was head coach at the University of Findlay for 26 years, guiding the Oilers to 26 consecutive winning seasons and the 2009 Division II title as the Oilers went 36-0, defeating Cal Poly Pomona 56-53 in overtime during the championship game.

Niekamp compiled a 598-185 career record and was tabbed the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) National Coach of the Year in 2009. During Niekamp's tenure he compiled a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) record of 197-57, which included ten GLIAC South Division regular-season championships (1998, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011) and five GLIAC Tournament titles (2004, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010). Before joining the NCAA Division II ranks full-time in 2000-01, Niekamp won two District 22 championships, two Mid-Ohio Conference (MOC) titles and two NAIA Division I Great Lakes Sectional titles with the Oilers.

He was named GLIAC Coach of the Year five times (2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009) and NCAA Division II Midwest Coach of the Year three times (2005, 2007, 2009). Before his tenure at Findlay, Niekamp enjoyed a successful run in the prep ranks, posting a 208-86 record at Parkway, Ottawa-Glandorf and Lima Senior. In 1977, Niekamp was named the Ohio High School Class AA Coach of the Year with Ottawa-Glandorf and took the Titans to the Ohio State High School Final Four twice (1977, 1978). While at Lima Senior, Niekamp made a return trip to the Final Four in 1982. A two-year letterwinner at Miami, Niekamp was inducted into Miami's Cradle of Coaches Association in August 2004.

The Oilers national championship team was led by forward Josh Bostic, who was named the 2009 NCAA Division II Player of the Year.