Nick Matson is in his first season as Assistant Coach at NM State.
Matson spent the past two seasons at the University of Texas as an assistant under head coach Rodney Terry, helping the Longhorns advance to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2024 and 2025.
During the 2023-24 season, Texas advanced to the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 with a victory over Colorado State in the NCAA Round of 64. The Longhorns were one of 11 teams to rank in the top 31 in KenPom in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency and captured 5 Quad 1 wins. During his time in Austin, Matson worked with All-Conference Players Tre Johnson, Max Abmas, and Dylan Disu.Â
Prior to Texas, Matson spent the 2022-23 season as assistant coach and defensive coordinator at East Carolina University. The Pirates posted a 16-17 overall record during year 1 of Mike Schwartz's tenure. The 16 wins marked the most by East Carolina in nearly a decade (2013-14), while the six AAC wins were the most conference wins at ECU since joining the American Athletic Conference in 2014-15 season.
Matson served as an assistant coach for three years (2018-21) at UTEP. In 2019-20, the Miners tallied a 17-15 overall mark, winning nine more games than the previous season, the largest win improvement of any team in C-USA. UTEP registered a 13-4 record in the Haskins Center, its best home mark and most home wins in four seasons. Matson helped recruit and develop All Conference Players Bryson Williams (All-C-USA first team), Souley Boum (All-C-USA 2nd Team), and Efe Odigie (All-C-USA Freshman).Â
Prior to El Paso, Matson spent seven seasons at Fresno State (2011-2018), serving as graduate assistant and Director of Basketball Operations before being elevated to Assistant Coach in 2017. The Bulldogs experienced unprecedented success, posting 20-win seasons in four of the last five years and double-digit win totals in Mountain West Conference play, advancing to the 2014 CBI Championship, the 2016 NCAA Tournament and 2017 NIT.
In 2015-16, the Bulldogs registered a 25-10 record and the Mountain West Championship, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2001. The 25 wins marked the third-most in Fresno State history. Guard Marvelle Harris was named Mountain West Player of The Year and went on to become the school's all-time leading scorer. In Fresno, Matson also coached future NBA Players Tyler Johnson and Paul Watson, and 1st Team all-conference member Deshon Taylor.
Matson spent the 2010-11 season as a graduate assistant at Murray State under head coach Billy Kennedy. Murray State registered a 23-9 overall record and won the Ohio Valley Conference with a 14-4 mark in league play. Matson began his career in coaching as an intern at Stanford during the 2009-10 season.Â
Matson was a two-year letterwinner at Virginia Military Institute and student assistant for head coach Duggar Baucom. During his senior year, VMI posted a 24-8 overall record that included a historic upset victory over Kentucky at Rupp Arena. Matson earned his bachelor’s degree in Psychology from VMI in 2009, and resides with his wife Jessica.
