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The former Jackrabbit who helped South Dakota State University men's basketball team to three consecutive NCAA tournaments, held the record for most games started and the most 3-pointers made in school history upon graduation, is now in year two of his graduate assistant coaching position at SDSU.

Many things have changed for Graduate Assistant Reed Rellinghuisen since subbing out a jersey for a suit – including the prep work he does as tournament season approaches. Midco Sports Network's Elaina Lanson checked in with the guy who was a part of one of the winningest classes in Jacks D1 history, who is now helping this year’s team strive for the same goal. 

Question: Reed, thanks for taking the time to talk during the busiest time of the season, conference play. How would you sum up the way the Jacks season has been going so far?

Reed Tellinghuisen: Obviously, with such a young team we knew going in that there were going to be many challenges to face. We have had a lot of close games and our guys have been able to learn and take away things from those losses that will help us later in the season. The competitiveness and togetherness of this team have really stood out to me. This team really trusts each other and the coaching staff to do whatever it is to put us in the best position to win any game. I have been really impressed with how guys have stepped up and it could be anyone on our team any given night. That’s what makes this team special is we can beat teams in a lot of different ways, and we have guys that are selfless enough to maybe take the back seat on a certain night.

Q: I’ve heard it’s a lot of fun to work under Coach Henderson, you’ve gotten to know him as your boss, but also have the coach, player perspective. How has your relationship with him grown and changed by being on his staff?

RT: Coach Hendo is a very high energy guy and a person that not only cares about you in the profession but what direction you go in life. Ever since he stepped foot on campus, he has had a huge impact on me with how to approach every day with a positive attitude and high energy. He is the type of guy that I want my kids playing for in the future as you can see in his everyday actions, he genuinely cares about the people who surround him and his basketball family.

Q: One thing a lot of players don’t always see is how much time and effort the staff puts in outside of games and practice, was that surprising to you during your transition from player to coach?

RT: It is so true as a player you have no idea what all goes into making the players' lives as easy as possible not only on the court but off the court. Tyler Glidden does an unbelievable job with meals, travel, team activities, and all those things that can make your life a little bit better as a player, but you may not notice it unless it wasn’t there. As far as coaches, they are always meeting on what they can do to help players be as successful as they can. From the amount of film, they watch, checking on grades, extra shots, or whatever it is they need to be more successful. It is hard to explain and realize what all goes into having a successful enjoyable experience without being on the other side.

Q: Another big thing that looks different is how you prepare for games. What do you do now as a coach (prep work, scouting, assisting Hendo, pregame meal, warm-ups) that is different from your time as a player?

RT: Coach Hendo has kept some things the same and changed some things up as far as preparing for games. I believe he and the rest of the staff do a good job of realizing what the players need and incorporating that into practice warm-ups or whatever is needed to put the team in a position to win the next basketball game. If we need to go light in practice to help recover, we do that. If our guys need extra film, we give them more film.

Our staff does a good job giving feedback to each other when it comes to scouting. We split it up to offensive and defensive scouts and each coach has a different focus. I feel as though this staff has really gotten into a rhythm and is willing to take feedback from each other. This has helped with the flow and communication of each game plan.

Q: Scouting games come tournament time also looks different now as a coach. What is the biggest thing the staff looks for (or makes sure to study) at the Summit League, and what’s your role in the prep?

RT: Our main focus of each scout is how to defend the other teams’ main actions. We want to be the best we can possibly be defensively so game planning around that mindset is very important. We also try to get an idea of what the other team will do defensively on ball screens or post-ups. My role in scouting is making sure the coaches have all the film they need, and then I focus more on the offensive scout.

The biggest change in scouting from being a player to coach is the amount of knowledge you need to know. We try to give our guys less information, so their mind is free when it comes to playing the game. As a coach, you must know all their actions, after timeouts and late-game plays, ball screen coverages, post double plans, and the list could go on and on.

Thank you so much for chatting with us, Reed. Make sure to follow along with Reed and the Jacks by following along @R_Telly3, @GoJacksMBB and @MidcoSN on Twitter and all social platforms. The Summit League tournaments begin March 7th and run through the 10th.

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