Issue date: 2/5/09 Section: Sports

(File photo/The Daily Eastern News)

Eastern head men's basketball coach Mike Miller has agreed to a one-year contract extension, Eastern athletic director Barbara Burke said in a press release Thursday.

Miller is in the midst of his fourth season has the Panthers sitting at 7-4 in the Ohio Valley Conference (10-11 overall) heading into this Saturday's home game with Southeast Missouri.

The seven OVC wins match the highest conference win total since the 2003 season with seven conference games still remaining.

"Eastern Illinois is excited to award Coach Miller another year on his contract," Burke said in a press release of the extension. "It is important that we provide stability for our program to continue to make progress and be successful. He has demonstrated a commitment to our program and we appreciate his positive attitude and the direction that the program is headed."

Miller is 33-74 overall and 24-47 in the OVC in his Eastern career, and the 10 wins this season tie his highest win total since 2006-2007 when the Panthers won 10 games.

This has been the second time Miller's contract has been extended. It was extended after the 2005-06 season after he went 6-21.

"I am thankful to Barbara Burke and the administration here at EIU for their confidence in what we are doing to help build this basketball program," Miller said in a press release. "We have tried to embrace the history of EIU basketball and build upon that by developing good students, good citizens and good basketball players."

Miller came to Eastern in March 2005 after serving as the associate head coach at Kansas State. Prior to Kansas State he was the head coach at Texas State taking the Bobcats to the NCAA Tournament in 1997 and winning the conference title during the 1999 campaign.

He was also an assistant coach from Sam Houston State and Western Illinois.

Miller is a 1987 graduate of East Texas State.


- Staff report

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