There is a very short list of Black head basketball coaches in Minnesota colleges and universities. Northland Community College WBB Coach Shannon (Bolden) Nelson has been at the Thief River Falls two-year school since 2010 and is the winningest coach in program history.
Peter Olafeso (Dakota County Technical College) has been the men’s basketball coach since 2020 and is in his 10th year overall at DCTC.
Quincy Henderson begins his fifth season as St. Cloud State University men’s head basketball coach. He and Minnesota State Moorhead’s Jason Kemp are the NSIC’s only two Black coaches. They will face each other once this season at St. Cloud (Jan. 23).
Speaking by phone before the season, we joked about how the veteran coach had eluded our Black coaches radar: “I’m a pretty under the radar guy,” admitted Henderson. “I kind of just go about my work and focus on my circle and the kids that are in our program, and I think I find fulfillment in that.
“So, I’m not surprised. I think a lot of people don’t know who I am, and that’s okay,” he pointed out.
The 14-year collegiate coach over the course of his career has led his teams to one NCAA Final, three Final Four appearances, four Elite Eight appearances, seven Sweet 16 appearances, nine NCAA Tournament appearances and 11 conference championships.
“I think the goal when we got here as a staff four years ago,” continued Henderson. “I think that’s really important. Guys that want to be here, who want to work.
“Retention has been a big part of that, and we’ve been very fortunate to be able to retain some very good players year to year,” believed the SCSU coach.
The Huskies are ranked No. 22 in the NABC Division II Preseason Poll and first in the NSIC Preseason Poll. SCSU returns 11 players from last season, including senior guard Wyatt Hawks (White Bear Lake), named the NSIC South Division Preseason Player of the Year, and senior guard Aniah Ramlall (Rosemount), one of five players of color on the squad.
“When somebody leaves the gym after watching our team play,” predicted Henderson, “win or lose, I want them to say that’s one of the hardest working teams that I’ve seen, and it’s an incredibly unselfish team. I think we’ve been able to accomplish that pushing through the last few years.
“We have guys that are about the right stuff, that are playing the right way,” Henderson said proudly. “I think we’ll keep pushing that.”
A native of Madison, Wisconsin, Henderson was a two-sport athlete (basketball and volleyball) in high school and made all-conference in both sports. He went on to Creighton, where he played his first three collegiate seasons, before playing his final three at Winona State.
Henderson transitioned into coaching, first at DIII Illinois Wesleyan for two seasons as lead assistant, then eight years at West Texas A&M.
St. Cloud State hired Henderson in 2022. “I knew the history of the program. I knew the success they had. I knew some of the previous coaches that were here. I figured this was a place that we could win and have success, and was very fortunate to be named the head coach.”
After two rebuilding seasons, Henderson’s Huskies have compiled a 46-19 record and made two NCAA appearances over the last two seasons.
SCSU opens the 2026-27 season at Minnesota Crookston Nov. 9.
“I’m optimistic,” he said of this season. “I think expectations are pretty high.”
As a Black coach, Henderson said he is always evolving. “I am always a work in progress. If I’ve ever arrived at a point where I don’t think I need more work, I probably need to quit because I’m delusional. You can’t be complacent in college athletics right now, or you’re going to be lost and you’ll get passed up pretty quickly by people who are more able to adapt.”
The SCSU coach said he’s proud of the fact that he and Kemp are representing as Black head coaches.
“When I came into the league, I was the only Black coach in the NSIC,” he surmised. “To see just in four years now to have two Black coaches in the league, I think this might be the first time two Black coaches have squared off in the NSIC in its history.
“It’s cool to see that,” said Henderson.
Charles Hallman welcomes reader responses at challman@spokesman-recorder.com.