John Motherwell just completed his first year in the Motor City after joining the Titan women's basketball coaching staff in October of 2013. He brings plenty of Midwest ties to Detroit with stops at North Dakota, Milwaukee and Minnesota, while coaching high school in the Great Lakes State.
“We are beyond fortunate to have attracted someone as experienced and talented as John Motherwell as an assistant coach for our program,” said head coach Autumn Rademacher. “Coach Mo is an exceptional and relentless recruiter and has hand delivered highly decorated student-athletes to every program he has been associated with.”
Motherwell – who is well acquainted with the Horizon League serving an as assistant coach at Milwaukee for five years – comes to the Motor City from the University of West Florida, where he spent the 2012-13 campaign as an assistant women’s basketball coach.
“It is a great honor and privilege to come back to Michigan and work for Coach Rademacher and the Titans,” said Coach Motherwell. “I have coached against her and the Titans and have seen her take this program to the top and it is great to be here and help build on that success.”
“I have known Coach Mo for years as he has worked in the Horizon League at Milwaukee and I have always respected his ability to evaluate talent, sign players, and scout opponents,” added Coach Rademacher.
From 2010-11, he was an assistant coach with the University of North Dakota, helping UND to an appearance in the Great West Conference Tournament championship game.
He also spent five years at HL-rival Milwaukee (2005-10), during which time he worked with post players and served as the team's recruiting coordinator. The Panthers were Co-Horizon League regular season champions in 2005-06 posting a school record 22 wins, while also winning the conference championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament. Milwaukee also tied for second during the 2007-08 season. He helped mentor two-time Horizon League Player of the Year Traci Edwards and All-HL performer Nichole Drummond.
Prior to that, he was an assistant coach for five seasons at Minnesota State – Moorhead (2000-05). In his last season at MSU-Moorhead, the Dragons finished with a school record 24 victories, won its first conference title in 20 years and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament. Motherwell's time at Minnesota State-Moorhead coincided with a stellar turnaround in the program, as a streak of seven-straight losing seasons turned into a stretch of five-straight winning years. The Dragons led the NCAA Division II ranks in rebounding margin twice and produced more All-NSIC performers than any other school in his last five years.
He also coached for one season at Concordia (St. Paul, Minn.) and the College of St. Scholastica (Duluth, Minn.). At Concordia, he was responsible for the entire recruiting program and served a stint as interim head coach in addition to serving as a defensive secondary coach with the football team. At St. Scholastica, he helped the program to a winning record and a conference championship appearance.
Motherwell got his start in coaching in the high school ranks in Michigan, where he worked for five seasons as both a head coach and assistant coach with Lansing Waverly, Haslett, Williamston, Dryden, and Bloomfield Hills Sacred Heart High Schools.
“He is originally from the state of Michigan and is well connected to very prolific high school and AAU coaches all over the country, and we are ecstatic to welcome him and his family home to the University of Detroit Mercy,” said Coach Rademacher.
From 1988-92, Motherwell attended Eastern Michigan lettering as wide receiver for the Eagles' football team, and graduated from the University of Michigan in 1995 with a degree in General Studies.
Motherwell married the former Sherri Bierschbach in 2001 and the couple has a five-year old daughter, Annie, and three-year old son, Joe.
