• Putz named NJCAA Division II Men's Basketball Coach of the Year
• Putz also named NABC 2-year Coach of the Year
• DMACC wins the national championship in Putz's first season as head coach

The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) has named Brett Putz, head coach of the DMACC men's basketball team, the 2021 NJCAA Division II Men's Basketball Coach of the Year.

Putz was also honored by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), earning the NABC Two-Year College Coach of the Year.

Putz led DMACC to a 21-5 season, the Bears' second consecutive Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) regular season championship and the NJCAA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship in his first season as the school's head coach. He was also named the ICCAC Coach of the Year and the NJCAA DII Men's Basketball Championship Coach of the Tournament.

DMACC, named the top team in the NJCAA Division II national poll several times during the regular season, including a three-week stretch in March, entered the national tournament as the No. 2 seed and defeated Southeast (Neb.) Community College (SECC), Mott College (MC) and ICCAC rival Iowa Lakes Community College (ILCC) en route to the national championship game. The Bears defeated top-seeded Davidson-Davie Community College (DDCC), 86-75, to win the title.

"Brett has been a great addition to our athletic department and to our DMACC community," said DMACC Athletics Director B.J. McGinn. "I can't say enough about the job that he did this past year with all of the Covid-19 adjustments, in addition to getting the job late and this being his first year as a head coach. His leadership of the staff and players, and his development of his team's culture was truly amazing. I am very proud of the job that Brett has done and the positive way in which his players have carried themselves throughout the year."