Northern State University Athletics

Ryan Miller, '01, B.S., Physical Education

A native of Mitchell, S.D., Ryan Miller attended NSU from 1994-98, during which he was a two-time Northern Sun All-Conference and All-Academic selection. He currently ranks 10th on Northern State's all-time scoring list after leading his teams to four straight conference championships and the 1998 regional title. He was named a Div. II All-American and an All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Academic selection as a senior in 1997-98.

In the 1998 North Central Region Championship, Miller scored 45 points, making nine 3-pointers, leading Northern State to an 88-82 victory over in-state rival South Dakota State to advance to their first Elite 8 in Louisville, Ky.  Miller was drafted into the CBA in 1999 and played professionally for the Fargo-Moorhead Beez of International Basketball Association that season.

Miller is an associate head coach on Coach Tony Barbee's staff at Auburn University and is in his fourth year coaching with Barbee. Miller, who spent two months at Missouri prior to coming to Auburn, coached the previous five years from 2007-12 as an assistant coach at New Mexico under head coach Steve Alford. He was a part of the most successful five-year period in New Mexico basketball history, helping the Lobos to a 126-46 record, five consecutive postseason appearances and a pair of NCAA Tournament berths. New Mexico won two regular season Mountain West Conference Championships and one MWC Tournament Championship during his coaching stint.

Considered one of the top recruiters in the country, Miller has contacts throughout the United States and foreign countries including Australia, where he played competitively.

He was a basketball operations assistant at Memphis under head coach John Calipari from 2004-06. During Miller's three years at Memphis, the Tigers went 78-28 and made three postseason tournament appearances, including two NCAA Tournament berths. Miller spent one year as an assistant coach at Pepperdine before joining the New Mexico staff prior to the 2007-08 season.

Miller graduated from Mitchell Senior High where he was a two-time all-state selection, leading Mitchell to the 1994 state championship. His brother, Mike, is a 12-year NBA veteran who won the 2012 NBA Championship with the Miami Heat.