Martin Levinson's tenure as head men's basketball coach at Trinity Valley College has ended, the college announced today. He has accepted an offer to become the head men's basketball coach at his alma mater, the University of Nebraska at Kearney.
TVCC athletic director Eddie Kite said the search to find the college's 13th head men's basketball coach, and third in three years, will begin immediately.
"With this being the peak of the recruiting season, we want to get someone in here as soon as possible," Kite said. "But above that, we want to make the right hire for our program."
Levinson took the TVCC job last April and assembled a team that won a second consecutive Region XIV championship, qualified for the NJCAA tournament, posted a 27-8 record and was ranked each week of the season, opening at No. 9.
"We appreciate the job he did for us here at The Valley," Kite said. "We are disappointed he is leaving, but understand the desire he has to coach at his alma mater and a higher level (NCAA D2)."
Levinson arrived to lead the Cardinals after a seven-year tenure at Southern Arkansas University Tech, where he built the program in 2017-18 and compiled a 94-52 record the next six seasons. His career head coaching record is 147-98.
In the 2020-21 season, Levinson led the Rockets to a 20-5 record and seventh-place finish as the NJCAA Division 2 national tournament.
Levinson has also been a head coach on the collegiate level at Central Community College, where his squad twice qualified for the national tournament, finishing third in the 2013-14 season.
He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Education degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 2006. He received his Master of Arts in Education degree there in 2011.
He played at the University of Nebraska at Kearney for two years, serving as team captain both years and earning all-conference honors. Prior to that, he played two years at Southeast Community College, where he was also team captain for two years and all-conference.
Levinson played on a state championship team at Bellevue West High School in 2000, having been state runner-up the previous year.
At Nebraska Kearney, he will inherit a team that was 5-22 last season and finished on a 17-game losing streak.
