One of the area’s most successful high school basketball programs is now in the hands of one of the area’s most successful coaches.
Randy Reed was hired as the new boys’ basketball coach at Cardinal Ritter College Prep. The official announcement was made at a press conference at the school on Tuesday afternoon.
Reed, a future Hall of Fame coach, replaces current Hall of Famer Marvin Neals, who led the Lions to four state championships in 15 seasons at Ritter. Neals was not retained after leading the Lions to a 21-6 record this past season.
Reed returns to the high school ranks after spending the past two seasons at St. Louis Community College, where he was a former junior college All-American in the late 1970’s. In 2014, Reed guided the Archers to the National Junior College Athletic Association Region 16 title and a berth in the Division II National Tournament. He was named the Region 16 Coach of the Year that season.
Before his stint at STLCC, Reed enjoyed a stellar 17-year run as the head coach at McCluer North High from 1996-2013. Under Reed’s leadership, McCluer North became one of the powerhouse programs in the state of Missouri.
In his last 10 years at North, there wasn’t a better program in the state as the Stars won seven district titles, made four Final Four appearances and won Class 5 state championships in 2007, 2011 and 2012. The Stars were also Class 5 runners-up in 2008.
Reed becomes the fifth coach in Cardinal Ritter’s storied basketball history. He follows Preston Thomas and Neals, who combined to win seven state championships at Ritter. Thomas led the Lions to Class 2A state championships in 1990, ’95 and ’96. Neals then took over in 2000 and led the Lions to state championships in 2003, ’06, ’10 and ’14.
