Wayne State College

Jeff Kaminsky moves into his 10th year (2025-26) as Head Men's Basketball Coach at Wayne State College. He has increased or matched the win total of the Wildcats in his seven of his nine seasons at the school and has records of 130-125 overall and 91-96 in NSIC games. In his 38 years as a head coach, Kaminsky's overall record is 582-492.  He became the all-time wins leader at Wayne State on December 19, 2025 with a 66-61 road win at Sioux Falls, surpassing Al Svenningsen's former all-time wins mark of 121-73 in eight seasons from 1959-67.  

Wayne State finished the 2024-25 season at 16-13 overall and 10th place in the NSIC with a 10-12 league mark.  It was the fifth straight winning season for the Wildcats, a feat not accomplished since WSC men's basketball had nine straight winning seasons from 1961-70.  Freshman forward Matt Noll collected All-NSIC Second Team honors for Wayne State and the 'Cats led the league in four defensive categories that included turnover margin (3.52), turnovers created per game (13.9), blocked shots (3.66) and steals (9.38).  

The Wildcats were 16-14 overall and tied for eighth place in the NSIC with a 9-13 league mark during the 2023-24 season.  A 7-0 start to the season was the second-best in school history, trailing only the 1937-38 team that opened 8-0.  Under Kaminsky, WSC led the NSIC in turnovers created (12.2) and steals per game (6.97).  Junior forward Trey Deveaux collected All-NSIC Second Team honors after leading the team in scoring (15.4) and rebounding (6.2).

Wayne State captured a third NSIC South Division title in the last five seasons under Kamisky in 2022-23 recording an 18-11 overall record and 13-9 mark in the NSIC South Division.  The Wildcats set a new school record shooting 80.1 percent (370-462) from the free throw line, which ranked third-best in NCAA Division II.  Fifth-year senior Jordan Janssen capped a stellar Wildcat career as the school's all-time leader in scoring (2,104) and rebounding (1,146) earning All-NSIC First Team and NABC All-Central Region First Team honors.  He also became Wayne State's first-ever College Sports Communicators Academic All-American earning Second Team honors.

Under Kaminsky in the 2021-22 season, Wayne State finished 14-12 overall and third place in the NSIC South Division with an 11-8 league mark.  The 'Cats had two All-NSIC performers - Justin Eagins (First Team) and Jordan Janssen (Second Team) and were ranked in the NCAA Division II Central Region Rankings for a second straight season.  WSC led the NSIC in turnover margin (+3.12) and steals per game (7.38).

In the COVID-shortened 2021 season, Kaminsky coached the Wildcats to a second NSIC South Division title in three seasons, going 11-7 overall and 10-4 in the NSIC South Division.  He also led the Wildcats to the NCAA Division II National Tournament for the first time in 21 years as WSC fell to MSU Moorhead in the opening round of the NCAA Central Regional in Aberdeen, South Dakota.  Kaminsky was named NSIC South Division Coach of the Year following the successful season for the Wildcats.  Junior center Jordan Janssen was named NSIC South Division Player of the Year and NABC First Team All-Central Region while Justin Eagins collected NSIC South Division Freshman of the Year honors.

Wayne State was 10-22 overall and 7-15 in the NSIC South Division in the 2019-20 season. Kaminsky recorded his 500th career victory on November 22, 2019 with a 73-63 win over Central Missouri. Sophomore center Jordan Janssen collected All-NSIC Second Team honors after averaging 16.9 points and 10.1 rebounds with 17 double-doubles during the season.

Under Kaminsky in 2018-19 the Wildcats posted a 21-10 record and earned a share of the NSIC South Division title with a 14-8 league mark. It was the first 20-win season for the Wildcat program since 1999-2000 and was just the second winning season at WSC in the last 10 years. WSC received its first regional ranking in nearly 20 years and the team's nine game win streak at the beginning of the season was the longest since Greg McDermott's final campaign in Wayne (1999-2000).

The 2018-19 Wildcats led the NSIC for a second straight season under Kaminsky in most turnovers created (13.8) while also topping the league in turnover margin (+3.45), steals per game (7.3) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (.337). WSC had three players earn All NSIC Honors - Kendall Jacks (First Team), Trevin Joseph (Second Team) and Vance Janssen (Honorable Mention).

The Wildcats were 14-17 and 9-13 in league play during the 2017-18 campaign. It was a four win improvement over his first season on the Wildcats sidelines. WSC ranked first in the NSIC in turnovers created (13.5) and was third in the league in turnover margin at +2.52. The Wildcats also improved in scoring defense allowing 2.3 points per game fewer than the previous season to rank sixth in the league.

Under Kaminsky in 2016-17, the Wildcats posted a 10-19 overall record and 8-14 mark in the NSIC South Division in his first season as head coach. WSC doubled its win total from the previous season (5-24), starting the year with a road win at Missouri Western 70-57 that snapped a 17-game road losing streak dating back to January 31, 2015. The Wildcats ended the year with six road wins, one more than the previous three years combined.

WSC also made substantial improvements defensively in 2016-17 under Kaminsky as the Wildcats allowed nearly 10 fewer points than the previous season. The 'Cats ranked sixth in the league allowing 75.8 points per game after inheriting a team that was 16th the previous year while allowing 85.1 points a contest.  Wayne State also ranked first in the league in turnover margin (+3.07) averaging only 10.8 turnovers a game while creating a league-high 13.9 a contest.

When hired at WSC, Kaminsky brought 29 years of collegiate head coaching experience and over 450 career wins to the Wildcat program. Kaminsky served 11 seasons as the head coach at Valley City State University in North Dakota before coming to Wayne, compiling a 183-144 record that included five 20-win seasons in his last nine years at the school.  His 2015-16 team recorded a 22-11 record and advanced to the second round of the NAIA Division II National Tournament while finishing the season ranked #21 in the final NAIA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll. 

Kaminsky's 2012-13 team posted a 23-7 record at Valley City State while advancing to the NAIA National Tournament for the first time since 1987. 

Kaminsky also served 11 years (1994-2005) as head coach at Wisconsin-Superior where he also served as the interim athletic director overseeing 16 sports from 2000-2004.

His first collegiate head coaching job was at Mid State Technical College in Wisconsin where Kaminsky spent seven years as head coach, accumulating a 153-70 record with three consecutive Wisconsin Junior College State Championships.

Kaminsky began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Division I Kent State in the 1985-86 season, helping the Golden Flashes to a 19-10 record and second place finish in the Mid American Conference.

Kaminsky graduated from Grand Valley State University in Michigan where he was voted GLIAC Scholar Athlete of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year as a senior helping GVSU to a 21-7 record and Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament.  He began his collegiate career at College of DuPage in Illinois where he was a Junior College Honorable Mention All-American in the 1982-83 season helping his team to a 28-4 record. Kaminsky was inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame in June, 2022.

Kaminsky obtained his bachelor degree from Grand Valley State in psychology and earned his master's degree from Kent State University in sport psychology.


updated 7/10/25