Joey Wells Position: Associate Head Coach Experience: 5th Season

Joey Wells is entering his fifth season with the Lady Cardinal program and his third as associate head coach.

Wells has been a vital cog in the leadership that has enabled the Lady Cardinals to combine for 65 victories in the past three seasons and win the Southland Conference regular-season and tournament titles in 2010. Along with his knowledge, he brings an infectious excitement and enthusiasm to the team, on and off the court.

Wells' primary basketball duties include all guard play with special emphasis on defensive and offensive game play. He is also instrumental in recruiting junior college and international players, and he takes care of scheduling and overseeing the Lady Cardinals' summer camps.

Prior to coming to Lamar, Wells served as an assistant coach for Division II powerhouse Missouri Western. The team averaged 23 wins over his final two seasons there, including a 30-4 mark in 2006-2007.

Wells recruited and coached two NCAA Division II All-Americas, one conference Most Valuable Player and five first-team all-conference players. The Griffons earned a No. 2 national ranking, won the Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletics Association Conference championship and advanced to the regional semifinals.

Before his stint at Missouri Western, Wells spent two years as the head coach at Ranger Junior College. He also spent two seasons as the head coach at Howard Junior College in Big Spring, where he was voted Coach of the Year in the Women's Junior College Athletic Conference for the 2000-2001 season. He also served one season as an assistant at Howard JC before moving up to head coach.

In four years at the junior college level, Wells coached eight players who went on to NCAA Division I programs and two National Junior College Athletic Association All-Americas.

Before transitioning into the women's game, Wells spent the 1998-1999 season as an assistant men's basketball coach at Cal State-Sacramento.

Wells is a 1996 graduate of Fresno Pacific University, having earned a bachelor's degree in physical education. He and wife Tina have three children -- Tanner, Alex and Carlie.