Wheeling names O'Keeffe as varsity basketball coach

Wheeling has announced Michael O'Keeffe as the school's varsity boys basketball coach.

He replaces Anthony Como, who resigned after last season to conclude a two-year run.

O'Keeffe has already spent three years at Wheeling in the basketball program, as a JV and sophomore coach. He's also been closely involved in the feeder program and coached at that level before spending two schools years at Carmel Catholic, functioning as the sophomore team coach in the recently completed season.

O'Keeffe will join the counseling department at Wheeling, where he once excelled as a counselor during an internship.

"Wheeling is happy to welcome him back," said Wheeling activities director Steve May. "He is a great counselor, coach and person. I believe he will continue to build on the foundation put in place by coach Como and continue to make playing basketball at Wheeling a positive experience.

"I also know he will positively impact students through his work in our counseling department."

It's the fulfillment of a longtime goal for O'Keeffe, who played for Joe Majkowski at St. Viator before graduating in 2007. O'Keeffe then attended Iowa and took a roster spot on the university's grey team, which practiced against the Hawkeye women's squad. He later added a Masters in School Counseling from Lewis University.

"I've been around high school basketball all my life, and I knew from a very young age that I wanted to to be a high school basketball head coach," said O'Keeffe.

The Wildcats' new coach is looking forward to his opportunity and say it will helps that he's already familiar with so many faces at Wheeling from his previous involvement - administrators, other athletic department personnel and even players.

"I'm familiar with a lot of the returning players from when I was coaching them in feeder four, five years ago," said O'Keeffe, "and because of that, I know some of the parents already. All of that should help make the transition go smoothly."

In terms of strategy, O'Keeffe says he's expecting to tailor Wheeling's style of play to the abilities of the players on the roster. Taking stocking of those abilities? He's eager to get started.

"I'm just really excited," O'Keeffe said. "We're about to get going on open gyms, and I can't wait."