In April 2006, Hobart Director of Athletics Mike Hanna ’68 announced the appointment of Izzi Metz ’98 to serve as the head coach of the Statesmen basketball team. Metz returned to his alma mater after five very successful seasons as an assistant coach at Cornell University.
Over the past five seasons, Metz has compiled a record of 69-62. So far, his four recruiting classes have produced three Liberty League Rookies of the Year, Tim Llewellyn (2007-08), Stefan Thompson (2009-10), Richie Bonnie (2010-11) and two-time unanimous first-team All-Liberty League selection Matt Peoble, who led the conference in scoring as a sophomore. Llewellyn was also selected as the inaugural Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year in 2010-11.
In 2010-11, Metz led the Statesmen to the top of the Liberty League regular season standing for just the third time since the league was founded in 1995. Hobart earned a spot in the ECAC Upstate tournament. As the top seed, the Statesmen hosted the four-team fray and captured the tournament title with a 94-76 victory over Medaille in the championship. Metz's squad finished the season with a 21-7 record, marking the most wins in a season in the program's history and matching the record for highest winning percentage.
In 2009-10, Metz and his assistants were named the Liberty League Coaching Staff of the Year after leading the Statesmen to a 17-11 record and a trip to the ECAC Upstate Tournament. The team earned a spot in the Liberty League Tournament for the first time since 2004-05, and advanced to the conference title game for the first time since 2000-01.
With the Big Red, Metz was involved in all aspects of the program, from recruiting to planning and executing practices, to film break down and scouting, as well as serving as the head coach of the Cornell junior varsity basketball team. During his first four seasons in Ithaca, the Big Red improved from 5-22 to 13-14. During the 2005-06 season, Cornell posted a 13-15 overall record, including a second consecutive winning season in the Ivy League (8-6), a feat the program had not accomplished since 1986-87 and ’87-88 seasons. Metz is credited with recruiting many of the players that won three-straight Ivy League titles (2008, 2009, 2010) and advanced to the 2010 NCAA Tournament's Sweet Sixteen.
Metz joined the Big Red following one season as an assistant coach at Hobart. That season, he was the top assistant for the Statesmen’s most successful season. The 2000-01 Hobart squad produced a school record 20 wins against just eight losses, tied for first in the Liberty League, won the conference’s tournament championship, and earned the program’s first NCAA Tournament bid.
As a student at Hobart, Metz was twice named to the Dean’s List, in addition to playing basketball for the Statesmen. He graduated in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in economics.
Following graduation, Metz returned to his native Los Angeles, where he was a member of the Bishop Montgomery High School coaching staff. Metz helped guide Bishop Montgomery to the CIF Division 3 State and Southern Section Championships in 2000. He also coached the Los Angeles Rockfish, a high school all-star team.
Additionally, Metz has extensive experience as a camp clinician, working at the UCLA Basketball Camp, the Eastern Invitational Basketball Camp, the Pocono Invitational Basketball Camp, and the Massachusetts Special Olympics.
Metz lives in Geneva with his wife, Megan, and their son, Miles.
