FARGO, N.D.--Former George Mason assistant Eric Konkol has been named assistant men's basketball coach at North Dakota State. That announcement came today from Bison head coach Saul Phillips.

Konkol spent three seasons at George Mason under head coach Jim Larranaga. He recruited 10 of the 12 players that advanced to the Final Four in 2006, and he directed all opponent scouting and video for George Mason teams that averaged 18 wins and advanced to the third round of the NIT in 2004 with a then school-record 23 wins.

"In talking with Coach Larranaga about Eric, it became very clear just how strong Eric's ability to recruit and instruct impacted the George Mason program," Phillips said. "I look forward to the impact Eric will have on the program here at NDSU."

Konkol spent the past two seasons as an assistant coach at Hopkins High School in Minnesota under coach Ken Novak Jr. Hopkins won conference championships both years, had a record of 56-4, carried a No. 1 state ranking through both regular seasons, and won the Class 4A state title in 2005-06.

A teammate of Phillips for one season at Wisconsin-Platteville, Konkol played three seasons at Wisconsin-Eau Claire, where he was honorary captain of the 1999-00 squad that finished 27-6 and was the NCAA Division III national runner-up.

Konkol was a student assistant for one season at Tulsa under Buzz Peterson and joined Peterson's staff at Tennessee for one season as graduate assistant before moving on to George Mason.

Konkol earned a bachelor's degree in kinesiology at Wisconsin-Eau Claire in 2000 and a master's degree in sports management at Tennessee in 2002.

The Konkol File
Age: 30
Born: November 24, 1976
Hometown: Amherst, Wis.
Wife: Meagan
Education: Bachelor's degree in kinesiology, Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 2000; master's degree in sports management, Tennessee, 2002.