(Entering the 2023-24 season)
Chris Acker begins his fifth season at San Diego State as an assistant coach after joining the program on June 2, 2019.
His main responsibilities to the program include recruiting, and player development with an emphasis on the team’s offense.
Focusing on the offensive side of the ball, he plays a critical role in the success of the program, which in 2023 reached the national championship game of the NCAA Tournament, has played in the championship game of the Mountain West in each of his first four seasons and NCAA tournament berths in the last three seasons.
In 2022-23, Acker guided one of the program’s most balanced offensive attacks. Nine players competed in at least 37 of the team’s 39 games, all nine earned at least one start and eight of the nine averaged at least 5.8 points per game.
Matt Bradley, the only Aztec to average double-digit points (12.6 per game) in 2022-23, was a first-team All-Mountain West performer for the second straight season. He became the third player in program history, who in a two-year Aztec career, scored at least 1,000 points and his 1,033 points are the most of any player who only competed for San Diego State for two seasons. Adam Seiko, who finished his career ranked No. 8 in total 3-pointers, made seven straight in a game against Utah State, matching a program record for a player who came off the bench. That accomplishment, while impressive, was second to Seiko’s 10 straight 3-pointers over the course of three games in the 2021-22.
Darrion Trammell, the team’s second leading scorer at 9.8 points per outing, performed at his best against Alabama, the No. 1 ranked team in the nation and top seed in the NCAA Tournament. Trammell led all scorers with 21 points, the first Aztec to score 20 or more points in an NCAA Tournament game since Xavier Thames in 2014. That game, in combination with his 12 points against Creighton in the Elite Eight, including the game winning free throw with a second on the clock, to send the team to the program’s first Final Four.
San Diego State totaled 2,775 points, which is a single-season program record, and the team’s bench was equally prolific as the starters. The reserves averaged 26.6 points per game (No. 22 in the nation) and outscored its opponents 1,007-to-600. The Aztecs bench matched or outscored its opponent’s bench in 33 of the team’s 39 games and posted a 28-5 record in those 33 contests.
In 2021-22, Matt Bradley, who transferred to SDSU prior to the season, was named the Mountain West Newcomer of the Year, first-team All-Mountain West, second-team NABC All-District 17 and the national player of the week by ESPN and NCAA March Madness (Andy Katz). Bradley finished the year ranked in the top-15 on the program’s single season lists for points, field goal attempts and 3-point field goal percentage. In addition, Chad Baker-Mazara was named the Mountain West Sixth Man of the Year.
In 2020-21 the team led the MW in field goals and 3-point field goals. Matt Mitchell was named Mountain West Player of the Year and received first-team honors from the Mountain West, NABC District 17, USBA District IX & West Coast All-District from Basketball Times, and was an AP honorable mention All-American.
Jordan Schakel, Trey Pulliam and Nathan Mensah were recognized as All-Mountain West performers in 2021-21, and Schakel earned second-team NABC District 17 distinction.
In 2019-20, the team finished the season ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West in scoring margin (+15.38/g) and free throw percentage (77.1 percent). The Aztecs ranked second in field goal percentage (29.8 percent) & three-point field goal percentage (38.0 percent), third in three-point field goals (9.09/g), fourth in offensive rebounds (9.74/g), and fifth in assists (13.03/g).
Nationally SDSU ranked No. 3 in scoring margin, No. 13 in three-point field goal percentage, No. 16 in free throw percentage & fewest turnovers per game (10.8), No. 26 in three-point field goals per game, No. 34 in field goal percentage, No. 38 in total assist (474) and No. 46 in assists per game (14.8/g).
Among his two highest achieving pupils in 2019-20, Malachi Flynn and Yanni Wetzel, Flynn was the third consensus All-American in program history. In total, Flynn earned second-team All-America designation from The Associated Press, National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), United States Basketball Writers of America (USBWA), The Sporting News, CBS Sports, NBC Sports and The Athletic. He received first-team honors from Sports Illustrated and STADIUM. In addition, Flynn was the Mountain West Player of the Year, a first-team All-Mountain West selection in both the coaches and media polls and in the Continental Tires Las Vegas Invitational and Basketball Hall of Fame Classic was named the Most Valuable Player.
Wetzell, who had averaged 5.9-point and 5.4 rebounds in 2018-19, upped his production under Acker’s tutelage to 11.6 points and 6.5 rebounds. Wetzell earned All-Mountain West honors in both the coaches and media polls and was included on the 2019 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational All-Tournament Team.
Acker arrived at SDSU after two seasons at Boise State where he played a key role in defense, recruiting and skill development for the Broncos.
In the 2017-18 season, Acker helped lead Boise State to its best defensive efficiency rating this century; they ranked 42nd nationally and led the MW during the conference season. In his two years in Boise, the Broncos ranked third in the Mountain West in points allowed per game. Chandler Hutchinson was the Mountain West Player of the Year, and he was honored as All-District VIII by the USBWA, NABC first-team All-District 17 and first-team all-Mountain West.
In 2018-19, Justinian Jessup, was third-team All-Mountain West, and Boise State’s leading scorer and rebounder. In addition, he finished the season tops in assists, steals) and blocks, to become the first player in program history to lead the team in the five major statistical categories in a season.
Prior to Boise, Acker spent two years as an assistant coach at Hawai’i, where he helped guide the team to a program-record 28 victories and the 2016 Big West title. The team advanced to the NCAA Tournament as a No. 13-seed and defeated No. 4-seed California, to earn the school’s first postseason victory. In Honolulu, he mentored Stefan Jankovic to the Big West Conference Player of the Year and first-team All-Big West honors.
Acker joined the Hawai‘i staff after two years as head coach of West Los Angeles College. In his first season, he coached a squad made up of 11 true freshmen, then the next season more than doubled his win total (18-9) and qualified for the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) regional playoffs.
Acker was an assistant coach, and later associate head coach, at Citrus College for the six years prior to moving to West LA College. At Citrus, the Owls won the 2008 California state championship, and made it to the Final Four two years later. Acker was also part of four Western State Conference championships and instrumental in Citrus posting a dominant 92-9 record during his tenure, the best six-year run in CCCAA history.
Originally from Los Angeles, Calif., Acker played two years at the community college level, before finishing his collegiate playing career at Chaminade University in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was a key contributor to the Silverswords and was part of the team that upset Villanova in the 2003 EA Sports Maui Invitational.
Acker played professionally for four seasons in Europe and the United States.
Acker earned his bachelor’s degree in human services management from the University of Phoenix in 2010 and later was awarded a master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University in Irvine, California in 2012.
Acker has two sons: Malakai and Elijah.
Chris Acker begins his fifth season at San Diego State as an assistant coach after joining the program on June 2, 2019.
His main responsibilities to the program include recruiting, and player development with an emphasis on the team’s offense.
Focusing on the offensive side of the ball, he plays a critical role in the success of the program, which in 2023 reached the national championship game of the NCAA Tournament, has played in the championship game of the Mountain West in each of his first four seasons and NCAA tournament berths in the last three seasons.
In 2022-23, Acker guided one of the program’s most balanced offensive attacks. Nine players competed in at least 37 of the team’s 39 games, all nine earned at least one start and eight of the nine averaged at least 5.8 points per game.
Matt Bradley, the only Aztec to average double-digit points (12.6 per game) in 2022-23, was a first-team All-Mountain West performer for the second straight season. He became the third player in program history, who in a two-year Aztec career, scored at least 1,000 points and his 1,033 points are the most of any player who only competed for San Diego State for two seasons. Adam Seiko, who finished his career ranked No. 8 in total 3-pointers, made seven straight in a game against Utah State, matching a program record for a player who came off the bench. That accomplishment, while impressive, was second to Seiko’s 10 straight 3-pointers over the course of three games in the 2021-22.
Darrion Trammell, the team’s second leading scorer at 9.8 points per outing, performed at his best against Alabama, the No. 1 ranked team in the nation and top seed in the NCAA Tournament. Trammell led all scorers with 21 points, the first Aztec to score 20 or more points in an NCAA Tournament game since Xavier Thames in 2014. That game, in combination with his 12 points against Creighton in the Elite Eight, including the game winning free throw with a second on the clock, to send the team to the program’s first Final Four.
San Diego State totaled 2,775 points, which is a single-season program record, and the team’s bench was equally prolific as the starters. The reserves averaged 26.6 points per game (No. 22 in the nation) and outscored its opponents 1,007-to-600. The Aztecs bench matched or outscored its opponent’s bench in 33 of the team’s 39 games and posted a 28-5 record in those 33 contests.
In 2021-22, Matt Bradley, who transferred to SDSU prior to the season, was named the Mountain West Newcomer of the Year, first-team All-Mountain West, second-team NABC All-District 17 and the national player of the week by ESPN and NCAA March Madness (Andy Katz). Bradley finished the year ranked in the top-15 on the program’s single season lists for points, field goal attempts and 3-point field goal percentage. In addition, Chad Baker-Mazara was named the Mountain West Sixth Man of the Year.
In 2020-21 the team led the MW in field goals and 3-point field goals. Matt Mitchell was named Mountain West Player of the Year and received first-team honors from the Mountain West, NABC District 17, USBA District IX & West Coast All-District from Basketball Times, and was an AP honorable mention All-American.
Jordan Schakel, Trey Pulliam and Nathan Mensah were recognized as All-Mountain West performers in 2021-21, and Schakel earned second-team NABC District 17 distinction.
In 2019-20, the team finished the season ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West in scoring margin (+15.38/g) and free throw percentage (77.1 percent). The Aztecs ranked second in field goal percentage (29.8 percent) & three-point field goal percentage (38.0 percent), third in three-point field goals (9.09/g), fourth in offensive rebounds (9.74/g), and fifth in assists (13.03/g).
Nationally SDSU ranked No. 3 in scoring margin, No. 13 in three-point field goal percentage, No. 16 in free throw percentage & fewest turnovers per game (10.8), No. 26 in three-point field goals per game, No. 34 in field goal percentage, No. 38 in total assist (474) and No. 46 in assists per game (14.8/g).
Among his two highest achieving pupils in 2019-20, Malachi Flynn and Yanni Wetzel, Flynn was the third consensus All-American in program history. In total, Flynn earned second-team All-America designation from The Associated Press, National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), United States Basketball Writers of America (USBWA), The Sporting News, CBS Sports, NBC Sports and The Athletic. He received first-team honors from Sports Illustrated and STADIUM. In addition, Flynn was the Mountain West Player of the Year, a first-team All-Mountain West selection in both the coaches and media polls and in the Continental Tires Las Vegas Invitational and Basketball Hall of Fame Classic was named the Most Valuable Player.
Wetzell, who had averaged 5.9-point and 5.4 rebounds in 2018-19, upped his production under Acker’s tutelage to 11.6 points and 6.5 rebounds. Wetzell earned All-Mountain West honors in both the coaches and media polls and was included on the 2019 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational All-Tournament Team.
Acker arrived at SDSU after two seasons at Boise State where he played a key role in defense, recruiting and skill development for the Broncos.
In the 2017-18 season, Acker helped lead Boise State to its best defensive efficiency rating this century; they ranked 42nd nationally and led the MW during the conference season. In his two years in Boise, the Broncos ranked third in the Mountain West in points allowed per game. Chandler Hutchinson was the Mountain West Player of the Year, and he was honored as All-District VIII by the USBWA, NABC first-team All-District 17 and first-team all-Mountain West.
In 2018-19, Justinian Jessup, was third-team All-Mountain West, and Boise State’s leading scorer and rebounder. In addition, he finished the season tops in assists, steals) and blocks, to become the first player in program history to lead the team in the five major statistical categories in a season.
Prior to Boise, Acker spent two years as an assistant coach at Hawai’i, where he helped guide the team to a program-record 28 victories and the 2016 Big West title. The team advanced to the NCAA Tournament as a No. 13-seed and defeated No. 4-seed California, to earn the school’s first postseason victory. In Honolulu, he mentored Stefan Jankovic to the Big West Conference Player of the Year and first-team All-Big West honors.
Acker joined the Hawai‘i staff after two years as head coach of West Los Angeles College. In his first season, he coached a squad made up of 11 true freshmen, then the next season more than doubled his win total (18-9) and qualified for the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) regional playoffs.
Acker was an assistant coach, and later associate head coach, at Citrus College for the six years prior to moving to West LA College. At Citrus, the Owls won the 2008 California state championship, and made it to the Final Four two years later. Acker was also part of four Western State Conference championships and instrumental in Citrus posting a dominant 92-9 record during his tenure, the best six-year run in CCCAA history.
Originally from Los Angeles, Calif., Acker played two years at the community college level, before finishing his collegiate playing career at Chaminade University in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was a key contributor to the Silverswords and was part of the team that upset Villanova in the 2003 EA Sports Maui Invitational.
Acker played professionally for four seasons in Europe and the United States.
Acker earned his bachelor’s degree in human services management from the University of Phoenix in 2010 and later was awarded a master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University in Irvine, California in 2012.
Acker has two sons: Malakai and Elijah.