Chris Cline enters his second year as the men’s assistant basketball coach at Montana Tech and has been an integral part of the Orediggers success. Cline handles the scouting of all Montana Tech’s opponents and recruits as well as oversee all aspects of the Digger defense. Since his arrival, Tech’s defense has allowed 71.9 points per game which was fourth-best in the conference and 10 points fewer than the 2013-14 season. Under Cline’s system, the Diggers have allowed opponents to shoot just .450 percent from the field and .357 from beyond the arc; both are vast improvements from previous seasons.
Cline joined the Oredigger staff after spending two seasons at NCAA DII Simon Fraser University. Simon Fraser, located in Burnaby, British Columbia, is the only international school that competes in the NCAA. Cline assisted in the transition to the NCAA and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference in his two years with the Clan. He also helped the team to a five-win improvement in his first season. At SFU, Cline worked with the guards and post players and was responsible for scouting opponents and organizing travel. Two players were selected All-Conference in two seasons under Cline's direction.
Before Simon Fraser, Cline spent one season with Division II Pfeiffer University in Meisenheimer, North Carolina. As an assistant, he edited game tapes, recruited student-athletes and held individual workouts with perimeter players. Cline worked closely with Chris Woods who was an All-American and conference and regional player of the year and a runner-up for the national player of the year.
After Greensboro, Cline spent time as an assistant coach at Columbia College, a junior college in Sonora, California; Rockingham Community College in Wentworth, North Carolina; Division II California State University Stanislaus in Turlock, California; and Ferrum College, a Division III school in Ferrum, Virginia.
Cline, originally from Salisbury, North Carolina, received his Sports and Exercise Degree with a concentration in coaching from NCAA Division III Greensboro College in 2004. He started coaching at Greensboro after graduation for one season.
