Phillips names new assistant coach at Tulsa

<br>TULSA, Okla. (AP) _ Sand Springs High School basketball coach Steve Cooper is moving into the college ranks as an assistant at Tulsa, coach John Phillips announced Tuesday. <br><br>Cooper, 44, has

Tuesday, April 17th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

TULSA, Okla. (AP) _ Sand Springs High School basketball coach Steve Cooper is moving into the college ranks as an assistant at Tulsa, coach John Phillips announced Tuesday.

Cooper, 44, has spent the past nine seasons as a head coach at the prep level and coached with Phillips at Edison High School from 1983 to 1987.

``He'll bring a lot of knowledge and energy to our basketball program and will be instrumental in helping Tulsa basketball continue to be successful,'' Phillips said.

Cooper has coached in Sand Springs the past four years. Before that, he served for five years as head coach at East Central High School in Tulsa.

In his second season, Cooper guided East Central to its first winning season in 10 years. In his final two years there the team had records of 18-9 and 17-8. In 1996, the team made its first state tournament appearance in 15 seasons.

The Oklahoma City native has been named the Oklahoma Basketball Coaches Association Region 7 coach of the year three times.