Middletown, NY – The most recent stop in a long storied coaching career is over for Joe Detz as he has stepped down as coach of the SUNY Orange men’s basketball team.  Coach Detz’s tenure as a coach in the Hudson Valley has spanned over the past 36 years.  Coach Detz has given notice to Orange athletic director, Wayne Smith, that he is hanging up his whistle and resigning as coach of the SUNY Orange men’s basketball team.  Coach will fiercely miss the competition and the relationships with his players, but is looking forward to closely following his three talented grandchildren as they are starting their own high school careers.

Coach Detz leaves after six seasons at the helm of the Orange men.  In his time leading the Colts, Detz’s teams were known for their wide-open, high scoring offense.  Coach’s teams scored 90 or more points 28 times in his stay at Orange.  In total, Coaches teams tallied 67 wins and 4 consecutive post season appearances.

Coach Detz packed a lot into his six seasons at Orange.  He coached an All-American in Tyvon Cooper and had numerous All Region and All Conference players selected under his tutelage.  Detz finished strong at Orange, having his team play in the Region XV Division 2 Championship Game three years in a row.  In fact, Coach Detz is the only coach in Region XV to have appeared in every single Division 2 Championship Game.  The high points in coach’s tenure at Orange came in 2017 when Orange defeated Ulster 89-80 to win the region championship and just this season when Orange upset Westchester in overtime of the semi-finals of the region tournament to advance to the finals.

Coach Detz cared about his players, on and off the court.  He was proud of the academic progress of the team and always let his team know that school was always the number one priority.  Orange athletic director, Wayne Smith commented that, “We thank coach Detz for his time, dedication, and effort here at Orange.  His teams were always competitive and represented the college well.  He’s a great guy who we are going to miss having around.”  Coach gave his all in his time at Orange and his good demeanor and competitive spirit will be missed.

Orange is currently in the process of hiring a new coach and details will be released as they become available.