John Sloop

Head Women's Basketball Coach

John Sloop is in his eighth season as the head coach of the Truman women’s basketball program. He is in his 13th year coaching at the school, after also serving five years as an assistant basketball coach for the Bulldog men.

Sloop became the eighth head coach in the history of the Truman women’s basketball program in July of 2000. Since then, he has compiled an overall record of 71-118 (.376), including a 44-21 record in non-conference contests and a 27-97 mark in the highly competitive MIAA. Three times, in 2002, 2003 and 2006, the Truman women advanced to the MIAA postseason tournament.

Sloop’s team won nine games in his initial season as head coach in 2000-01, just missing out of a conference tournament berth by one win. The next year, he had his best season, going 14-13 overall and making his first showing in the postseason tournament. That year, Sloop’s squad tied a school record for consecutive wins with seven.

In 2002-03, the Bulldogs again won nine games and the team made a second straight appearance in the MIAA tournament. That year, Truman recorded an upset over fifth-ranked Washburn, a team that would win the MIAA title and advance to the Elite Eight.

Sloop’s squad had its second double-figure win season in 2003-04. The next year, the team won nine games overall, including another big victory over a ranked opponent, as the Bulldogs defeated Quincy by 20 points at Pershing Arena. In 2005-2006, a very young Bulldog squad improved by three wins and ended the program’s postseason drought, before last season’s squad won eight games and put together two lengthy winning streaks.

Under Sloop, six Bulldogs have been named to one of the MIAA’s all-conference teams a total of eight times. Three of Truman’s nine all-time first-team all-MIAA members have come during his tenure as Georgia Mueller joined Jennifer Perkins and Sarah Sommer with her selection last year.

Off the court, Sloop’s teams have also collected many honors. Two of the past three seasons, the Bulldogs have ranked 24th in the nation in team GPA, including a 3.324 mark last season. Over the last seven years, 31 Bulldogs have been named to the MIAA commissioner’s academic honor roll.

Prior to coming to Truman and working as an assistant coach for the men’s basketball team, Sloop spent four years helping out at Division I programs. He served under Charlie Spoonhour from 1991-1995, being a basketball manager one year at Missouri State and two years at Saint Louis.

Sloop was then named an assistant coach at Missouri State during the 1994-95 season. While at the Division I program, Sloop assisted in nearly every aspect of the program, including recruiting, scouting and on-the-floor coaching.

He began his coaching career while still in college. After a career-ending ankle injury, he was hired by his former high school basketball coach as an assistant at Lafayette High School in St. Louis.