Ben Retzlaff enters his third season as an assistant coach on Head Coach Matt Siverling’s staff at UW-Eau Claire.

Since joining the staff, Retzlaff has been involved in all aspects of the Blugold program on and off the court. In addition, he has served as a camp coach for several Division 1 programs which include; Dayton, Iowa State, Wisconsin, Marquette, and Texas A&M. This past July, Retzlaff assisted with basketball operations at the inaugural 2019 NCAA Basketball Academy in the Midwest Region at the University of Illinois.

Prior to coaching, Retzlaff attended nearby McDonell Central Catholic High School in Chippewa Falls, WI, where he was a four-year varsity participant and two-time all conference selection on the basketball court. During his senior season, he led the Macks to a school-best 27-2 record and the WIAA Division 5 State Championship. He was named ESPN-Madison Game MVP.

He was a 1000 point scorer and was named 2016 Chippewa County Player of the Year. Retzlaff holds the McDonell school record for three-pointers in a game (11), the Leader-Telegram Northwest Wisconsin record for three-pointers in a season (101), the WIAA Division 5 State Tournament record for steals in a game (7), steals in a tournament (9), and three-pointers made in a tournament (7). Retzlaff was a WBCA All-Star and selected to the WBCA All-State Team in 2016.

Retzlaff then attended NCAA (DIII) St. Norbert College for one year and was named to the Midwest Conference All-Academic Team. There, Retzlaff began his coaching understudy with the late Coach Woody Wilson, a basketball legend in the state of Wisconsin.

In the summer of 2017, Retzlaff transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and joined Siverling’s staff as an assistant. He is currently pursuing his undergraduate degree in Integrated Strategic Communication-Public Relations.

Updated 8/30/19