South Spencer hires alum Kyle Magill as boys basketball coach

South Spencer turned to one of its own for the next reset, naming Kyle Magill its boys basketball coach during the South Spencer School Corp. board meeting Monday night. The move gave the Rebels a familiar face at a moment when the program needed stability as much as a fresh voice.

That is the real story behind the hire. South Spencer has cycled through coaches in recent years, with Matt Britton departing after the 2022-23 season, Aaron Thompson taking over in July 2023, and Thompson stepping down March 30. In a Pocket Athletic Conference program where relationships matter and rosters have to stay connected across small-town expectations, South Spencer chose a coach who already knows the building, the names, and the pressure points.

Magill is a 2003 South Spencer graduate and one of the school’s most accomplished players, finishing as the program’s fourth all-time leading scorer and its all-time three-point leader, according to Owensboro Times. He spent a year at the University of Southern Indiana before entering coaching, then worked with South Spencer freshmen and later the junior varsity staff before moving across the Ohio River to Owensboro for the 2009-10 school year.

That stop turned into a long apprenticeship. Magill coached at Owensboro Middle School from 2009-10 through 2023, won a state championship there in 2018, and then joined Rod Drake’s Owensboro High School staff for three seasons, beginning with the 2023-24 campaign. Drake retired after 25 seasons in February 2026, and Magill said the mentor remained available if needed as he steps into his first head coaching job at the high school level.

The hire also comes with a clear basketball fit. Magill said he wants to build game plans around opponent scouting, player personnel and creating easy baskets and open looks, an approach that could help a South Spencer team that finished 2025-26 with Ashton Rhoades leading the way at 16.3 points per game and Ethan Fuqua averaging 3.3 assists. The Rebels’ season ended March 7 with a 40-54 loss to Forest Park in the IHSAA Class 2A sectional, leaving the program looking for a cleaner offensive identity and a stronger finish in tournament play.

Magill described the job in personal terms, saying, “This is more than just a job for me. It is personal, and I get to go home.” South Spencer is banking on that homecoming meaning more than sentiment, with the hope that an alum who grew up in the gym can turn familiarity into culture, retention and, eventually, wins.