Kostel Exemplifies Selfless Attitude That Has Keyed Chattanooga’s Success

Before making the decision to spend his final season of eligibility at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Jack Kostel was well-aware of how loaded the Mocs were at the guard position.

Chattanooga featured a returning pair of all-conference caliber backcourt performers in junior Honor Huff and senior Trey Bonham. Despite Kostel’s impressive portfolio during his four years at the University of Alabama at Huntsville, his chances of supplanting either of the Mocs’ dynamic guards was somewhere between slim and none.

But the 6-foot-2 native of Dacula, Ga. was undeterred in his final selection of UTC as his ultimate destination despite the logjam of talent already on the roster. He knew in his heart that he was meant to come to Chattanooga.

“When I entered the (transfer) portal, I was looking for a place that had great teammates, a great community and great coaches,” Kostel said. “Chattanooga checked every box, and it helped that they had a great basketball team as well.”

There was an element of uncertainty during Kostel’s decision to matriculate to UTC given the fact Bonham was testing the waters of the transfer portal himself. But Kostel did not waver in making his choice to join the Mocs.

“When I went on my visit here, they actually told me that Trey had just gotten in the portal a day earlier and that there was still a chance he would return,” Kostel said. “The coaches laid it out like if Trey was here, this is the kind of a role that's open. If he's not here, then this is the role that's open. I really didn't base my decision on that. But I was really happy when I heard he was coming back, because I wanted my last year to be the best team we could be.”

Someone more interested in maximizing their individual exposure might have chosen a different path. But Kostel was focused on finding a way to play for a championship, and having Bonham back in the fold certainly improved the Mocs’ chances.

“Having Trey back was great news to me,” Kostel said. “I didn’t care about going to a place where I was going to start and play 30 minutes or whatever. I just wanted to go to a place where I had a role on the team and I can contribute to winning any way possible. When Coach (Ander) Galfsky called me and said Trey ended up coming back, I was actually excited because I knew that just gave us a better chance of getting a ring.”

Kostel enjoyed a successful career during his four seasons at UAH. He became a starter in his sophomore year and started every game his last two seasons. He closed his time in Huntsville with 896 points, 393 rebounds, 375 assists and 175 steals in 116 games, leading the Chargers the Division II NCAA Tournament every year.

He earned All-Gulf South Conference second team honors last season, finishing with a 13.3 scoring average along with 5.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 51% from the floor and making 81% of his free throws. Kostel was a workhorse, averaging better than 32 minutes per contest with six games of more than 20 points including a career-high 36 points last February.

He had some insider information on the Chattanooga program having played for former UTC head coach John Shulman while at UAH. But ultimately, it was his decision to come to Chattanooga.

“I had a four-year career at Alabama-Huntsville where I feel like I accomplished a lot,” Kostel said. “We had some great teams, and I also had a lot of individual accolades that I achieved. But this last year was a year where I just wanted to come in and contribute, to use my experience to help us win any way I could. And I've loved every part of it.”

Kostel has steadily seen his role increase over the course of the season. He has logged an average of 18 minutes during Southern Conference play, averaging 4.9 points per game while shooting 47% from the field and 37% from 3-point range while recording twice as many assists as turnovers. He also surpassed the 1,000-point career mark earlier this season.

Kostel’s veteran presence provides UTC with another solid ball handler who is capable of scoring if needed as evidenced by his trio of double-digit outputs with a high of 11 points twice. His previous experience produces a calming effect whenever teams try to apply defensive pressure to the Mocs, and his versatility gives head coach Dan Earl a reliable option when Bonham or Huff need a breather.

“I like being able to be that guy when other teams are trying to pressure us,” Kostel said. “Plus, being able to play me at the point, I can do that. If they want to play me at the two or the three guard, I'll do that, too. I’m willing to play wherever they need me to be. I just want to be able to get in there and be solid so there's no drop off when I’m in there.”

As one of four senior transfers along with Frank Champion from North Georgia, Bash Wieland from Bellarmine and Garrison Keeslar from Walsh, this year’s squad has an uncanny poise and selfless disposition.

“I think that helps with all the transfers we have,” Kostel said. “No matter which lineup is on the court, we all share the same mindset. This team is unselfish and doesn't care about themselves. All anyone cares about is winning.”

That approach has produced some effective results thus far as Chattanooga is 21-8 overall and 13-3 in SoCon play to lead the league by one game over UNC Greensboro (19-10, 12-4 SoCon). The Mocs have an opportunity to win the outright conference regular season title by defeating the Spartans on Thursday in Greensboro in a 7 p.m. tilt, while hoping to atone for a 78-75 loss at McKenzie Arena in January on a last-second buzzer beater.

In that game three UNCG players accounted for all but eight of the Spartan points. Donavan Atwell had a career-high 28, followed by 26 points from Kenyon Giles that was also his career best. Ronald Polite III tallied 16, including the deciding 3-pointer at the horn.  

Since that loss Chattanooga has gone 12-1, and is currently riding a nine-game winning streak. Also, the Mocs will put a run of six consecutive road victories on the line against UNCG.

With the opportunity to secure the top seed at the upcoming SoCon Tournament in Asheville, N.C., Kostel has been a key component to the magical season he envisioned when committing to the Mocs last summer.

“This season has exceeded my expectations,” Kostel said. “This has been just awesome with the guys, the community, and the coaches with this move to Chattanooga. This has been the best possible situation for me, and I couldn’t be more thankful.”

Hopefully the Mocs can take care of business in Greensboro on Thursday evening to notch their first goal of winning the regular season title. But that’s not the ultimate goal, but merely the first step toward their ultimate destination of earning a bid into the NCAA Tournament.

Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com