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UConn’s Dan Hurley is College Hoops Today’s National Coach of the Year

This is March!

That means it’s time for some end of season awards.

Check out below for an in-depth list of the top coaches in college basketball during the 2023-24 season:

College Hoops Today National Coach of the Year

Dan Hurley, UConn: The Huskies won six NCAA Tournament games last spring by an average of 20 points and are somehow better. How? Hurley’s brilliance as a coach. Singularly focused and admittedly obsessed with winning, Hurley currently has UConn at 27-3 overall and cemented as a number one seed in March Madness. Remember: This program lost five of its top eight scorers — Adama Sanogo, Jordan Hawkins, Andre Jackson, Joey Calcaterra, and Nahiem Alleyne — from last season’s team that dominated the NCAA Tournament. Whatever “it” is as a coach, Hurley possesses.

Other Finalists

Kelvin Sampson, Houston: Going from the American Athletic Conference to the Big 12 did not inhibit Sampson’s ability to win at a high level. The Cougars clinched a share of the Big 12 regular season title following Wednesday night’s win at UCF and are now 27-3 overall. Houston won 86.8 percent of its regular season league games during its final three seasons in the American Athletic Conference — it’s won 82.4 percent of its league games in its first year in the Big 12. For the second consecutive season, the Cougars will be a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament. It’s only a matter of time before Sampson is enshrined as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall-of-Fame.

Lamont Paris, South Carolina: Paris didn’t flinch when the Gamecocks were picked last in the SEC Preseason Poll because he never flinches. Poised, prepared, and always in complete control, the 49-year old head coach has made South Carolina into one of the great stories of the 2023-24 college basketball season. The Gamecocks will take a 24-6 record into Saturday’s regular season finale against Mississippi State and will play in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017.

Danny Sprinkle, Utah State: Sprinkle didn’t inherit a single point from last season’s team that went to the NCAA Tournament under Ryan Odom, but has led the Aggies to at least a share of the Mountain West regular season title. They’ll win their first outright Mountain West regular season title with a win on Saturday over New Mexico. Sprinkle proved that he could coach when he led Montana State to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. He proved this season that it’s only a matter of time before he’s regularly mentioned moving forward as one of the top tacticians in the sport.

Kyle Smith, Washington State: The Cougars lost their top four scorers — TJ Bamba, Mouhamed Gueye, Justin Powell, and DJ Rodman — from last year’s team that won 17 games, but yet are in position to play in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2008. Just like he did at both San Francisco and Columbia, Smith has excelled at figuring out a difficult situation. The veteran head coach completely recalibrated his roster in the offseason and added three under-the-radar transfers — Isaac Jones (Idaho), Oscar Cluff (JUCO), and Jaylen Wells (Sonoma State) — who have been seamless additions. Washington State has never won more than 26 games in a season — it has 23 victories entering tonight’s tilt against Washington in Pullman. That’s a credit to Smith, who’s enjoying a breakthrough season as a head coach.

Honorable Mention

  • Amir Abdur-Rahim, South Florida
  • Rick Barnes, Tennessee
  • T.J. Otzelberger, Iowa State
  • Hubert Davis, North Carolina
  • Bruce Pearl, Auburn

Leftovers