Boeheim One Of Four Finalists For Naismith Award
3/18/2010 12:23:47 PM | Men's Basketball
ATLANTA – Syracuse's Jim Boeheim is among four finalists for the 2010 Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced today. He is joined by Steve Alford (New Mexico), John Calipari (Kentucky) and Frank Martin (Kansas State). Those four make up the final ballot for the national award presented annually to the top men's college basketball coach. The winner will be announced in early April.
The finalists were voted on by the Atlanta Tipoff Club's National Voting Academy, comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country. The academy based its criteria on coaching performances this season.
ABOUT THE FINALISTS:
Jim Boeheim: The Orange set a school record for regular-season victories, racking up a 28-3 record. The Big East pre-season poll had Syracuse University picked sixth, yet the Orange went 15-3 in conference play to win its first outright regular-season title since 1991. Boeheim is the only coach in the Big East to have been with his school since the league's inaugural season (1979-80), and he claimed his fourth conference Coach of the Year award (1984, 1991 and 2000). Syracuse earned a number-one seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament.
Steve Alford: The
John Calipari: The first-year Kentucky coach led his squad to 32-2 regular season record (14-2 in conference), and the Southeastern Conference tournament championship – the school's first since 2004. He has now captured five consecutive conference tournament championships and regular season titles as a head coach. He also won 30 games for the fifth straight year, the only coach in NCAA Division I history to do so. Calipari won the Naismith award most recently at Memphis (2008) and also at Massachusetts (1996). Only Mike Krzyzewski of Duke has won more (1999, 1992, 1989). The resurgent Wildcats earned the number-one seed in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament.
Frank Martin: After guiding Kansas State University to its best regular season in more than 50 years, Martin enters the postseason with a number two seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament. Named the Big 12 Coach of the Year, Martin has guided K-State to a school record 26 victories, a tie for second place in the Big 12 and an appearance in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship game. The Wildcats earned their first top five ranking in nearly 50 years on March 1 when they rose to number five in each poll. Martin now has the most wins by a head coach in his first three seasons, and became the first Kansas State head coach to have three 20-win seasons to start a career.
Last year, the University of Pittsburgh's Jamie Dixon claimed the Naismith Men's Coach of the Year award, the second such honor for a Panthers head coach (Ben Howland, 2002) and third from the Big East (Jay Wright, Villanova, 2006).
For more information, visit www.naismithawards.com.
