Shaka Smart Named USBWA Coach of the Year
3/22/2023 11:01:00 AM | Men's Basketball
First Marquette coach to claim award since Ed Hickey in 1958-59
Release courtesy USBWA
Marquette head coach Shaka Smart led the Golden Eagles to a school-record 29 wins and their first Big East outright and tournament titles this season. For guiding his team to a record-setting conference win count and into the NCAA Tournament, Smart has been named the winner of the 2022-23 Henry Iba Award, given annually by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association to its national coach of the year.
Smart will formally receive the award at the upcoming USBWA College Basketball Awards Banquet in St. Louis on April 12, hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club.
Marquette (29-7) notched the most wins in school history and posted its first NCAA Tournament win since 2013 last week, topping Vermont 78-61 in the first round. It was the Golden Eagles' best season record since a 28-1 season in 1970-71 when they suffered their only loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Marquette fell to Michigan State, 69-60, in the second round last Sunday. Ironically, last year's winner, Tommy Lloyd of Arizona, also fell to Michigan State in the NCAA's second round.
In his second season at Marquette, Smart was the Big East's Coach of the Year after leading the Golden Eagles to a 17-3 conference record and their first outright Big East title in school history as well as their fourth conference title of any kind since beginning their league affiliation in 1989-90. Marquette's Big East Tournament title was its first since joining the league in 2005-06. Marquette tied for the Big East regular-season title in the 2012-13 season.
He is the first Marquette coach to claim the Big East Coach of the Year honor and it's also the first of Smart's career. The Golden Eagles were picked to finish ninth in the league but surprised everyone with 17 Big East wins to tie Syracuse (2011-12) for the most regular-season wins in league history. Since the Big East was formed in 1979-80, no team picked ninth or lower earned at least a share of first place.Â
Smart coached a USBWA All-American this season in junior guard Tyler Kolek, who earned second-team national honors last week. Kolek is Marquette's first USBWA All-American since Markus Howard earned the second of his back-to-back All-America honors in the 2018-19 season and only the school's sixth selection overall. Kolek was the country's second-leading assist man with 270 on the season and third nationally at 7.5 per game.
Smart, 44, has now guided 10 teams to the NCAA Tournament including previous stops at Texas and VCU. He took VCU to the 2011 Final Four and won the National Invitation Tournament title at Texas in 2019. His 29 wins match his career high, set at VCU in the 2011-12 season.
The Henry Iba Award is named in honor of the legendary coaching great at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) who won two NCAA championships and two gold medals and one silver as coach of the U S. Olympic teams. Iba held the dual position of basketball coach and athletic director until he retired in 1970. He was elected to the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, the Missouri Hall of Fame, the Helms Foundation All-Time Hall of Fame for basketball, and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame at Springfield, Mass. Henry Iba passed away in 1993 in Stillwater, Okla.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. For more information on the USBWA and its award programs, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485. For additional info about covering the awards banquet, contact Jim Wilson with the MAC (314-539-4488).
Marquette head coach Shaka Smart led the Golden Eagles to a school-record 29 wins and their first Big East outright and tournament titles this season. For guiding his team to a record-setting conference win count and into the NCAA Tournament, Smart has been named the winner of the 2022-23 Henry Iba Award, given annually by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association to its national coach of the year.
Smart will formally receive the award at the upcoming USBWA College Basketball Awards Banquet in St. Louis on April 12, hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club.
Marquette (29-7) notched the most wins in school history and posted its first NCAA Tournament win since 2013 last week, topping Vermont 78-61 in the first round. It was the Golden Eagles' best season record since a 28-1 season in 1970-71 when they suffered their only loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Marquette fell to Michigan State, 69-60, in the second round last Sunday. Ironically, last year's winner, Tommy Lloyd of Arizona, also fell to Michigan State in the NCAA's second round.
In his second season at Marquette, Smart was the Big East's Coach of the Year after leading the Golden Eagles to a 17-3 conference record and their first outright Big East title in school history as well as their fourth conference title of any kind since beginning their league affiliation in 1989-90. Marquette's Big East Tournament title was its first since joining the league in 2005-06. Marquette tied for the Big East regular-season title in the 2012-13 season.
He is the first Marquette coach to claim the Big East Coach of the Year honor and it's also the first of Smart's career. The Golden Eagles were picked to finish ninth in the league but surprised everyone with 17 Big East wins to tie Syracuse (2011-12) for the most regular-season wins in league history. Since the Big East was formed in 1979-80, no team picked ninth or lower earned at least a share of first place.Â
Smart coached a USBWA All-American this season in junior guard Tyler Kolek, who earned second-team national honors last week. Kolek is Marquette's first USBWA All-American since Markus Howard earned the second of his back-to-back All-America honors in the 2018-19 season and only the school's sixth selection overall. Kolek was the country's second-leading assist man with 270 on the season and third nationally at 7.5 per game.
Smart, 44, has now guided 10 teams to the NCAA Tournament including previous stops at Texas and VCU. He took VCU to the 2011 Final Four and won the National Invitation Tournament title at Texas in 2019. His 29 wins match his career high, set at VCU in the 2011-12 season.
The Henry Iba Award is named in honor of the legendary coaching great at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) who won two NCAA championships and two gold medals and one silver as coach of the U S. Olympic teams. Iba held the dual position of basketball coach and athletic director until he retired in 1970. He was elected to the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, the Missouri Hall of Fame, the Helms Foundation All-Time Hall of Fame for basketball, and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame at Springfield, Mass. Henry Iba passed away in 1993 in Stillwater, Okla.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. For more information on the USBWA and its award programs, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485. For additional info about covering the awards banquet, contact Jim Wilson with the MAC (314-539-4488).
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