Keatts Named Division I “Big House” Gaines Award Winner
4/12/2024 11:05:00 AM | Men's Basketball
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The National Sports Media Association (NSMA) announced Friday that NC State men's basketball head coach Kevin Keatts has been named the Division I Clarence "Big House" Gaines
College Basketball Coach of the Year.
Keatts led NC State to its first Atlantic Coast Conference title since 1987 and the program's first Final Four since 1983 as his Wolfpack program wen on a magical run in the month of March.
After finishing the regular season with a 17-14 record, the Wolfpack swept five games in five days to win the ACC Tournament in Washington, D.C. As the ACC's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament, NC State then rang up four straight wins to reach the national semifinals in Glendale, Ariz., where the Wolfpack lost to eventual runner-up, Purdue.
In seven seasons at NC State, Keatts' teams are 139-94. His NC State teams have won at least 20 games in five of his seven seasons as head coach.
The Gaines Awards will be presented during the NSMA's 64th awards banquet on July 1, 2024, in Greensboro, North Carolina.
The Clarence "Big House" Gaines College Basketball Coach of the Year Awards are presented to the head coach in NCAA Divisions I and II, who may not earn recognition from mainstream outlets. An NSMA committee votes on the awards at the conclusion of the NCAA men's and women's tournaments.
Gaines was the head basketball coach at Winston-Salem (NC) State University for 47 seasons. His teams won 828 games, including the 1967 NCAA Division II National Championship. That team was led by Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, who went on to an NBA Hall of Fame career. Among other notable players Gaines coached were Cleo Hill, the first NBA first-round draft choice from a historically Black college or university, and sports media personality Stephen A. Smith. A former president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), Gaines was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1982. He died in 2005.
College Basketball Coach of the Year.
Keatts led NC State to its first Atlantic Coast Conference title since 1987 and the program's first Final Four since 1983 as his Wolfpack program wen on a magical run in the month of March.
After finishing the regular season with a 17-14 record, the Wolfpack swept five games in five days to win the ACC Tournament in Washington, D.C. As the ACC's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament, NC State then rang up four straight wins to reach the national semifinals in Glendale, Ariz., where the Wolfpack lost to eventual runner-up, Purdue.
In seven seasons at NC State, Keatts' teams are 139-94. His NC State teams have won at least 20 games in five of his seven seasons as head coach.
The Gaines Awards will be presented during the NSMA's 64th awards banquet on July 1, 2024, in Greensboro, North Carolina.
The Clarence "Big House" Gaines College Basketball Coach of the Year Awards are presented to the head coach in NCAA Divisions I and II, who may not earn recognition from mainstream outlets. An NSMA committee votes on the awards at the conclusion of the NCAA men's and women's tournaments.
Gaines was the head basketball coach at Winston-Salem (NC) State University for 47 seasons. His teams won 828 games, including the 1967 NCAA Division II National Championship. That team was led by Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, who went on to an NBA Hall of Fame career. Among other notable players Gaines coached were Cleo Hill, the first NBA first-round draft choice from a historically Black college or university, and sports media personality Stephen A. Smith. A former president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), Gaines was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1982. He died in 2005.
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