The college basketball coaching carousel is revving up.
Here's a look at who's in and who's out.
March 9
North Carolina State has fired coach Kevin Keatts, marking an abrupt end to an eight-year tenure coming less than a year after the Wolfpack’s improbable run to the ACC championship and the Final Four. The school announced the move a day after the Wolfpack closed a 12-19 season. Keatts went 151-113 at N.C. State, including 69-84 in ACC play. His teams earned three NCAA Tournament bids.
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March 6
Utah hired Dallas Mavericks assistant coach Alex Jensen, a former Utes player under Rick Majerus, to be its next head coach. Jensen, Utah's top target, replaces Craig Smith, who was fired in late February in his fourth season. Jensen has been an NBA assistant coach for 12 seasons. He spent 10 years with the Utah Jazz before joining Dallas in 2023.
March 5
Jai Lucas signed a deal to become Miami's next head coach. Lucas, 36, is in his third season as an assistant at Duke, coming in when Jon Scheyer took over as head coach in 2022. He plans to finish out the 2024-25 regular season with the Blue Devils but will leave for Miami before the postseason begins. Lucas is set to become the youngest head coach in the ACC. He inherits a Miami team in the midst of one of its worst seasons in program history, one that saw legendary longtime coach Jim Larranaga step down midseason. Lucas agreed to a five-year contract.
Feb. 24
Utah fired coach Craig Smith on Monday, one day after a 76-72 loss at UCF dropped the Utes to 15-12 on the season and 7-9 in Big 12 play. Smith, 52, was in his fourth season in charge of the Utes and holds a 65-62 all-time record with the program. He was replaced by assistant coach Josh Eilert on an interim basis.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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