TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Arizona State has lured Randy Bennett away from Saint Mary’s to become its next men’s basketball coach.
Arizona State and Saint Mary’s announced Bennett’s hiring following a team meeting with the Gaels on Monday.
“This was a difficult decision after calling Saint Mary’s home for so long and building this program into a national contender each year,” Bennett said in a statement.
“I will be forever grateful for the opportunity to lead Saint Mary’s and for all the special people in this community I’ve been able to work with over the years. This was truly my home away from home for so long and I will miss this place.”
Bennett spent 25 years as Saint Mary’s head coach, repeatedly turning down offers to coach at larger programs.
The chance to return home after the firing of Bobby Hurley was too much for the 63-year-old coach to turn down this time.
Bennett grew up in Mesa, Arizona, and graduated from Westwood High School on the west side of town, not far from Arizona State’s campus. He began his college career at Mesa Community College, playing two seasons under his father, Tom, before transferring to the University of San Diego.
Bennett began his coaching career as an assistant at San Diego and, after multiple other stops, became the head coach at Saint Mary’s in 2001.
Bennett thrived in his first head coaching job, building a program that went 2-27 the season before into a West Coast powerhouse that went to the NCAA Tournament 12 times and the NIT seven. Saint Mary’s .750 win percentage over the past 22 years is fourth nationally behind Gonzaga, Duke and Kansas.
He was the West Coast Conference coach of the year seven times and is Saint Mary’s all-time leader in wins with 589.
Saint Mary’s went 27-6 this season, reached as high as No. 21 in the AP Top 25 and shared the WCC regular-season title with Gonzaga, the fourth straight season the Gaels won or shared the title. Gonzaga is leaving for the Pac-12 next season, weakening the West Coast Conference and contributing to Bennett’s decision to leave for ASU.
Saint Mary’s reached the NCAA Tournament in Bennett’s final five seasons in Moraga, earning a No. 5 seed in this year’s bracket. Texas A&M bounced the Gaels from March Madness with a 63-50 win the opening round.
Associate coach Mickey McConnell will replace Bennett at Saint Mary’s, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because an announcement hadn’t been made. McConnell spent the past seven seasons on Bennett’s staff and was the WCC Player of the Year in 2011.
“We can’t thank Randy enough for everything he has done for this program and the college,” Saint Mary’s athletic director Mike Matoso said. “He will be missed as a leader and coach, and has left us with a lasting legacy of excellence. Randy’s influence as the architect of building Saint Mary’s Basketball onto the national stage has provided an incredible foundation for on-going success.”
Bennett takes over an Arizona State program that was up-and-down during Hurley’s 11 seasons.
The Sun Devils went to the NCAA Tournament three times under Hurley, including two straight from 2018-19. Arizona State appeared to be in position to reach the NCAA Tournament in three straight years for the first time since the 1960s before the 2020 tournament was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hurley needed to make another NCAA Tournament run this season in the final year of his contract, but the Sun Devils finished 17-16.
“Coach Bennett is one of the most accomplished and respected coaches in college basketball,” Arizona State athletic director Graham Rossini said in a statement. “We were drawn to his sustained success over multiple decades, his strong recruiting relationships across the country, particularly on the West Coast, and his proven ability to identify and develop international talent. Just as important, he brings a genuine enthusiasm for leading the Sun Devil men’s basketball program.”
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AP Sports Writer Josh Dubow in San Francisco contributed to this report.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
