Our countdown to name the best college basketball coaches, culminating in the naming of the top coach in the game, continues with spots 49-45 up next. These five coaches have combined for a host of successes at current and former stops in their careers, as well as countless storylines.
In this list, three of the five coaches are currently in the SEC.
49. Frank Martin, South Carolina
Martin made waves in the college basketball world when he left Kansas State, where he’d guided the Wildcats to an Elite Eight, as well as three other NCAA Tournament appearances, for South Carolina. Things haven’t gone smoothly in Columbia, but the Gamecocks’ winning record last season (the first since his arrival) has those in the media expecting further improvement. The only thing standing in his way, right now, is the fact that the SEC is quickly becoming a recruiting hotbed for hoops–though Martin landed his own four-star shooting guard for this season, in P.J. Dozier.
48. Tom Crean, Indiana
Crean has two Sweet Sixteens and a Final Four on his resume, but his inability to get Indiana over the hump, especially considering the talent that he has had, is concerning. While his track record certainly suggests that he should be higher on the list, at some point, he’s going to need to win with the types of NBA talent he has had in Bloomington. Indiana was in rubble when he arrived, and he’s brought them back to respectability; still, Hoosiers fans are expecting more. This season may be his last shot to win big for IU faithful, as he returns what many consider to be a top 10 caliber team, including veterans on the wing and perimeter.
47. Lorenzo Romar, Washington
Romar is one of the nation’s great recruiters, having signed and developed seven players who would go on to be picked in the first round of the NBA Draft. The concern with him has always been what he does with those players in Seattle. While his 2005 group earned a No. 1 seed in the Big Dance, he has yet to lead the Huskies past the Sweet Sixteen. In conference, his UW teams have performed as well, or better, than anyone else, but not many would argue that his recent results have been encouraging–for this, we dropped him this far down the list.
46. Kevin Stallings, Vanderbilt
Stallings isn’t a name that jumps off the page at you, but he’s got eight 20-win seasons in Nashville, while directing a program that isn’t the easiest to recruit to. Vanderbilt is a rigorous academic institution, and when compared with the likes of Kentucky, Florida, Alabama, Ole Miss, and others in the conference, it simply isn’t as easy to land the top basketball talents in the South. What he has done with the program deserves serious recognition. Now that the SEC looks to have taken the next step forward as a program, it will be interesting to watch and see how the Commodores keep pace with those around them.
45. Mike Anderson, Arkansas
In the past seven seasons, Anderson led teams have won 19 games or more six times, with one of those seasons having Mizzou run out to a 31-7 record. Not that recruiting at Mizzou is especially difficult, but Anderson made a name for himself by developing dynamic lead guards, and he’s beginning to recruit similar talents to Arkansas. He’s now led three programs to the NCAA Tournament, and things continue to look up for the Razorbacks under his leadership. Of note, though, is that there have been several off-court disciplinary issues surrounding his program at UA. While that doesn’t directly affect his stature on this list, it may, over time, affect his standing with the university.
