NCAA Basketball: Who should be the finalists for national Coach of the Year?
By Bryan Mauro
As the regular season winds down and everyone gets ready to watch the NCAA tournament. The nation is also debating who the best coaches in the country are.
Coaches are the heart and soul of each team, the players replicate the coaches system and the coaching staff has to get each and every player to buy into that system, while balancing their school and athlete life.
The National Coach of the Year is a subjective award voted on by both the media and peers. The award usually goes to a coach who coaches a Power 6 program and drastically exceeds expectations. That could be a drastic turnaround from one year to the next, or it could be a coach who keeps his team at the top after a large turnover from the year before. The following men should be the finalists for the National Coach of the Year award.
Chris Holtmann- Ohio State
When Chris Holtmann was hired at Ohio State, former coach Thad Matta did not leave the Buckeyes with much. Due to roster turnover and disciplinary issues Chris Holtmann had a lot of work to do on the recruiting trail. He was able to keep some of the recruits that Ohio State already had in Musa Jallow. Holtmann is also responsible for one of the more underrated acquisitions of the season. Holtmann offered Andrew Dakich a scholarship because he needed a guard and Dakich was going to transfer from Michigan.
Dakich was a seldom used player for Michigan for three years before leaving for Ohio State. Holtmann has turned Dakich into a huge role player, and his role is to be a knock down shooter for Ohio State which is a role Dakich has thrived in.
The Dakich acquisition, coupled with the resurgence of Keita Bates-Diop is one of the main reasons why Ohio State has been the team they have been this year. Holtmann inherited a team that was picked to finish in 11th place in the Big Ten and are now vying for a share of the Big Ten championship.
Holtmann inherited a team that already had talent, but what Holtmann has done was add the missing pieces, as well as convince the role players that thriving in their role is imperative for the success of the Buckeyes. Even in a down Big Ten season the turnaround from one year to the next for Ohio State is impressive and the man at the helm should be the favorite for this award.