2019 NCAA Tournament: 5 potential breakout coach candidates
March Madness is upon us as the NCAA Tournament kicks off this Thursday. Here’s a look at some breakout coaches in this year’s field.
There were snubs and there were surprises on Sunday and throughout this past week, we’ve seen some exciting basketball leading up to the NCAA Tournament. The field of 68 is filled with talent competition, especially from the coaching ranks. There are the legends like Roy Williams and Mike Krzyzewski, who both earned No. 1 seeds, and then there are the breakout coaches.
One head coach is making his third straight appearance in the Big Dance and another is making his second straight appearance on the heels of another 26+ win season. While winning conference tournament championships to get in the field has become the norm for them, they could be in need of bigger shoes to fill.
These are what are considered breakout coaching candidates. As things go in the business of college basketball, coaches outgrow their environment given their success. There are already 22 head coaching spots open across the Division 1 landscape, which could mean better days ahead for a select few coaches.
Now, success could depend upon them getting past the first round, but for many of them, an upset isn’t totally out of the equation. Here’s a look at five breakout coaching candidates in this year’s 2019 NCAA Tournament.