Mountain West Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)

By Joey Loose | Jun 26, 2020

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 01: San Diego State Alumni Kawhi Leonard participates in his jersey retirement ceremony with former college coach Steve Fisher during half time of the game against the San Diego State Aztecs and the Utah State Aggies at Viejas Arena on February 01, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Kent Horner/Getty Images) /

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LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 11: Head coach Lon Kruger of the UNLV Rebels (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

5. Lon Kruger – UNLV (2004-2011)

When taking a look at UNLV since the turn of the century, it’s fair to say that Kruger is responsible for most of the success. When he took over in 2004, he was coming off a stint coaching the Atlanta Hawks and had already found success coaching at Kansas State, Illinois, and led Florida to the Final Four. UNLV was in solid shape when he took over, but Rebels fans were still dreaming of that national title in 1990, well removed from that success.

Kruger led UNLV back to the NCAA Tournament leading the Rebels to four bids in his seven years in Vegas. They were a top 5 team in the Mountain West in each of those seasons while the 2007 team won 30 games and made the Sweet Sixteen. Following a decade of mediocrity, Kruger went 161-71 with UNLV and won a pair of Mountain West Tournaments during his tenure.

Kruger departed for Oklahoma in 2011, leading the Sooners to the Final Four a few seasons ago. Meanwhile, UNLV mightily struggled in the years following his departure, returning to an era of mediocrity. It’s easy to argue that Kruger is one of the greatest coaches in the game based on his long coaching career, but it’s clear that his work in the Mountain West was some fantastic work.