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

By Joey Loose | Jul 16, 2020

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 21: Ivan Aurrecoechea #15 of the New Mexico State Aggies reacts during the second half against the Auburn Tigers in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 21, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

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RENO, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 19: Head coach Rick Croy of the California Baptist Lancers (Photo by Jonathan Devich/Getty Images) /

10. Rick Croy – Cal Baptist (2018-2020)

Croy’s work as a head coach has been very productive, but he certainly paid his dues before getting his shot. He served as an assistant at UC Riverside and coached Citrus College, a junior college in California. He spent three seasons on Randy Bennett’s staff at Saint Mary’s before getting his shot at Cal Baptist in 2013. After five seasons, he led the Lancers to Division 1, which was certainly no easy task.

While we’ll only focus on those two seasons in the WAC, it’s fair to point out that Croy was doing fantastic work with Cal Baptist at the D2 level. After several D2 Tournament appearances, he has immediately made the Lancers a competitor in the WAC. They made the CBI in their very first season in D1 and won 21 games this past season, finishing 2nd place in the conference.

Their rise has been quick and meteoric and Croy has done amazing work in his seven total years with the program. If he can bring in higher-level recruits and continue to coach up his players, then it wouldn’t be shocking to see Cal Baptist in the NCAA Tournament in the next few years. The WAC isn’t the strongest conference in the world, but the rise of the Lancers program these last two years has still been impressive.