NCAA Basketball: Ranking the 20 best head coaches from past 5 seasons

Coach Accomplishments the past 5 seasons
ACC Regular Season Champion: 1 (2020)
NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen: 2 (2018 and 2019)
NCAA Tournament Appearances: 3 (2017, 2018, 2019)

Coaching Points Breakdown
0 points for National Championships
0 points for Final Four Appearances
20 points for Regular Season Conference Championships (ACC)
0 points for Conference Tournament Championships (ACC)
20 points for Sweet Sixteen Appearances
0 points for every season with 30 or more wins
20 points for every season with 20 or more wins
6 points for every NCAA Tournament berth
Total Coaching Points: 66

Over the past five seasons:

Best Season: Florida State has had four consecutive good seasons. 2016-2017, they won 26 games, finished 2nd in the ACC, and made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament. In 2017-2018, they won 23 games and make a magical run to the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament. 2018-2019, the Seminoles won 29 games, was 13-5 in ACC conference play, and made it to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA tournament.

However, 2019-2020 was Florida State’s best season as the won the ACC regular-season title being that it was its first Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title in school history. The won 26 games that season with victories on the road against No. 6 Florida, No. 7 Louisville, and a win on a neutral court against No. 17 Tennesse on the way to winning the Emerald Coast Classic.

COVID 19 pandemic stopped the Seminoles from possibly making it to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament as ESPN’s Joe Lunardi had them in the finals. Hamilton had a great season and it is unfortunate that he and his team’s season was cut short.

Biggest Regular Season Win: In the semifinals of the 2019 ACC conference tournament the Seminoles be No. 1 seed (1) and No. 2 nationally-ranked Virginia by a final score of 69–59. It was the Cavaliers 3rd loss on the entire season and Flordia State had won 14 of 15 games with their victory over Virginia. It also was the Cavalier’s last loss of the season as they would win the rest of their games and become national champions.

Defining moment: On December 11th, 2016, Hamilton and his young Flordia State team were off to a good start to their season but that day they were looking for a victory over not only a ranked opponent but their biggest in-state rival.

However, besides a win over No. 25 ranked Illinois in the third-place game of the NIT Season Tip-Off tournament game, Hamilton was looking for his new defining victory in his 15th season as the Seminoles head coach. Not that he had not had earlier success as the head coach at Florida State like he did during the 2011-2012 season, but he had not had a season of 25 wins or more since that season had concluded.

His team defeated Florida that day and it was Florida State’s first win over a ranked non-conference opponent on the home court since they defeated the Gators on Dec. 7, 2008. Hamilton and his Seminoles team would win their next six games that included victories over No. 21 Virginia Tech, No. 7 Duke, and a win at No. 12 Virginia.

Best NCAA Tournament Victory: After defeating No. 1 seed Villanova in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, No. 9 seed Florida State beat No. 4 seed, Gonzaga, by 15 points and held the Bulldogs to only 60 points to advance to the Elite Eight. The victory was the Seminole’s third straight win over a straight higher-seeded team in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.