NCAA Basketball: Top 10 head coaching hires from the year 2002

7. Billy Gillispie (UTEP)

For nearly four decades, Don Haskins built a legendary run of success at UTEP, highlighted by the national championship run way back in 1966, near the beginning of his tenure. By the time of his retirement in 1999, these Miners weren’t quite the success story any more, struggling under successor Jason Rabedeaux as well. Fortunately, with their coaching hire in 2002 they got the program back on track.

Billy Gillispie had plenty of experience in college ball and in Texas in recent years. He was a longtime high school coach in the state and had spent time on the Baylor coaching staff. For the last five years, Gillispie had been on Bill Self’s coaching staff at Tulsa and then Illinois. UTEP would be his first collegiate head coaching job and he was certainly ready.

Rebuilding the program wasn’t going to happen overnight, leading to a 6-24 debut, but it was all about what came next for this Miners program. UTEP had an incredible turnaround in 2004, winning 24 games and make their first NCAA Tournament in a dozen years. Gillispie departed for Texas A&M soon after the season ended, but left the program in solid shape, building success that would be continued by his successor for the next half-decade.