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NCAA Basketball: Retrospective look at 2011 offseason coaching hires

By Joey Loose

COLLEGE PARK, MD - JANUARY 11: (L to R) Head coachs Mark Turgeon of the Maryland Terrapins and Archie Miller of the Indiana Hoosiers shake hands before a college basketball game at the XFinity Center on January 11, 2019 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
COLLEGE PARK, MD - JANUARY 11: (L to R) Head coachs Mark Turgeon of the Maryland Terrapins and Archie Miller of the Indiana Hoosiers shake hands before a college basketball game at the XFinity Center on January 11, 2019 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
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NCAA Basketball Lon Kruger Oklahoma Sooners (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
NCAA Basketball Lon Kruger Oklahoma Sooners (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

2. Lon Kruger (Oklahoma)

With Blake Griffin in tow, the Sooners made their way to the Elite Eight back in 2009, but the team had struggled these last two seasons, necessitating the change in head coach. Historically, Oklahoma was a pretty good program, having appeared in a majority of the NCAA Tournaments over the last three decades. They just needed to hire the right voice to get things back on track.

Lon Kruger came to Oklahoma as the tail end of a long, successful coaching career. He had previously been head coach at Texas-Pan American, Kansas State, Florida, Illinois, and UNLV, with a stint with the Atlanta Hawks in there as well. Kruger took Florida to the Final Four and built lasting success in his final two collegiate jobs, having spent the last seven years at UNLV bringing success back for the Runnin’ Rebels.

Oklahoma went back to being a consistent Big 12 contender under Kruger’s guide, making seven of nine NCAA Tournaments. The highlight was leading the Sooners to the Final Four back in 2016. Kruger did phenomenal work with yet another program, leaving the Sooners in fantastic shape as he transitions into retirement this year.

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