NCAA Basketball: Ranking all 68 head coaches in 2022 NCAA Tournament
By Joey Loose
68. Kevin Nickelberry (LSU)
0 NCAA Tournaments
It’s an unusual first trip for Nickelberry, as the former head coach at Hampton and Howard was very recently named interim head coach of the Tigers after the firing of Will Wade. Nickelberry does have twelve years of experience as a head coach at those two schools, but this is his first trip to the Big Dance, having only led Howard to a CBI a few seasons ago.
67. Steve Lutz (Texas A&M-Corpus Christi)
0 NCAA Tournaments
Lutz spent the last 21 years on D1 coaching staffs, most notably with long stints at Creighton and Purdue; he’s been to the NCAA Tournament before. This is different; leading the Islanders to the NCAA Tournament in his first year as a collegiate head coach and breaking a 15-year drought at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Suffice to say it’s a great start for Lutz’s career.
66. Griff Aldrich (Longwood)
0 NCAA Tournaments
A longtime AAU coach, Aldrich only got back into collegiate coaching a few years ago, serving as director of recruiting when UMBC pulled the ultimate upset over #1 Virginia back In 2018. Aldrich has served as Longwood’s head coach these last four years, with this year the clear breakout for the Lancers, not just their first season above .500 under Aldrich’s watch but the program’s first trip to the Big Dance.
65. Dedrique Taylor (Cal State Fullerton)
1 NCAA Tournament (0-1)
After time assisting at Nevada, Arizona State, and a few other schools, Taylor has been entrenched at Cal State Fullerton since 2013. This season was another high point, leading the Titans to the NCAA Tournament for the second time, holding on to win the Big West Tournament. Taylor has done some really solid work in his nine seasons in Fullerton.