The best head coach names of the 2018–19 women’s college basketball season
Last week, I shared more information than you probably ever wanted to know about women’s college basketball players’ names. From the straightforward to the hard-to-pronounce, from the short to the long, from the alliterative to the truly Unique, every Division I player was considered for one or more all-name teams. This week, I’m doing it again with the 351 Division I head coaches.
Most common names
There are more female head coaches (214) than male (137) in women’s Division I basketball, but there is more overlap in men’s first names than in women’s first names. Nearly five percent of head coaches are named Jeff (7), Mike (6), or Michael (2), including the genial-sounding pair of Mike Neighbors at Arkansas and Mike Lane at NJIT. On the women’s side, there are three Sues, one Susie, and two Suzys; there are also five Lisas and four Kims. Across genders, we have the duo of Charli (Turner Thorne, Arizona State) and Charlie (Buscaglia, Robert Morris) and the trio of DeLisha (Milton-Jones, Pepperdine), DeUnna (Hendrix, High Point), and DeWayne (Burroughs, Coppin State).
It will likely not surprise you that the most common last names among coaches are Smith (4), White (3), Williams (3), and Mitchell (3). Sixteen coaches have hyphenated last names, and fourteen have a last name beginning with “Mc,” compared to just two “O’____” names.
Degree of difficulty
Broadcasters better brush up on their pronunciation guides before covering teams like Drake, Wisconsin, and South Dakota. Here is the “Most Likely to Mispronounce” team (in alphabetical order):
Jennie Baranczyk, Drake
Dawn Plitzuweit, South Dakota
Kyle Rechlicz, Milwaukee
Seton Sobolewski, Idaho State
Jonathan Tsipis, Wisconsin
National championship look-alikes
There is only one Muffet (McGraw, coach of the 2018 national champion Notre Dame). But double-check your spelling for national runner-up Vic Schaefer of Mississippi State and Michael Shafer of Richmond. Similarly, don’t get tripped up when discussing 2017 national champion Dawn Staley (South Carolina) and Kent State’s Todd Starkey.
Style of play
A few coaches have names that don’t quite match what their teams have done on the court this season. Take Sandra Rushing at Central Arkansas: her squad isn’t exactly rushing downcourt, ranking 319th out of 351 teams in pace of play this season. Conversely, Ashley Walker’s Mississippi Valley State team rarely walks the ball up the court, ranking 33rd in pace.
On the other hand, UTRGV head coach Lane Lord has a player who has been a leading presence in the lane: Madison Northcutt ranks in the top ten percent of all players nationally in total rebounds and blocks.
Culture and values
Coaches often emphasize the importance of culture and values in building a winning program. Some coaches even have values in their name — though you’ll have to ask them individually if you want to know how much they emphasize their namesake attribute. Here is the “Culture and Values” team (in alphabetical order):
Charity Elliott, Loyola Marymount
Ty Grace, Howard
Robyn Harmony, Lamar
Ravon Justice, Sam Houston State
Faith Mimnaugh, Cal Poly
The 2018–19 Coaches’ All-Name Team
To cap this review of Division I women’s basketball coaches, I present the top five all-around best names:
5. Muffet McGraw, Notre Dame
4. Karen Barefoot, UNC Wilmington
3. DoBee Plaisance, Nicholls State
2. Mountain MacGillivray, La Salle
1. Bunky Harkleroad, Sacramento State
If you like this content, please support our work at Her Hoop Stats by subscribing for just $20 a year. Pace of play and player stats are from Her Hoop Stats for games through January 5. All other stats were compiled by the author; any errors are her own.
