University at Buffalo’s Becky Burke was named the 10th head coach in the history of Arizona Women’s Basketball by Wildcats’ Vice President and Director of Athletics Desireé Reed-Francois on Wednesday.
This season, her third with the Bulls, saw UB post a program-record 30 wins, culminating with a WNIT title.
“Our model centers around identifying head coaches who prioritize success in coaching, recruiting and the development of high-character student-athletes,” said Reed-Francois. “Coach Burke is a proven program builder and rising star in collegiate women’s basketball with a track record of transformational success. She is familiar with the Wildcats and the tight-knit community we have in Tucson. Our search committee did a wonderful job of selecting the right leader as we are proud to welcome Coach Burke, Savannah and Banks to the University of Arizona.”
In her second season at the helm of the Bulls, Burke led UB to a 19-win season, a trip to the MAC Championship game and an appearance in the postseason WNIT. The Bulls won 10 games in league play, a seven-win improvement from a season ago which is the highest improvement of any MAC school, while also finishing fourth after being picked eighth in the MAC preseason poll.
In her first season, the Bulls were ranked in the top half of the league in field goal percentage (.438), three-point field goal percentage (.343), scoring defense (65.1), three-point field goal defense (.315), assists per game (13.8) and assist-to-turnover ratio (+1.0).
“I would like to thank President (Suresh) Garimella and Desireé for this wonderful opportunity to lead Arizona Women’s Basketball, a program with such rich tradition,” Burke said. “Wildcats’ fans fully understand the role that elite culture plays in building a program that wins championships. Our staff will be ready to make that a reality as we call Tucson home.”
Burke spent two seasons as the head coach of USC Upstate and engineered one of the best turnarounds in the country in 2021-22. That year, the Spartans were picked 10th in the Big South’s preseason poll and finished with a No. 3 overall seed and a first-round bye in the conference tournament. Her club tied the program’s Division I-era record for overall wins (22) and conference victories (14) as the team made a 14-win improvement from 2020-21.
Prior to taking the reins at Upstate, Burke had an impressive two-year stint at the NCAA DII level as the head coach at the University of Charleston in West Virginia. She brought the Golden Eagles back to national prominence in just her first season at the helm of the program in 2018-19, leading the team to a 25-7 record, which was a 12-win improvement from the previous year. The Golden Eagles also cracked the Top 25 that season and made their first NCAA Tournament since 2014.
In her second year, the Golden Eagles went 23-7 while once again leading the conference in scoring defense.
Prior to her time at Charleston, Burke started the women’s basketball program at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona in 2015 and went on to be the head coach of the Eagles for two seasons. She led the team to a winning record in its inaugural campaign in 2016-17. In her second season at ERAU, the Eagles were ranked in the NAIA Top 25 and compiled a 21-6 record, including an 11-3 mark in the California Pacific Conference.
Burke earned a spot on the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association 30-Under-30 list in 2019. She was the only head coach to appear on the exclusive list.
Before her head coaching career, Burke served as an assistant coach at Saint Joseph’s College for the 2014-15 season. Prior to that, she was the director of basketball operations at California State Fullerton in 2013-14.
Burke was a standout at the University of Louisville where she graduated with a degree in sports management in 2012. In four years as a Cardinal, she led the program to three NCAA Tournament appearances including the championship game in 2009 and the Sweet Sixteen in 2011. Burke is a member of the program’s 1,000-point club and was just the second Cardinal to participate in the State Farm College 3-Point Shoot-Out in 2012, finishing as the runner-up.
A Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania native, Burke starred at her hometown high school, Abington Heights. She was named the Pennsylvania Class 4A Player of the Year as a senior by the Associated Press and scored over 2,100 career points. Burke and her wife Savannah have one son, Banks.
https://arizonawildcats.com/news/2025/4/9/arizona-names-burke-womens-basketball-head-coach.aspx
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