Indiana State head women’s basketball coach Marc Mitchell announced the addition of Kietta Saunders to the Sycamore staff as assistant coach and director of player development Thursday.
Saunders joins the Sycamores after spending the 2024-25 season as an assistant coach at the University of Arkansas–Fort Smith, where she helped the Lions to an 18-11 record and a quarterfinals appearance in the MIAA Tournament in the school’s debut season in the conference.
Arkansas–Fort Smith’s 2024-25 season with Saunders on staff featured a seven-win improvement from the previous season and included 12 wins in MIAA play, the program’s most conference wins in nearly a decade while playing in one of the top Division II conferences in the nation. UAFS finished in the top 30 in Division II in scoring at 73.4 points per game, the program’s most in a season in a decade and third-highest points per game average in program history.
In Saunders’ lone season on staff, the Lions ranked in the top five in the MIAA in scoring (73.4), 3-pointers per game (7.1), 3-pointers made (206), 3-pointers attempted (651), free throw percentage (72.0), free throws made (413), free throws attempted (574), rebounds per game (39.8), offensive rebounds per game (11.8), defensive rebounds per game (28.0) and blocks per game (4.14). UAFS ranked in the top 50 nationally in blocks per game, bench points per game, free throws made per game, defensive rebounds per game and scoring offense. Anna Trusty was named the 2025 MIAA Freshman of the Year and was an MIAA Third Team All-Conference selection, averaging 14.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, while Morgan Browning was Honorable Mention All-MIAA last season after averaging 14.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game with Saunders on staff. Hannah Boyett also surpassed 1,000 points for her career last season, becoming the first player for UAFS to accomplish the feat in the Lions’ Division II era.
Prior to UAFS, Saunders spent the 2023-24 season at Northwest Florida State College, serving as an assistant coach for one of the premier junior college programs in the country. The Raiders went 30-4 and were the 2023-24 NJCAA Division I national runner-up. Northwest Florida averaged nearly 75 points per game while outscoring their opposition by an average of 24.3 in Saunders’ lone season on staff. The Raiders shot nearly 50 percent from the field and dished out more than 20 assists per game while creating havoc on the defensive end. Northwest Florida had a plus-2 rebound margin and averaged 10 steals and four blocks per game.
Prior to NWF, Saunders spent two seasons coaching in the high school ranks in her hometown of Chicago. She was the head freshman coach and assistant varsity coach at Lincoln Park High School, leading her freshman team to the Chicago Public Schools Red Conference championship. Following her one season at Lincoln Park, Saunders was the head varsity coach at King College Prep, leading a nine-win turnaround by posting a 13-8 overall record and a 9-0 conference mark to win the league title. Additionally, Saunders has served as an assistant director for Chicago Nike/NBA Youth Camp since 2019.
Saunders got her start in coaching at her alma mater, Clayton State University, serving as a graduate assistant for the 2019-20 season.
Saunders played two seasons for the Lakers, appearing in 58 games with 20 starts. Her collegiate playing career also included stops at Oklahoma Panhandle State and Angelo State. She earned both her Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Business Administration from Clayton State.
Saunders joins Jason Pruitt and Ashley Yu, who are both entering their second season with the Sycamores, on Mitchell’s staff.
