Memphis Tiger head women’s basketball coach Katrina Merriweather is excited to announce the addition of her sister, Kabrina Merriweather, to her staff as an assistant coach for the upcoming 2022-23 season.
A native of Indianapolis, Ind., Kabrina Merriweather comes to Memphis after two years at the University of New Mexico where she was as an assistant coach under Mike Bradbury this past season after serving as the team’s Director of Operations during the 2020-21 season. Merriweather worked with the Lobos post players where she helped guide Shaiquel McGruder to the Mountain West All-Conference and All-Defensive teams and Paula Reus to the Mountain West All-Freshman team this past season.
“When I evaluated what we needed, I didn’t have to look far. Kabrina was a no-brainer because of her character and passion for positively impacting young people,” said Katrina Merriweather. “She is loyal, committed, compassionate and will build relationships with our young women, university and community quickly. She is a sponge with the brightest personality and will be great for our chemistry as she is already familiar with our staff.”
The Lobos staged a historic run in 2021-22; after finishing the regular season 23-8 and 14-4 in Mountain West play, they would advance all the way to the conference tournament semi-finals before being selected to play in the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) for the second consecutive season. New Mexico would go on to defeat Grand Canyon and San Diego before falling in the third round of the tournament to Oregon State.
New Mexico proved to be one of the most dangerous teams during the 2020-21 season. The Lobos went 15-5 overall and 11-3 in Mountain West play to claim the regular season title. They would advance to the conference semi-finals before earning an automatic bid to the WNIT. That year, they ranked in the top-10 in the country in scoring offense, assist-turnover ratio and three-point field goals made per game.
“I am so very blessed and humbled to be joining the staff at the University of Memphis. It has always been a dream to work for one of the best head coaches in the business and her amazing staff that helps create a culture of respect, growth and winning, of course. I cannot wait to get started on this next chapter of my journey,” said Kabrina Merriweather.
Prior to her stint at New Mexico, Merriweather spent a season as a coach with the Indianapolis Bandits, a semi-professional basketball team. Preceding her stint with the Bandits, Merriweather as a was a teacher and basketball coach at alma mater, Tindley High School, in Indianapolis, Ind. for four years. She also spent eight years with The Family Inc., an AAU powerhouse, in various capacities, including serving as a coach.
A former forward for Florida A&M and Georgia Southwestern State from 2011-15, Merriweather earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in education in 2015. Despite a college career stunted by injury, Merriweather spent three years as a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
Merriweather had a highly decorated prep career, finishing her four years at Tindley High School with 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds.
“I know firsthand that we will benefit from Kabrina’s time working with Mike [Bradbury] and his tremendous staff at New Mexico. The bonus is that we learned the game from a player’s coach whose strength is player development, specifically, in the post,” said Katrina Merriweather.
