Week 16: WHoopDirt.com Coach of the Week presented by Capital Elite Agency

By AJ Nelson, WHoopDirt.com staff writer

Congratulations to the following coaches who have been selected as the Week 16 WHoopDirt.com Coach of the Week presented by Capital Elite Agency. These coaches are now eligible to receive the WHoopDirt.com National Coach of the Year Award presented by Capital Elite Agency which will be announced at the conclusion of the 2021-22 college basketball season.

This is the third season that WHoopDirt.com has run the Coach of the Week and Coach of the Year programs. The list of 2021-22 Coach of the Week winners, as well as previous Coach of the Year winners can be found below this week’s recipients.

To nominate coaches for future weeks, please email [email protected] with your selection(s).

The Week 16 winners are:


NCAA DI: Kim Mulkey – Louisiana State University

Guiding her squad to two more impressive victories to close out the regular season this week, Coach Mulkey has completed the largest turnaround by a first-year coach in SEC history. The then-No. 8 Tigers, coming off a 9-13 season and picked to finish eighth in the SEC during the preseason, defeated Alabama by a score of 58-50 in their final home game of the season on Thursday. LSU then concluded the regular season with a 57-54 road win over No. 16 Tennessee on Sunday. With the victories, Mulkey’s squad heads into postseason play ranked 6th in the nation with a record of 25-4 (13-3 SEC). Prior to this year, the Tigers had not won 25 games in the regular season the 2007-08 campaign. As the 2-seed in the SEC Tournament, LSU will play the winner of Kentucky-Mississippi State on Friday night.


NCAA DII: Janice Washington – Lincoln University (PA)

2122WBB_Head_JaniceWashington In her first year at the helm, Coach Washington has led Lincoln to its first ever CIAA Tournament Championship.  As the CIAA’s top seed, Lincoln faced off against 8th-seeded Winston-Salem State in a quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday. The Lions found themselves in a tie game entering the fourth quarter, but were able to come away with a 70-66 victory and advance to the semifinals on Friday. Lincoln was able to take care of business against 12th-seeded Livingstone, leading by 16 at the half en route to a 74-48 triumph and setting up a matchup with 2-seed Elizabeth City State in Saturday’s Championship game. The Lions used a strong fourth quarter to pull away from ECSU, securing a 67-52 victory and a National Tournament berth. Lincoln (22-7, 12-4 CIAA) will find out who it matches up against in the first round of the Tournament on Sunday night.


NCAA DIII: Lynn Hersey – Smith College

lh Coach Hersey’s Pioneers cruised through the NEWMAC Tournament this past week, picking up a pair of 20+ point victories. Top-seeded Smith, ranked No. 17 in the nation at the time, outscored 4th-seeded WPI 21-4 in the second quarter of a 63-35 victory in Friday’s semifinal matchup. Returning to action on Sunday, the Pioneers put on another strong defensive performance, holding No. 2 seed Babson to just 26.5% from the field in a 68-46 triumph to claim the Tournament Championship and secure their third consecutive National Tournament berth. Now 23-2 (9-0 NEWMAC) on the season and riding an eight-game winning streak, Smith will host Framingham State in the first round of the National Tournament on Friday night.


NAIA: Toby Wagoner – Reinhardt University

Coach Wagoner guided Reinhardt to four wins in six days to capture the AAC Tournament Championship this past week. The Eagles, who entered the Tournament as the 5-seed, jumped out to a 17-point first quarter lead and never looked back against 12th-seeded Brenau on Monday, coming away with an 88-71 victory. Returning to action on Thursday, Reinhardt held 4-seed Tennessee Wesleyan to just 10 made field goals (10-55, 18.2%) in a 63-42 triumph. The Eagles then faced off against 9th-seeded Bryan in the semifinals the following day, taking a convincing 77-64 victory and advancing to the Championship game. Matched up against No. 2 seed Milligan, Reinhardt was able to secure a 72-57 win and the Tournament Championship thanks largely to a 22-4 second quarter. Now 20-13 (15-9 AAC) on the season, the Eagles enter the National Tournament riding a nine game winning streak. They will find out their first round matchup on Thursday evening.


JUCO: Tim McMahon – Edison State Community College

Tim McMahon With four more victories this past week, Coach McMahon and Edison State were able to complete a perfect regular season. The 18th-ranked Chargers opened the week with a pair of blowouts – defeating Clark State 99-36 on Monday and Terra State 101-44 on Wednesday. Edison State’s final two contests were more closely-contested, as the Chargers picked up an 88-80 victory over Bryant & Stratton on Saturday and an 86-78 victory over Lakeland Community College in the regular season finale the following day. The 27-0 Chargers averaged 96.1 points per game and took all but three of their victories by double-digits in what was a dominant regular season.


2021-22 HoopDirt.com / Capital Elite Agency Coach of the Week Winners

Week 1

NCAA DI: Anita Howard – Georgia Southern University
NCAA DII: Caleb and Nicole Neiman – Kentucky Wesleyan University
NCAA DIII: Courtney Burns – Mitchell College (CT)
NAIA: Janis Beal – The College of Idaho
JUCO: Mike Seney – CCBC Essex

Week 2

NCAA DI: Shereka Wright – Texas Arlington
NCAA DII: Steve Gomez – Lubbock Christian University (TX)
NCAA DIII: Dan Nagle – Nichols College (MA)
NAIA: David Smalley – University of Rio Grande (OH)
JUCO: Stephanie Murphy – Coahoma CC (MS)

Week 3

NCAA DI: Jose Fernandez – University of South Florida
NCAA DII: Steve Gomez – Carmen Dolfo – Western Washington University
NCAA DIII: Sasha Santimano – Bowdoin College
NAIA: Jeff Hans – Thomas More University
JUCO: Patrick Cunningham – Arizona Western College

Week 4

NCAA DI: Ty Grace – Howard University
NCAA DII: Carrie Eighmey – University of Nebraska at Kearney
NCAA DIII: Brian Morehouse – Hope College
NAIA: Bryon Lawhorn – Bryan College
JUCO: Jeremy Thompson – Monroe College-Bronx

Week 5

NCAA DI: Nell Fortner – Georgia Tech
NCAA DII: Emilee Thiesse – Minnesota State University, Mankato
NCAA DIII: Michelle Ferenz – Whitman College
NAIA: Jesse Ford – Indiana University Northwest
JUCO: Marbely Montas – Union County College

Week 6

NCAA DI: Joni Taylor – University of Georgia
NCAA DII: Jason Burton – Texas A&M Commerce
NCAA DIII: Kole Vivian – Marietta College
NAIA: Courtney Boyd – Clarke University
JUCO: Rich Cooper – Rowan College South Jersey-Gloucester

Week 7

NCAA DI: Dawn Staley – University of South Carolina
NCAA DII: D2 winter break – no games played
NCAA DIII: Todd Kent – UC Santa Cruz
NAIA: Not enough games played (winter break + COVID cancellations)
JUCO: Not enough games played (winter break + COVID cancellations)

Week 8

NCAA DI: Robin Pingeton – University of Missouri
NCAA DII: Michael Madrid – Texas A&M Kingsville
NCAA DIII: Deena Applebury – University of Mary Washington
NAIA: Dan Davis – Grace College
JUCO: James Frey – South Georgia Tech

Week 9

NCAA DI: Wes Moore – North Carolina State University
NCAA DII: Tony Hobson – Fort Hays State University
NCAA DIII: Sarah Lombard – Hartwick College
NAIA: Hannah Moeller – Mid-American Christian University
JUCO: Penny Belford – Pensacola State College

Week 10

NCAA DI: Jeff Walz – University of Louisville
NCAA DII: Cedric Baker – Savannah State University
NCAA DIII: Alison Montgomery – Bates College
NAIA: K.C. Basset – Sterling College
JUCO: Letitia Hughley – Mott Community College

Week 11

NCAA DI: Kelly Rae Finley – University of Florida
NCAA DII: Jeri Porter – Francis Marion University
NCAA DIII: Mike Miller – Messiah University
NAIA: Anji Weissenfluh – Eastern Oregon University
JUCO: Stephen Perry – Owens Community College

Week 12

NCAA DI: Niele Ivey – Notre Dame
NCAA DII: Kim Stephens – Glenville State College
NCAA DIII: Juli Fulks – Transylvania University
NAIA: Chad Folsom – Benedictine College (KS)
JUCO: Randy Rogers – College of Southern Idaho

Week 13

NCAA DI: Jacie Hoyt – Kansas City
NCAA DII: Justin Payne – Georgia Southwestern State
NCAA DIII: Emily Garner – Trinity College
NAIA: Steve Brooks – Marian University
JUCO: Madonna Thompson – Shelton State CC

Week 14

NCAA DI: Bandon Schneider – University of Kansas
NCAA DII: Kari Pickens – Ashland University
NCAA DIII: Bill Broderick – Christopher Newport University
NAIA: Danielle Fleming – Columbia International University
JUCO: Trenia Tillis Hoard – Tyler Junior College

Week 15

NCAA DI: Yolett McPhee-McCuin – Ole Miss
NCAA DII: Jim Connolly – Chestnut Hill College
NCAA DIII: Blake Arbogast – East Texas Baptist University
NAIA: Taylor Possail – Columbia College
JUCO: Darryl Watkins – Rock Valley College


All-time WHoopDirt.com Coach of the Year winners:

Division I

Division II

Division III

NAIA

JUCO

  • 2020-21: No winner named – COVID season
  • 2019-20: Cayla Petree – South Plains College (TX)

Capital Elite Agency provides college basketball coaches in the country with counsel, advocacy, interview preparation, and contract negotiation.  Our goal is to be a trusted agent and advisor for every step a college basketball coach takes throughout their professional journey.  Visit us at www.capitaleliteagency.com to learn more about how we may be able to help you “Prepare to Advance” in your career.

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