ATLANTA — Pokey Chatman, the head coach of the LSU Lady Tigers basketball team, was selected as the RUSSELL ATHLETIC/Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year, it was announced on Monday.
Chatman, who is in her first year as head coach of the Lady Tigers, was also named Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year, Naismith Coach of the Year and the United States Basketball Writers Association’s Coach of the Year. This season, Chatman guided the Lady Tigers to a 27-1 regular season record and the program’s first SEC regular season championship. Chatman made history as the first first-year coach to record a perfect 14-0 record in the SEC.
Chatman and the Lady Tigers (32-2) face Duke on Monday night in the Chattanooga Regional final for the right to advance to the Final Four.
“Pokey is truly deserving of this honor, her dedication to her student-athletes and the game of basketball makes her an excellent choice for this honor,” said WBCA CEO, Beth Bass. “On behalf of the WBCA, we are thrilled to present her with this award.”
Chatman had previously spent 13 seasons on the Lady Tiger staff as an associate coach. During the 2003-04 season, Chatman became the most famous associate coach in the country when she took on the role of acting head coach in Sue Gunter’s absence and lead the Lady Tigers to their first 2004 NCAA Division I Women’s Final Four in their home state. She earned the 2004 Black Coaches Association’s National Coach of the Year honors for her efforts in relief.
Chatman is one of six WBCA National Coaches of the Year selected by the Association, which also names winners for each of the other four WBCA collegiate divisions (NCAA Divisions II and III, NAIA and JC/CC) plus High School. Each collegiate winner is selected through a two-level process. The first level is by region, in which coaches from each WBCA geographical region vote for their respective top coach. Chatman, having received the most votes in WBCA Region 3-Mideast, advanced as a finalist to the national level of the selection process along with the other seven Regional Coaches of the Year in NCAA Division I.
The national winners from the other five divisions, including Chatman, will be presented to the WBCA membership at the RUSSELL ATHLETIC/WBCA National Coach of the Year Luncheon on Tuesday, April 5 at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown. The luncheon is part of the 2005 WBCA National Convention, held in conjunction with the NCAA Division I Women’s Final Four in Indianapolis.
Founded in 1981, the WBCA promotes women’s basketball by unifying coaches at all levels to develop a reputable identity for the sport and to foster and promote the development of the game in all of its aspects as an amateur sport for women and girls. For more information about the WBCA, please visit WBCA.org.