Kentucky’s former head women’s basketball coach and also the program’s winningest coach of all-time has found a new home after being away from the game for the last 5 seasons.
Matthew Mitchell, who spent 2007-2020 wearing the blue and white, announced his retirement from the game in November of 2020 due to a medical issue taking him away from the time needed to run a basketball program. At the time it wasn’t sure if he’d ever return to coaching or not, but today has confirmed that he in fact will make a return.
On Tuesday afternoon, news broke that he would be accepting the head coaching position at the University of Houston, becoming their 8th head coach in program history.
“We are thrilled to welcome Matthew Mitchell and his family to the University of Houston,” Nuñez said. “I am fully confident that Coach will build a nationally competitive basketball program composed of outstanding young women who will be proud to wear the Cougar uniform, who will earn their degrees and who will be wonderful representatives of the University in the community. He has a tremendous track record of success at every step in his career and leads with high character and integrity. Our Women’s Basketball program is in great hands and with continued support, we will soon be competing for championships!”
Mitchell has a career coaching record of 333-162 (67.3%) and a 303-133 record at UK during his 13 seasons there. He was also named SEC Coach of the Year twice (2010, 2012) during that stint.
The school announced that they will open to the public a ceremony to introduce him as the coach, taking place at the Fertitta Center at Noon on Tuesday, April 1st.
“I am incredibly excited and deeply grateful for the opportunity to become the Women’s Basketball head coach at the University of Houston,” Mitchell said. “This is a true honor—stepping into this role in a city with such a rich basketball history. I want to begin by extending my heartfelt thanks to President Renu Khator and Eddie Nuñez for their belief in me to elevate this program to compete at the highest level in the country. Their trust in me means the world, and I’m eager to begin this journey alongside them.”
To read the full press release from the university, click here.
Did you enjoy this article? If so, you can stay connected with the growing Cats Coverage site by following them on Facebook or X/Twitter to never miss another post!
Leave a Reply