Texas Southern Coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke Retires

Texas Southern University athletics department announced the retirement of the women's head basketball coach.

Kyle T. Mosley | Mar 17, 2022

Texas Southern University athletics department announced the retirement of the women's head basketball coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke.

The college basketball and WNBA legend coached her last basketball game with TSU in the 2022 SWAC Women's Basketball Tournament. The Lady Tigers lost a close contest 68-67 in the tournament's opening round to Southern University.

In the postgame press conference, Cooper-Dyke wanted to re-evaluate her program and "refocus" on next season.

In 2021-22, Cooper-Dyke guided the team to a 11-15, 11-76 SWAC record and 56-47 overall record at Texas Southern.

Official Announcement from Texas Southern University

Coach Cooper-Dyke has had a tremendous impact on TSU women's basketball since her arrival and moved the program to new heights," said Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Kevin Granger. "She will be missed as I wish her nothing but success in her future endeavors."

Cooper-Dyke spent a total of four seasons at TSU as she was in her second stint. She leaves TSU as the third-winningest head coach in school history (56) as she won the school's first-ever SWAC Regular Season Championship during her first season (2012-13) while also becoming the first head coach to win 20 games in a season at TSU. The Tigers made their first-ever postseason appearance under Cooper-Dyke as she led them to the 2013 Postseason Women's NIT.

She coached three seasons during her second stint (2019-22) and had another immediate impact with a second-place finish after the 2019-20 campaign as TSU advanced past the first round of the SWAC Tournament for the first time since 2018. TSU had one of its best preseason performances in program history with five wins over teams from mid-major conferences. In December of 2019, TSU's NCAA RPI rating was 62 and the fourth-highest in the state of Texas.

TSU bounced back from COVID-19 in its third season under Cooper-Dyke and finished with double-digit wins and had one of the most explosive lineups in the conference as it featured two of the top five scorers in the SWAC while also having a student-athlete rank in the top five in eight of the SWAC's nine statistical categories.

Cooper-Dyke leaves TSU having coached six All-SWAC performers during her four seasons highlighted by one Freshman of the Year in 2013 and Player of the Year (2020).

Granger will handle the day-to-day duties of the women's program until a new hire is made.

Published Mar 17, 2022

KYLE T. MOSLEY

I am Kyle T. Mosley, the Founder, Managing Editor, and Chief Reporter for the HBCU Legends, Saints News Network, and Pelicans Scoop on FanNation a Sports Illustrated team channel since October 2019. Morehouse Alum, McDonogh #35 Roneagles (NOLA), Drum Major of the Tenacious Four. My Father, Mother, Grandmother, Aunts and Uncles were HBCU graduates! Host of "Blow the Whistle" HBCU Legends, "The Quad" with Coach Steward, and "Bayou Blitz" Podcasts. Radio/Media Appearances: WWL AM/FM Radio in New Orleans (Mike Detillier/Bobby Hebert), KCOH AM 1230 in Houston (Ralph Cooper), WBOK AM in New Orleans (Reggie Flood/Ro Brown), and 103.7FM "The Game" (Jordy Hultberg/Clint Domingue), College Kickoff Unlimited (Emory Hunt), Jeff Lightsly Show, and Offscript TV on YouTube. Television Appearance: Fox26 in Houston on The Isiah Carey Factor, College Kickoff Unlimited (Emory Hunt). My Notable Interviews: Byron Allen (Media Mogul), Deion Sanders (Jackson State University, Head Coach), Tomekia Reed (Jackson State Lady Tigers Basketball Coach), Taylor Rooks (NBA Reporter), Swin Cash (VP of Basketball - New Orlean Pelicans), Demario and Tamala Davis (NFL Player), Jerry Rice (Hall of Famer), Doug Williams (HBCU & NFL Legend), Emmitt Smith (Hall of Famer), James "Shack" Harris (HBCU & NFL Legend), Cris Carter (Hall of Famer), Solomon Wilcots (SiriusXM NFL Host), Steve Wyche (NFL Network), Jim Trotter (NFL Network), Travis Williams (Founder of HBCU All-Stars, LLC), Malcolm Jenkins (NFL Player), Cam Jordan (NFL), Demario Davis (NFL), Allan Houston (NBA All-Star), Drew Brees (Former NFL QB), Deuce McAllister (Former NFL RB), Willie Roaf (NFL Hall of Fame), Jim Everett (Former NFL Player), Quinn Early (Former NFL Player), Dr. Reef (NFL Players' Trainer Specialist), Nataria Holloway (VP of the NFL). I am building a new team of journalists, podcasters, videographers, and interns. For media requests, interviews, or interest in joining HBCU Legends, please contact me at kmosley@hbcusi.com. Follow me: