Mike Carey Named a Semifinalist for Naismith Women's Coach of the Year

WVU head coach Mike Carey recognized as one of the best coaches in the nation.

West Virginia University women’s basketball coach Mike Carey has been named a semifinalist for the Werner Ladder Naismith Women's Coach of the Year award, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Wednesday.

Carey is one of 10 coaches selected as a semifinalist for the honor, including the only coach from the Big 12 Conference. The full list of honorees can be seen below.

The winningest coach in program history, Mike Carey is in his 20th season coaching the Mountaineers and holds a record of 428-221 at WVU. During the 2020-21 campaign, Carey has led West Virginia to 18 wins, the most since the 2018-19 season. He also has guided WVU to 12 victories within the Big 12 Conference for the first time since 2015-16, when the Mountaineers also won 12 league games.

Carey also has led West Virginia to a win over then-No. 17 Texas on Jan. 9, and Tennessee, who currently ranks No. 14 in the Associated Press Top-25 Poll. He also has gone 5-3 against opponents who rank inside the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) Top 50 this season.

Earlier this season, Carey secured his 700th career victory after defeating LSU, 62-42, on Nov. 28, in the South Point Thanksgiving Shootout. In his 33 seasons of coaching, the Clarksburg, West Virginia, native has amassed a career record of 716-322.

During his time at West Virginia, Carey has been honored as the Big 12 Coach of the Year in 2014, after the Mountaineers won a share of the league’s regular-season title, and the Big East Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2010. In 2017, Carey led the Mountaineers to its first Big 12 Conference Tournament championship in an upset over No. 2 Baylor.

Coach School (Conference)

Geno Auriemma UConn (AAC)

Adia Barnes Arizona (Pac-12)

Gary Blair Texas A&M (SEC)

Mike Carey West Virginia (Big 12)

Jose Fernandez USF (AAC)

Brenda Frese Maryland (Big Ten)

Wes Moore North Carolina State (ACC)

Joni Taylor Georgia (SEC)

Tara VanDerveer Stanford (Pac-12)

Jeff Walz Louisville (ACC)