Marquette’s Smart named Associated Press National Coach of the Year

MILWAUKEE (Civic Media) – Marquette men’s basketball coach Shaka Smart has been named coach of the year by another national organization.

The Associated Press named Smart its National Coach of the Year, the first Marquette men’s basketball coach to receive the honor since Al McGuire in 1971.

Smart coached Marquette to a 29-7 finish and Big East Conference titles in both the regular season and conference tournament. The Golden Eagles were picked to finish ninth in the conference’s preseason poll.

BREAKING: Shaka Smart is the AP men's basketball coach of the year after leading Marquette to regular-season and Big East Tournament titles.https://t.co/MfxhaS2Bu8 pic.twitter.com/E3ygwQIKI7

— AP Top 25 (@AP_Top25) March 31, 2023

Marquette received a #2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, losing in the second round to Michigan State.

Smart is in his second year at Marquette after previous head coaching stops at Texas and VCU. A native of Wisconsin, Smart has a career record of 48-20 at Marquette and 320-162 overall across his three head coaching stops. Smart was previously named the 2023 Big East Coach of the Year and 2023 NABC Coach of the Year.