Fernandez is one of 10 coaches nationwide to make the finalist list.
TAMPA (March 24, 2021) – Fresh off the program’s fifth appearance in the NCAA Tournament Second Round, University of South Florida head women’s basketball coach Jose Fernandez ended the 2020-21 campaign as a finalist for the 2021 United States Marine Corps/WBCA NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year, the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association announced on Wednesday. North Carolina State head coach Wes Moore was the recipient of this year’s award.
Fernandez, who just completed his 21st season as head coach at USF, guided the Bulls to a 19-4 overall record and a 13-2 mark in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) this season, while also leading the Green and Gold to the program’s first American Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament titles. He accomplished all this while navigating the challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic that included a 31-day pause in program activities for his team. Before the extended layoff, USF took then-No. 4-ranked Baylor to the brink of defeat before falling to the Lady Bears, 67-62; and just one game later defeated No. 6 Mississippi State, 67-63 in overtime.
During the 2020-21 campaign, South Florida went on a program-record 13-game winning streak – the seventh-longest in the nation at the time – and also won a program-best 12 consecutive AAC games. USF also achieved the highest ranking in program history, checking in at No. 12 in the Feb. 15 Associated Press Top 25 poll.
For his career, Fernandez boasts a 392-276 record in 21 seasons at the helm of the USF program, which includes nine 20-win seasons, 10-straight seasons with at least 19 wins, and 14 seasons total with 19-plus wins. Including this season, the Bulls have made 16 trips to the postseason, including seven NCAA Tournament appearances and winning the 2009 WNIT championship.
USF, an eight-seed in the NCAA Tournament, advanced to this year’s Round of 32 with a 57-53 win over ninth-seeded Washington State on March 21.
2021 United States Marine Corps/WBCA NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year Finalists
Amaka Agugua-Hamilton, Missouri State University
Adia Barnes, University of Arizona
Cori Close, University of California, Los Angeles
Jose Fernandez, University of South Florida
Brenda Frese, University of Maryland
Wes Moore, North Carolina State University
Kim Mulkey, Baylor University
Dawn Staley, University of South Carolina
Joni Taylor, University of Georgia
Jeff Walz, University of Louisville
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USF notched its ninth consecutive 19-win season and was poised for its ninth straight postseason appearance in 2019-20 before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the end of the college basketball season. The Bulls celebrated two all-conference honorees in Elena Tsineke and Elisa Pinzan. Tsineke was named the American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year, in addition to The American All-Freshman Team and Third Team All-Conference; while Pinzan was named a Third Team All-Conference selection.
USF has made 15 postseason tournament appearances and had six NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 20 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to nine 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship and won more than 350 games.
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