TicketsApril 4, 2007
, --J. Kelley Hall, head coach at the of at for the last five years, has been named the new head coach of the women's basketball program, Director of Athletics Mike Thomas announced today. Hall is considered one of the top recruiters in the nation and brings with him a winning system which has been developed in some of the most competitive regions of women's college basketball.
"I am elated to have a chance to be the coach at UC - it is a dream come true. To be able to coach in the BIG EAST and to have the chance to compete against the best in the nation, night in, night out, is all that you want as a coach," says Hall. "Our family is excited to be coming to and to work to bring other families into the fold with UC women's basketball.
"After seeing the facilities and meeting the administration I am convinced that once we get a kid on campus they will choose to be a part of the Bearcat program."
Hall's career coaching highlights include guiding his teams to six NCAA Tournaments, one WNIT appearance, while coaching six all-Americans, 10 all-Southeastern Conference student-athletes, and one NCAA scoring champion. Hall's career record as a head coach stands at 290-118, a wining percentage of .711.
"Kelley's energy, experience, and desire are all qualities that shot him to the top of our search process," says Thomas. "His insatiable desire to compete and win, coupled with his strong commitment to education, will push Bearcat women's basketball to the top of the BIG EAST Conference. As with our other head coaching searches, we have made it a priority to find a proven head coach who can bring vision, passion and stability to our UC Athletics Family.
"To be a winning program in the BIG EAST, you have to be very aggressive not only on the court, but also on the recruiting trail and I am sure that Kelley will build a first-class staff and hit the road hard, starting this spring," adds Thomas. "I am confident that with Kelley, his wife Meredith, and their family, we have UC women's basketball in terrific hands for a long time to come."
Hall's wife, Meredith (Sisson) Hall, has served on her husband's staff in the past, including four season's as a volunteer assistant coach, and this past season as the co-head coach. The former standout was a two-time team captain for the Rams, and later played for a season in the WNBA with the Washington Mystics.
One of Hall's most impressive statistics as a coach has nothing to do with results on the court, but in the classroom. His recruited student-athletes at UL-Lafayette have recorded a 100-percent graduation rate.
"Of the players we have had in our program, if you stay with us for four years, you are going to graduate," Hall said. "The kids who have come through our program have a graduation rate of 100 percent and that holds true for the seniors currently on our team. I know that moving forward at UC, our top priority be to marry winning on the court and with success in the classroom."
Hall's national recruiting base was developed during coaching stops at , as Associate Head Coach & Recruiting Coordinator (2000-02), and Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator positions at (1996-2000), Cal State Fullerton (1994-96), (1992-94), the of (1983-84), and (1982-83).
Hall's 2006-07 squad, which was picked to finish third in the Sun Belt Conference's West Division, finished 25-9, winning the Sun Belt West Division title, and accepted a rare mid-major at-large berth in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. It was the first-ever NCAA Tournament invitation in UL-Lafayette history.
One of the highlights from the past season came when the Ragin' Cajuns traveled to the 's Thanksgiving Tournament and won the championship, defeating the Gamecocks by 15 on the SEC team's home hardwood. That win was one of the UL women's basketball program school record-tying 13 road wins and helped the team reach a new school record for single-season wins (25).
The 2005 Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year, Hall is the all-time winningest coach in at Layfayette women's basketball history. Hall took over at UL-Lafayette in 2002-03 and inherited a program with a 300+ RPI rating and since built Louisiana-Lafayette into a top 60 RPI program this past season. From 1990 to 2000, the Cajuns averaged four wins a season. In Hall's first two seasons the UL program was 21-34 but since has posted a mark of 65-28.
Over the last five seasons Hall's Cajuns have set eight individual and 12 team records, including most victories in a season (25, 2006-07), most home wins in a season (13, 2004-05), most consecutive home wins in a season (13, 2004-05), and most consecutive home wins overall, notching 22-straight wins from February 5, 2004 through January 5, 2006.
Over his quarter century of coaching, Hall has been a proven winner, posting 19 winning seasons -- 13 of which included 20-plus victories.
Under Hall's direction the Ragin' Cajuns have either finished first or second in their Sun Belt Division over the past four seasons, including Sun Belt West Division titles in 2005 and 2007, and second-place finishes during the 2004 and 2006 seasons.
The , native honed his X's and O's as a head coach in the highly competitive junior college ranks of the . Hall averaged 26 wins per year during a seven-year stint as the head coach at , while also capturing three state championships and four second-place finishes. In 1984-85, Hall helped start the women's basketball program at where he led the team to a first-year record of 19-7.
Regarded as one of the finest defensive coaches in the women's college game, Hall favors a very aggressive match-up zone. Over the Cajuns' last 147 games, UL-Lafayette held the opposition to 58.7 ppg on 36.3 percent shooting.
This past season the Louisiana's Ragin' Cajuns finished the season ranked eighth nationally in rebound margin (+9.3), 18th in field goal percentage defense (35.7), and 40th in won-loss percentage (.735).
Over the past five seasons Hall has coached three players to 1,000 career points, with two more players returning next season who have already massed over 700 career points. Hall has also coached one Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year, three Sun Belt Conference Newcomers of the Year, and three first-team all-Sun Belt performers.
Hall and his wife Meredith have two daughters, Brynley Michele and Jordyn Kelley.