Utah's Lynne Roberts named finalist for Naismith Coach of the Year
Utah head coach Lynne Roberts was named one of four finalists for the Naismith Coach of the Year on Monday.
Roberts is looking to win her first national COY honor, joined on the list of finalists by Kenny Brooks (Virginia Tech), Teri Moren (Indiana), and two-time Naismith winner Dawn Staley (South Carolina). In her eighth season with the program, Roberts has led back-to-back 20-win seasons and back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths.
𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒓. @UtesCoachRob is one of 4️⃣ finalists for the 2023 @wernerladderco Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year
She’s got our vote 😉 #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/DAgJoFf7FS
— Utah Women’s Basketball (@UTAHWBB) March 20, 2023
Roberts helped the Utes to their first regular-season Pac-12 title in school history this year. Utah beat Stanford 84-78 at home on Feb. 25 to close out the regular season at 25-3 overall and 15-3 in the Pac-12.
The program earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, beat 15-seed Gardner Webb in the opening round last Friday, and then took down 10-seed Princeton on Sunday to advance to the Sweet 16. Doing so gave the program its first Sweet 16 appearance since the 2005-06 season and just its third overall.
The Pac-12 Coach of the Year, Roberts will look to lead the Utes into the Elite Eight when they take on 3-seed LSU on Friday.
The 2023 Werner Ladder Naismith Trophy for Women’s Coach of the Year will be awarded on Wednesday, March 29, at a press conference during the Women’s Final Four.