TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — South Florida hired Chris Mack as its basketball coach on Wednesday.
Mack leaves the College of Charleston, where he went 45-20 over the past two seasons. He has a career record of 323-153 over 15 seasons, including a dozen 20-win seasons and nine NCAA Tournament appearances.
Mack replaces Bryan Hodgson, who led USF to the NCAA Tournament this season. The Bulls lost 83-79 to Louisville — one of Mack's former stops — in the first round
before Hodgson took took the job at Providence.
“I am truly excited for the opportunity to lead a South Florida basketball program that’s on an exceptional trajectory and to join a university and athletic department defined by strong leadership, shared aspirations, and tremendous alignment,” Mack said in a statement.
Mack coached Xavier from 2009 to 2018 and made four trips to the Sweet 16 and one Elite Eight appearance. He was runner-up for AP Coach of the Year in 2016 behind Kansas' Bill Self.
He coached Louisville from 2018 to 2022, with an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2019. The Cardinals reached No. 1 in the AP poll for two weeks during the 2019-20 season, which was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. Mack was fired midway through the 2022 season after a 6-8 start.
___
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
