After crashing out of the First Four in the NCAA Tournament last year, Texas Longhorns athletic director Chris Del Conte decided the program needed an upgrade from coach Rodney Terry. The AD turned to the man that had just knocked the Horns out of the tourney, Xavier’s Sean Miller.
A coach with longtime success, Miller’s impact is taking hold at Texas. While the team in his first year is far from perfect, Miller looks to be getting the most out of his team at the right time. And if his history is any indication, the Longhorns could find themselves in the Sweet 16.
Miller is a perfect 9-0 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. That streak goes back a long time at Xavier and Arizona.
Miller was in his second stint at Xavier when Texas hired him. After successfully coaching Xavier in the early 2000s, Miller took the job at Arizona, where he coached for 12 years. But Miller and the Wildcats were involved in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men’s basketball corruption scandal, and Miller was fired in Tucson.
Miller was 120-47 (.719) in five seasons at Xavier from 2005-09, including Miller’s first Elite Eight appearance in 2008 and a Sweet 16 in 2009. In 12 seasons at Arizona , Miller was 302-109 (.735) with Elite Eight appearances in 2011, 2014 and 2015 and Sweet 16 appearances in 2013 and 2017. Miller was 65-40 (.619) in his return to Cincinnati, including a 2023 Sweet 16 appearance that ended with a loss to Terry and Texas.
This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Miller Time: Texas coach puts perfect Round 2 record on the line
Reporting by Trey Luerssen, Longhorns Wire / Longhorns Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
