COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Texas A&M women’s basketball head coach Gary Blair was named a semifinalist for the 2021 Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Wednesday.
Blair led the Aggies to their first regular season SEC Championship this past Sunday after defeating No. 5 South Carolina, 65-57. The Hall of Famer also saw his team reach its highest Associated Press Top-25 ranking in program history, coming in at No. 2 in the latest installment. A&M leads the country in ranked wins (9) and is tied for the most total victories (22).
The Dallas native is fourth among active coaches in wins with 835, and he makes A&M one of only six schools in the country to have a national championship winning coach leading its program.
The award is in its 35th season with South Carolina’s Dawn Staley winning last year. Blair has been a finalist for the award twice in his career (2003, 2007). He is joined by 10 of the best coaches in the NCAA, including three from the Southeastern Conference.
