Auburn's Bruce Pearl named finalist for Naismith Coach of the Year award
Bruce Pearl is ready to lead Auburn to its first NCAA Tournament national championship. However, he could end the season by hoisting more than one trophy.
Auburn's head man was recently named a finalist for the Naismith Men's Coach of the Year due to leading the program to new heights this season. He joins Duke's Jon Scheyer, St. John's Rick Pitino, and Houston's Kelvin Sampson on the shortlist for the prestigious award.
Pearl led the Tigers to its fourth-straight NCAA Tournament this season, its first-ever as the No. 1 overall seed. Pearl also set new records this season. He has led Auburn to six NCAA Tournament appearances since taking the job ahead of the 2014-15 season, the most by any Auburn head coach. He also became Auburn's all-time winningest head coach this season by winning his 214th game as the Tigers head coach in the Jan. 7 win at Texas this season to pass Joel Eaves on the all-time wins list.
Pearl joins Scheyer and Sampson as head coaches remaining in the NCAA Tournament. Auburn advanced to the Sweet 16 by defeating Creighton on Saturday, 82-70 behind strong performances from Chad Baker-Mazara and Tahaad Pettiford. The Tigers will meet Michigan on Friday in the Tigers' second Sweet 16 appearance under Pearl.
The winner of the Naismith Coach of the Year will be announced on Sunday, April 6. Fans can begin voting for Pearl on Tuesday, March 25, where fan voting will account for 5% of the total votes.
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