Latest news with #Medved
CBS News
03-04-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
U of M will explore selling naming rights to Williams Arena
A new head coach might not be the only major change coming to University of Minnesota basketball. The school announced Thursday it will explore selling naming rights to Williams Arena, the nearly century-old facility that currently hosts men's and women's basketball, in addition to other sports. Williams, aka The Barn, opened in 1928 as the University of Minnesota Field House. Upon remodeling in 1950, it was renamed for Dr. Henry L. Williams, the U's football coach in the early 1900s. It has undergone several renovations since then, the most recent of which occurred in 2013. When the Gophers hired new men's basketball coach Niko Medved last month, he praised Williams as one of college basketball's best venues. Medved is well familiar with the arena, having attended games there as a child and started his coaching career as a student manager with the Gophers. "We play in a historic venue that, in my opinion, when it's right, is one of the best places to watch a game and be at a game in college basketball," Medved said. Still, he acknowledged "down the road" the arena may need "some things to try to modernize it." Medved said he hopes to make Williams "a strength of our program." The university gave no word on potential sponsors, but said it will partner with Independent Sports & Entertainment to seek a sponsorship partner. While the men's basketball program is adjusting to a new head coach, the women's team is celebrating a WBIT championship .
CBS News
27-03-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Colorado State replaces men's basketball head coach Niko Medved with top assistant Ali Farokhmanesh
Colorado State hired Niko Medved's top assistant to replace him as basketball coach following a quick 24-hour search. Ali Farokhmanesh, 36, was promoted Wednesday evening after Medved left Fort Collins earlier this week to coach at his alma mater, Minnesota. The hire provides some continuity for a program that was 143-85 under Medved and posted three 25-win seasons in the last four years. The Rams reached the NCAA Tournament three times in that span and reached the Round of 32 last weekend before a buzzer-beater by Maryland's Derik Queen denied them a trip to the Sweet 16. Farokhmanesh agreed to a five-year contract worth $4.5 million, according to the university. In a news release announcing the hire, CSU athletic director John Weber said, "I am thrilled that Ali will continue leading our men's basketball program, now as head coach." "Ali has a relentless attitude that he attacks each day with, which was important to us as we looked for the next leader of our men's basketball program," Weber added. "There has been significant interest in the head coach position at Colorado State. After an extremely comprehensive and competitive national search, Ali's continued leadership of this program is important and really excites me." Farokhmanesh spent the last eight years as Medved's assisant, first at Drake in 2017-18 before following him to Fort Collins. The Rams won the Mountain West Conference Tournament and upset Memphis in their NCAA opener this year. A day after that buzzer-beating heartbreaker, Medved announced he was leaving for his hometown school. This time, Farokhmanesh didn't follow him. "I can't wait to continue to build off the championship foundation our players have established and push it to greater heights," Farokhmanesh said in a statement released by the school. During his playing career, Farokhmanesh starred at Northern Iowa and hit winning 3-pointers against UNLV and No. 1-ranked Kansas in the 2010 NCAA Tournament.
Associated Press
27-03-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Colorado State tabs top assistant Ali Farokhmanesh to replace Niko Medved
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Colorado State hired Niko Medved's top assistant to replace him as basketball coach following a quick 24-hour search. Ali Farokhmanesh, 36, was promoted Wednesday evening after Medved left Fort Collins earlier this week to coach at his alma mater, Minnesota. The hire provides some continuity for a program that was 143-85 under Medved and posted three 25-win seasons in the last four years. The Rams reached the NCAA Touranment three times in that span and reached the Round of 32 last weekend before a buzzer-beater by Maryland's Derik Queen denied them a trip to the Sweet 16. Farokhmanesh agreed to a five-year contract worth $4.5 million, according to the university. In a news release announcing the hire, CSU athletic director John Weber said, 'I am thrilled that Ali will continue leading our men's basketball program, now as head coach.' 'Ali has a relentless attitude that he attacks each day with, which was important to us as we looked for the next leader of our men's basketball program,' Weber added. 'There has been significant interest in the head coach position at Colorado State. After an extremely comprehensive and competitive national search, Ali's continued leadership of this program is important and really excites me.' Farokhmanesh spent the last eight years as Medved's assisant, first at Drake in 2017-18 before following him to Fort Collins. The Rams won the Mountain West Conference Tournament and upset Memphis in their NCAA opener this year. A day after that buzzer-beating heartbreaker, Medved announced he was leaving for his hometown school. This time, Farokhmanesh didn't follow him. 'I can't wait to continue to build off the championship foundation our players have established and push it to greater heights,' Farokhmanesh said in a statement released by the school. During his playing career, Farokhmanesh starred at Northern Iowa and hit winning 3-pointers against UNLV and No. 1-ranked Kansas in the 2010 NCAA Tournament.
Reuters
27-03-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Colorado State tabs assistant Ali Farokhmanesh as new head coach
March 27 - Colorado State promoted lead assistant Ali Farokhmanesh to head coach on Wednesday to replace the departed Niko Medved. Farokhmanesh was on the Rams' staff for all seven seasons of the Medved era. Medved exited for the Minnesota job after Colorado State sustained a last-second setback to Maryland in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Rams were 143-85 with three NCAA Tournament appearances and an NIT Final Four appearance in those seven seasons. They were 26-10 this season. "Serving under Coach Medved has been a privilege, and I will forever be grateful to him for bringing me to Fort Collins," Farokhmanesh said in a news release. "This university and state are special because of the great people. I am grateful for all who have been so welcoming and supportive of me and my family during our time here and look forward to continuing to grow those bonds in our community. "I can't wait to continue to build off the championship foundation our players have established and push it to greater heights." Farokhmanesh, 36, is a March Madness legend for the ages, stemming from his performance in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. In the first round, he buried a 3-pointer from the left wing with 4.9 seconds left to give Northern Iowa a 69-66 victory over UNLV. Two days later, he played a major role in helping Northern Iowa defeat top-seeded Kansas 69-67 to reach the Sweet 16. He received a pass on a fast break with his team leading by one and stopped on the right flank and sank a dagger 3-pointer with 34 seconds left. Now the guy famous for hitting big shots gets his shot to run a Division I program. "I am thrilled that Ali will continue leading our men's basketball program, now as head coach," Rams athletic director John Weber said in the news release. "Ali has a relentless attitude that he attacks each day with, which was important to us as we looked for the next leader of our men's basketball program. After an extremely comprehensive and competitive national search, Ali's continued leadership of this program is important and really excites me. His ability to connect with people has made him successful throughout his career." Farokhmanesh made 152 3-pointers and averaged 9.7 points over his two seasons at Northern Iowa.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Niko Medved's first recruiting win: Isaac Asuma remains a Gopher
New Gophers men's basketball coach Niko Medved held an important, private meeting with young point guard Isaac Asuma and his parents on Tuesday. This was in addition to his very public news conference held in front of hundreds on U's practice court at noon, with many more streaming online. With the Asumas, Medved made it clear one of his first orders of business is that he wants the Cherry, Minn., product to remain at Minnesota for his sophomore season. 'He's got an incredibly bright future,' Medved told the Pioneer Press on Wednesday morning. 'I think he is our kind of guy. I think he has the same values that I share and I think it would be a great match.' Advertisement Asuma shared his decision Wednesday afternoon: He's staying at the U. 'Minnesota is home,' he posted on social media. 'Can't wait to get started building for next season!' Asuma, who was present for Medved's introduction Tuesday, showed promise during his freshman season, averaging 5.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 24.7 minutes last season. Like most freshmen, his first season was up and down. Big games, followed by some lackluster outings. Sometimes back to back, including 18 points and one turnover in 40 minutes in the home loss to Ohio State, followed by zero points and three turnovers in 14 minutes in the road defeat at Wisconsin. But it appears clear the 6-foot-3 guard has the right ingredients — including an aptitude to be a top defender in the Big Ten Conference. Medved thought the meeting 'went really, really well. I know it's clear to Isaac how I feel about him and I want him to really be a part of this and think we can do great things.' Advertisement Asuma was the key piece in former coach Ben Johnson's high school recruiting class last year. He has shown a loyalty to the Gophers and his brother, Noah, is a Gopher baseball commit in the 2026 class. Incoming freshmen? The future is murkier for the Gophers' 2025 recruiting class. Under Johnson, the U signed center Parker Jefferson of Waxahachie, Texas, and guards Kai Sinholster of Philadelphia and Jacob Ross of Bristol, Va. 'I think those are ones that we have to determine,' Medved said. 'I don't know those guys yet. I think I want to make sure that anyone who's going to come to our program understands what we value and who I am.' Advertisement Medved, however, didn't rule out them joining his team this summer. 'I don't want anyone coming here under any false pretenses, but if it works for those guys, I'd love to have them,' Medved said. 'Everything has happened so fast here. We haven't had time to do all that yet.' Forward Frank Mitchell, who entered the transfer portal after Johnson's firing, committed to St. Bonaventure on Tuesday. It's unclear the status of other players with remaining eligibility, primarily guard Brennan Rigsby and forward Kadyn Betts. Both of them attended Medved's news conference Tuesday. Related Articles
