Belmont Athletics named Bart Brooks as the fifth head women’s basketball coach in program history Monday.
Brooks, who was the former assistant coach at DePaul University replaces Cameron Newbauer, who announced his move to the University of Florida in March.
“We are extremely excited that Bart has accepted our offer to lead our women’s basketball program,” said Director of Athletics Scott Corley in a statement. “Bart embodies everything we were looking for in a candidate: high character, enthusiasm, passion for the players, and winning pedigree on the court. He is the right person to lead this program and build upon the incredible momentum it has achieved.”
During Brooks’ 11 years at DePaul, the Blue Demons made the NCAA Tournament every season, making them one of only six NCAA Division I women’s programs to make 15 NCAA Tournament appearances in a row.
Brooks coached 32 Big East Conference student athletes, including the past three Big East Player of the Year recipients and five WNBA draft choices.
Brooks comes to a Belmont women’s basketball team who is 51-15 over its last two seasons, including consecutive trips to NCAA Tournament and Ohio Valley Conference championships.
“I love coach Brooks,” said freshman guard Paris Lawson. “After talking with him for the hour that we got to talk to him, he seems super passionate and energetic, and that is exactly what we need for our program. He matches our energy, passion and enthusiasm, so it should be really awesome. I am really excited about it.”
Both Brooks and the team hope to build on the momentum of the past two seasons and continue to grow the women’s basketball program.
“I think he’s going to bring a lot of intensity in all aspects of the game,” said junior center Sally McCabe. “I think he is going to be intense when he coaches us, and he’s going to want us to be intense while we are out there, which makes it really fun. It’s going to be a fast game, and people aren’t going to want to play us, and that’s the fun part.”
Both the teams and the athletics department are looking forward to the year ahead and to both the experience and the values that Brooks brings to the court.
“I love him,” said sophomore guard Darby Maggard. “I think Brooks is a real family man, but he is also really passionate about basketball. I think that those two things, along with his amazing spiritual walk, are going to be great for Belmont, and I think they are going to be great for our team too.”
Photo courtesy of Belmont Athletics Department
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