The Kansas State Wildcats have hired Casey Alexander as the replacement for Jerome Tang
The Kansas State Wildcats basketball program has finally found a replacement for Jerome Tang.
On Friday, it announced Casey Alexander will take over the program after the recent decision to move in a different direction from Tang.
“We couldn’t be more excited to announce Casey Alexander as the next head men’s basketball coach at K-State,” Wildcats athletic director Gene Taylor said in a statement. “We had significant interest in our job from numerous talented and successful coaches from around the country. What was evident throughout the search was the positive reputation of K-State basketball, and of the coaches we talked with Casey emerged as the one who best fit our program. “He is known nationally as a tremendous evaluator of talent and one of the best offensive minds in the college game. He has built and maintained successful and winning programs at Stetson, Lipscomb and Belmont, and his reputation of developing players and a strong culture all make him a perfect fit for us.”
Alexander spent the last seven seasons at Belmont, turning it into one of the top mid-majors in the country.
"I’m incredibly excited to join the team at K-State and can’t wait to get the journey started,” Alexander said in a statement. “K-State has such a rich tradition and a wildly passionate fan base, and I’m grateful for the opportunity provided by Gene Taylor to be a part of it.”
Alexander owns a 303-180 head coaching record, including 166-60 over seven seasons at Belmont. He's manned the fort well in Belmont, placing in the top four in the conference every season. Consistency in the mid-majors and a few Tournament appearances in his coaching career are likely what caught athletic director Gene Taylor's eye.
Alexander will take over a team that just had the worst season in the Big 12 of any team not named Utah. A miserable season to say the least, which quickly went from Tournament expectations to conference basement dwellers. The peak was former coach Tang going on a scathing rant publicly criticizing his players after weeks of praising them amid blowout losses.
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Shandel Richardson is the publisher of HeatRoundtable. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com