The University of Texas-Arlington has named former Kentucky assistant KT Turner as its next head men’s basketball coach.
Turner, a former UTA student-athlete himself, returns to Arlington, replacing Greg Young, and is tasked with assembling a team that can compete in the Western Athletic Conference.
“It is an absolute privilege and an honor to be named the head coach at UT-Arlington, and I could not be more excited to join the Mavericks and hit the ground sprinting,” Turner said in a release from the university. “UTA has so much potential — which I’ve witnessed firsthand as a former player — and my staff and I will work expeditiously to put together a winning program on the court, in the classroom, throughout Arlington, and beyond that everyone associated with UTA will be proud to call their own.”
“I expect to win, and I expect to do so quickly,” he continued. “As should all of our supporters. We’re going to take a progressive and aggressive approach to everything we do, creating a results-driven culture which will elevate us to a championship level. My family and I cannot wait to get to Arlington. Go Mavs!”
Turner was introduced as the 10th head basketball coach in school history during a press conference on Monday.
“I am thrilled that we have a brand new basketball coach who is joining us here at the University of Texas at Arlington,” UTA president Jennifer Cowley said as she began the press conference. “It has always been important that our student-athletes feel supported and poised for success, and we are confident that KT is that right person for us.”
“It’s evident from listening to his peers and others that he has coached about how much they think he has an impact on them, and we are looking forward to [him] leaving that positive impression on our student-athletes as well…”
“KT’s passion for student-athletes and basketball is evident across his accomplished career,” Cowley concluded.
Cowley also added that athletic director Jon Fagg had a significant role in the hiring.
“Bringing Coach Turner here is part of the process,” Fagg told the crowd. “I told everybody when I got hired; I didn’t come here to mess around. I came here to win, and bringing Coach Turner here is part of that evolution, part of setting that tempo and culture for winning and high expectations.”
Turner spent his college career at several different schools and began coaching junior colleges in 2005. He served as an assistant coach with Kentucky last season and was in charge of recruiting in Texas. Turner has also made stops at Oklahoma, Texas, Wichita State, SMU, Northern Arizona, and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.