Oklahoma men’s basketball coach Lon Kruger is retiring after 45 years of coaching, it was announced on Thursday.
Kruger, 68, has led the Sooners for the past decade, leading them to seven NCAA tournaments and a Final Four appearance in 2016. They finished 16-11 overall this season, going 9-8 in the Big 12 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament before losing to Gonzaga.
Before taking over at Oklahoma, Kruger led UNLV to four NCAA tournaments in seven seasons, including a Sweet 16 run in 2007.
Considered one of the more underrated coaches of his generation, Kruger began his coaching career in 1976 as an assistant at Pittsburg State. He spent time as an assistant at Kansas State before becoming head coach at Texas-Pan American. Kruger was also the head coach at Kansas State, Florida and Illinois – and also spent three seasons as the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks and one year as an assistant with the New York Knicks.
Overall, Kruger was 674-432 as the college’s head coach, going to 20 NCAA tournaments and playing two Final Four appearances. He is one of only three coaches to lead five different programs to the NCAA tournament along with Rick Pitino and Tubby Smith.
“His track record of successfully rebuilding programs wherever he coached becomes even more impressive when you consider how he did it,” Oklahoma athletic director Joe Castiglione said in a statement. “He won with integrity, humility, class and grace. He did it with superior leadership skills and genuine kindness, including his constant encouragement from everyone around him.”
Kruger’s son, Kevin, was recently appointed head coach at UNLV. Sources told ESPN it impacted Kruger’s decision to retire.
With Kruger’s departure, both basketball courts are now open at Oklahoma, with longtime women’s coach Sherri Coale announcing her retirement last week.