Posted: Mar 28, 2021 / 8:08 AM MDTUpdated: March 28, 2021 / 6:12 AM MDT
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) Utah has hired Craig Smith from the US state of Utah as a basketball coach for men.
The school announced on Saturday that Smith will replace Larry Krystkowiak, who was fired this month.
Smith quickly turned the state of Utah into one of the best mid-major programs in the country and led the Aggies to the NCAA tournament twice in three years. The state of Utah won the 2020 Mountain West Conference tournament title but had no chance to compete in the NCAA tournament due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Utah State won the MWC tournament again that season, winning 20 games before losing 65-53 to Texas Tech in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.
Smith was a skilled recruiter in Logan, bringing in players like Sam Merrill, now with the NBA’s Boston Celtics, and Portuguese Big Man Neemias Queta.
He previously trained in South Dakota for four seasons before being hired by the state of Utah in 2018.
The State of Utah fired Krystkowiak on March 16 after he was between 183 and 139 years old in ten seasons in Salt Lake City.
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