UNC Greensboro Director of Athletics Kim Record announced Monday that men’s basketball head coach Wes Miller has received a two-year contract extension. Miller’s extension adds two years to his initial contract that had two years remaining and will carry him through June 30, 2019, with the same parameters of his initial contract.
“Coach Miller and his staff have worked tirelessly to lay a foundation of success and create a championship culture,” Record said. “We are moving in the right direction with student-athletes who represent UNCG well on the court, in the classroom and in the Greensboro community.”
Miller, the 2012 Southern Conference Coach of the Year during his interim season, has led the Spartans to double digit wins in three out of the last four years breaking a streak of three straight seasons with eight or less wins (2008-2011). When he took over during the 2011-12 season, he led the Spartans to a 10-8 SoCon record and the SoCon North Division title as he was 11-11 overall that year.
This past season, the Spartans were hit hard by injuries from the outset of the year and played late in the year with just six available scholarship student-athletes. Despite the disadvantage, UNCG was still the only team in the SoCon with five different players averaging double figures in scoring, with four out of the five players set to return next year. Sophomore guard Tevon Saddler (Aberdeen, Md./St. Frances Academy) led the way with 13.4 points per game and finished third in the league with 123 assists on his way to All-SoCon honors.
"We are excited about the direction and future of UNCG Basketball and we have a great nucleus of players that embody the values we believe in,” Miller said. “Our entire program looks forward to continuing to grow on the floor, in the classroom and in the community."
Additionally, the Spartans had two players join the illustrious 1,000-career point mark this past season as junior Kayel Locke (Baltimore, Md./McDonogh) became the 19th member in early February and senior Nicholas Paulos (Salt Lake City, Utah/New Hampton School) joined the ranks later that month.
Under Miller’s guidance, the Spartans have notched a SoCon Tournament victory in three out of four years, including an 81-76 victory over Samford this season. In 2013-14, the Spartans finished with a 14-18 overall record, marking the most wins for UNCG in a season since 2007-08. UNCG also picked up just its second victory all-time against a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference that year with a road win at Virginia Tech.
One of the hallmarks of Miller’s tenure has been the ability of him and his coaching staff to secure highly rated recruiting classes, particularly from the state of North Carolina and along the east coast. Saddler became the program’s second-ever SoCon Freshman of the Year in 2014 while Locke is already 15th all-time in UNCG scoring history after his junior season. The Spartans have already signed four highly touted freshmen during the early signing period that will join the returning nucleus next season.
Miller’s initial contract was since March 5, 2012 and was a five-year contract after he served half of a season as an interim head coach for the Spartans. He was the youngest coach in NCAA Division I basketball at the time of his hiring at the age of 29.
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