Stacy Hollowell has coached men’s basketball in close to 30 countries, but the opportunity to return to coach less than 30 miles away from his hometown is the fulfillment of his childhood dreams.
Vice President of Athletics and Recreation Tim Duncan announced Stacy Hollowell as the 13th head coach of the University of New Orleans men’s basketball team on Thursday.
Hollowell, a Mandeville, La., native and current assistant coach at Texas Southern University, guided Loyola University New Orleans to an NAIA National Championship during the 2021-22 season.
“Stacy Hollowell is a coach that I have watched for the past several years. From his national championship season through his time at Ole Miss and Texas Southern, we have talked about the alignment of our basketball philosophies,” said Duncan. said Duncan.
“Coach Hollowell is a family man, a strong recruiter, an innovative basketball mind, and has links to our glorious past through his unique and personal relationship with New Orleans Athletics Hall of Fame Coach Tim Floyd. I am confident he is the leader we need to compete for Southland Conference Championships and NCAA postseason berths! I would like to thank Renaissance Search & Consulting for helping us sort through the overwhelming amount of interest we received over the past week.”
While at Loyola University New Orleans, where he spent eight seasons as head coach, Hollowell amassed 166 victories, including five 20-plus win campaigns, and made five appearances in the national tournament. His 2021-22 National Championship title season included a 37-1 record despite displacement due to Hurricane Ida. Following his historic season, he was also honored as the NAIA and NABC Coach of the Year.
Hollowell coached NAIA National Player of the Year Zach Wrightsil and National Tournament MVP Myles Burns currently an NBA G-League Player.
Following his championship at Loyola, Hollowell served as associate athletic director for men’s basketball at the University of Mississippi. In that capacity, he focused on the development and mentorship of student-athletes, achieving a top-12 recruiting class as ranked by ESPN in 2023.
Last season at Texas Southern University, Hollowell contributed to the Tigers’ advancement to the SWAC Championship finals with a 12-6 conference record, marking a five-game improvement from the previous year.
“As a young aspiring player dribbling the basketball down my street in Mandeville, I was lucky enough to meet Coach Tim Floyd. From that moment until now he has been a friend and mentor and I am honored to be able to follow in his footsteps,” said Hollowell.
“As a kid I had the fortune of seeing how electric Lakefront Arena could be and how galvanized Metro New Orleans could be when UNO basketball was winning. Throughout my career I’ve been able to work with and build relationships with a number of former UNO coaches. This opportunity is the one I’ve hoped for all along and I could not be more excited to be the next head coach at the University of New Orleans.”
Hollowell’s coaching career traces back to his tenure as an assistant coach for Loyola (2009-2014), where he contributed to the program’s resurgence with the first 20-win season since 1946.
He also gained international experience coaching professionally in Qatar, Lithuania, Bahrain, and China. As assistant coach for the Qatar National Team under former New Orleans men’s basketball coach Joey Stiebing, Hollowell helped the team qualify for the 2006 FIBA World Championship, the only world championship appearance in Qatar’s history.
Before his coaching career, Hollowell served as a volunteer assistant men’s basketball coach at Western Kentucky University, following his completion of a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Saint Edward’s University in Austin, Texas.
Hollowell was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, and raised in Mandeville. He was a four-year basketball player at Mandeville High School.
The University of New Orleans will host a press conference to introduce Hollowell to students, faculty, staff, alumni, Privateer supporters and the news media on Monday, April 29 at 11 a.m. at Lakefront Arena.
