Following a season in which the program won 24 games, captured the regular season Colonial Athletic Association Championship and earned an automatic bid to the National Invitation Tournament, Hofstra University Head Men’s Basketball Coach Joe Mihalich agreed to a contract extension with the University, it was announced today by Vice President and Director of Athletics Jeffrey A. Hathaway.

The extension extends Mihalich’s contract with the University through the 2020-21 campaign.

It was a banner year for Hofstra in 2015-16 and has been an impressive three-year run for Mihalich at the helm of the Pride.

“Joe is a tremendous asset to Hofstra University and our Department of Athletics,” commented Hathaway. “What he has accomplished in three years with our basketball program is remarkable. From day one Joe has done it the right way, both academically and on the court, and we are grateful for the success the program has experienced under his watch. I know I speak for the entire Hofstra community in thanking Coach Mihalich for his hard work and commitment to our students in the basketball program. We all look forward to many more highlights in the years to come and will continue to focus on achieving our goals for this program.”

“I am so thankful to Hofstra President Stuart Rabinowitz and Vice President and Director of Athletics Jeff Hathaway for their continued support of our program,” stated Mihalich. “Hofstra is a wonderful place and I am proud of all we have accomplished so far and I am thrilled about what the future holds for Pride Basketball.”

In three years as the head coach at Hofstra, Coach Mihalich has guided the Pride to 54 wins, including back-to-back 20-win campaigns in 2014-15 (20 wins) and 2015-16. It marks the best three-year stretch to start a Hofstra head coaching career since Paul Lynner won 57 games from 1962-65.

The milestones were plentiful in 2015-16 as the 24 wins were the most since the 2005-06 squad captured 26 victories. It also marked the first consecutive 20-win seasons since the 2005-06 and 2006-07 (22) seasons. Senior guard Juan’ya Green would also become Hofstra’s first CAA Player of the Year since Charles Jenkins won the award in 2010 and 2011.

Hofstra, which was picked atop the CAA in the preseason, would live up to its preseason hype as well as the Pride won its first CAA regular season title and the first regular season conference title since winning America East regular season crowns in 1999-2000 and 2000-01.

Mihalich has also made the academic success of his program a priority. Last May the men’s basketball program achieved a perfect score in the Academic Progress Rates for the 2013-14 year.

Mihalich will head into the 2016-17 season with 319 career wins. He picked up career win No. 300 at La Salle this past December. It was one of two road wins over Atlantic 10 Conference members in 2015-16 as Mihalich also guided Hofstra to a win at St. Bonaventure as well. In addition, during the Pride’s trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands to take part in the Paradise Jam, Hofstra earned an impressive win over Florida State. It was the program’s fifth-ever win against the current membership of the Atlantic Coast Conference and the first since defeating Georgia Tech during the 1998-99 season.

Mihalich, who guided Niagara to five postseason appearances in 15 seasons as the head coach of the Purple Eagles, was named the 12th head coach in the history of the Hofstra University Men’s Basketball program on April 10, 2013.