CHICAGO (April 24, 2024) – Second-year UIC head women's basketball coach
Ashleen Bracey was named the 2023-24 Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) Women's NCAA Division I Co-Coach of the Year, the organization announced Wednesday. It's the first time a Flames' coach has received the award since it was first presented in 2007.
"I am honored to receive the IBCA Co-Coach of the Year award," said Bracey. "My staff and players are so deserving to share in this honor. They work relentlessly to elevate our program and are deeply invested in its growth. There are many great coaches in Illinois committed to impacting young lives. Shauna Green and Kristin Gillespie are outstanding coaches, and I am humbled to be recognized alongside them."
Under Bracey's guidance, UIC finished 18-16 in 2023-24, earning the program's second consecutive postseason tournament berth (fourth all-time) and first trip to the WNIT since 2007. It also marked the second consecutive winning season for the Flames (who went 19-17 last year and reached the Women's Basketball Invitational), something the program has not done in a decade (2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons).
In further evidence of Bracey's impact and the skyrocketing trajectory of the UIC program under her leadership, the Flames are 37-33 in her two years at the helm (they had 37 combined wins in the seven seasons prior to her arrival), successfully navigating their transition to one of the nation's premier mid-major conferences, the Missouri Valley Conference. UIC has also finished seventh or higher in the MVC standings in both years under Bracey, and emerged as one of the Valley's top defensive units, ranking third in scoring defense this past season (66.2 points per game allowed).
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