July 9, 2012
BERKELEY - The University of California and head men's basketball coach Mike Montgomery have agreed to a two-year contract extension to remain at the school through the conclusion of the 2015-16 season, Director of Athletics Sandy Barbour announced.
"Mike is a proven winner as a coach on the basketball court and as a mentor in developing our student-athletes here at Cal," Barbour said. "His tremendous achievements speak for themselves. Mike epitomizes the mission, vision and values of our department and I am excited he will continue to lead our men's basketball program for the next four seasons."
The Bears have flourished in four seasons under Montgomery's direction, posting an 88-47 combined record. California captured the 2010 Pac-10 Championship - its first league title in 50 years - and has earned a postseason berth each of the past four seasons.
This past season, Montgomery led Cal to a 24-10 overall record and a second-place finish in the conference with a 13-5 mark in league play. Guard Jorge Gutierrez, Montgomery's first recruit at Cal, was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the only player in conference history ever to receive both awards in the same season.
"I want to sincerely thank Chancellor Birgeneau and Sandy Barbour for their commitment to me and the basketball program," Montgomery said. "I am very proud of what our student-athletes have accomplished on and off the court during our first four years. Thanks to the tremendous support of the University, the administration and my staff, we have established a strong foundation of success and look forward to continuing to add to the rich tradition of this program."
Under Montgomery's tutelage, Cal has won at least 18 games and has finished in the top-four in the conference standings in each of his four seasons in Berkeley. Three Golden Bears have garnered conference player of the year awards with Jerome Randle capturing the 2010 Pac-12 Player of the Year honor and Allen Crabbe receiving the 2011 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year accolade, along with Gutierrez's achievement this past season.
One of the elite coaches in the game, Montgomery owns an impeccable career record of 635-291 (.686 winning percentage) in 30 seasons as a college basketball coach. Montgomery, who received the John R Wooden "Legends of Coaching" Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004, ranks among the top-25 active Division I coaches in the NCAA in career victories. After very successful collegiate coaching tenures at both Montana and Stanford, Montgomery was named Cal's 15th head men's basketball coach on April 5, 2008.
Cal returns three of its five starters for 2012-13, including Crabbe, a two-time All-Pac-12 selection and the Bears' leading scorer (15.2 ppg.) and rebounder (5.7 rpg.) from this past season. Also returning to the lineup next season are conference honorees Justin Cobbs and David Kravish.
Terms of the contract were not disclosed.
