UNLV set to hire Josh Pastner as next basketball coach

Memphis head coach Josh Pastner reacts after Arizona got a time out when he wanted a foul called on them during the second round of the NCAA Basketball Championships Friday, March 18, 2011at the BOK Center in Tulsa. Arizona won 77-75. Photo by Sam Morris / Las Vegas Sun

It may have taken a couple tries, but UNLV has its new basketball coach.

The Scarlet and Gray reached an agreement on Monday with Josh Pastner, a 47-year-old who led Memphis and Georgia Tech to the NCAA Tournament during his first two stints as a head coach.

Pastner may not have been UNLV’s first choice. Florida assistant Carlin Hartman emerged as a candidate last week and was interested in the job, and on Monday morning there were reports that athletic director Erick Harper was in the process of finalizing a deal with former Arkansas State coach Bryan Hodgson.

Hodgson reportedly gave South Florida a final opportunity to a counter; that deal proved to be more lucrative than UNLV’s offer and Hodgson was announced as the Bulls’ next coach on Monday afternoon.

Harper then moved on to Pastner, who has spent the last two years working as a studio analyst for the Peacock Network.

Pastner was a player on the 1996-97 Arizona team that won the national championship. He then served as an assistant at Arizona under legendary head coach Lute Olsen from 2002-07; when Olsen retired, Pastner spent one more year at Arizona before moving to Memphis as an assistant to John Calipari.

When Calipari left to take over at Kentucky in 2009, Pastner was elevated to the top job.

Pastner had a very good run at Memphis in his first stint as a head coach, taking the Tigers to four NCAA Tournaments in seven years. He was hired away by Georgia Tech in 2016 but his time in the ACC was not as successful, as he went 109-114 and managed just one NCAA appearance in seven years.

In 2019, the NCAA hit Georgia Tech with sanctions due to recruiting violations, resulting in a loss of scholarships and a four-year postseason ban. That ruling was later overturned and Pastner was cleared of wrongdoing, and the Yellow Jackets made the NCAA Tournament in 2021.

Georgia Tech floundered the next two years and Pastner was fired following the 2022-23 season.

If Pastner can rekindle the mid-major magic he had at Memphis it would be a major upgrade at UNLV, where the program is currently in the midst of a 12-year tournament drought — the longest in school history.

Pastner was known as a strong recruiter at Memphis and had his team in the AP Preseason Top 25 for four straight years. The Tigers peaked at No. 8 during the 2011-12 season, when they went 26-9 and won the Conference USA regular-season and tournament titles before losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The following season, Memphis went undefeated in conference (31-5 overall) and advanced to the Round of 32 before getting bounced.

Memphis moved to the AAC in 2013-14, and though the Tigers didn’t win either league title, Pastner led them to a 24-10 mark and an at-large berth. Once in the tourney, they again advanced to the Round of 32.

Pastner has made the NCAA Tournament five times and has a 2-5 record. His teams have won two regular-season conference titles and four league tournament championships.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.