Tempe, Ariz. – Bobby Hurley’s tenure arizona stateThe coach’s tenure has come to an end after 11 up-and-down seasons.
Arizona State athletic director Graham Rossini announced Wednesday, just hours after the Sun Devils’ loss, that Hurley’s contract would not be renewed. 91-42 defeat from number 7 iowa state In the Big 12 Tournament.
Hurley will be placed on paid administrative leave for the remainder of his contract, which expires in June.
“Bobby Hurley has made incredible contributions to the game of basketball and that certainly includes many memorable moments during his tenure as our head coach,” Rossini said in a statement. “Although we will not be extending his contract, we are very grateful to Coach, Leslie, Cameron, Sydney, Bobby Jr. and the 11 years he spent with us at ASU. We wish Coach well moving forward and we are grateful for his leadership at ASU.”
Hurley led the Sun Devils to the NCAA Tournament three times, including two straight in 2018 and 2019, but he needed to make another March Madness run if his contract was going to be extended.
Arizona State finished 7–11 and 12th out of 16 teams in the Big 12 at 7–16 after a 91–42 loss to Iowa State in Kansas City, the most lopsided game in Big 12 history.
Hurley went 185–167 in 11 seasons at Arizona State and became the second-winningest coach in program history behind Ned Valk.
“Throughout this journey, my family and I have made lasting friendships and incredible memories,” Hurley said. Posted on x. “We have experienced multiple NCAA Tournament appearances, had notable wins at Desert Financial Arena and have had the joy of seeing our children become Sun Devil alumni.
“Thank you to all the players. It has been the greatest privilege of mine to coach so many outstanding young men, and I will always cherish the time we spent together.”
Arizona State got off to a solid start to Hurley’s 11th season, with a runner-up finish at the Maui Invitational and a close loss to No. 8 No. gonzaga.
The rest was a challenge as the Sun Devils struggled with injuries and inconsistencies.
Sun Devils pick up solid win at home kansas state And cincinnati but lost to number 8 houston, West Virginia and rival Arizona In a round in January that left Hurley disappointed.
Hurley said, “We’re failing. I’m failing. I can’t make the team.” 75-63 Lost to West Virginia on January 21. “I don’t know what else I can say.”
Arizona State pulls off an upset at No. 14 kansas In Hurley’s final home game however, he was defeated by Iowa State four days later. Sun Devils defeated boiler A poor performance led to a loss by Iowa State in the opening round of the Big 12 Tournament.
It is unclear whether Arizona State will accept an invitation to a lesser postseason tournament such as the NIT or the College Basketball Crown, in which the Sun Devils played last year.
“He changed my life,” Arizona State senior alan mukeba Said. “It’s a blessing for me, just being a part of this team is a blessing, everything we went through, the way the coaches are coaching. It was just an amazing year. I don’t have anything else to say about it.”
Hurley arrived in the desert with great fanfare and hopes of turning around a program that had gone to the NCAA Tournament twice in the previous 18 seasons.
Hurley, a two-time national champion at Duke and still the NCAA assists leader, was hired after leading Buffalo In the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 2015.
Hurley led the Sun Devils to the NCAA Tournament in his third season and did so again in 2018 and 2019. Arizona State appeared to be in good position to reach the NCAA Tournament the following year for the third consecutive season since the 1960s, but March Madness was canceled.
The Sun Devils have struggled to find their footing since reaching the NCAA Tournament in 2023, but finished with losing records in the other four seasons. Fan interest also waned, to the extent that there were more Arizona fans than Arizona State fans at the Desert Financial Arena for the January 31 rivalry game.
“We haven’t played as well here in the last few years as we did before COVID,” Hurley said. “We had a lot of cooking in this place before COVID.” Now it’s a sterile environment. We don’t win here. We don’t give our fans any reason to get excited thinking we’re going to win basketball games. We’ve been terrible at home for years.”
