Steve Lavin
Lavin’s coaching perspective was forged over 15 years as a Division I college basketball coach at both UCLA and Purdue University, where he instilled the values of discipline, sacrifice, dedication and hard work to each of his teams. As UCLA Head Basketball Coach, from 1996-2003, Lavin compiled a record of 145-78. In his inaugural season as head coach, Lavin directed the Bruins to the 1997 Pac-10 Championship and the NCAA Elite Eight.
Lavin’s coaching perspective was forged over 15 years as a Division I college basketball coach at both UCLA and Purdue University, where he instilled the values of discipline, sacrifice, dedication and hard work to each of his teams. As UCLA Head Basketball Coach, from 1996-2003, Lavin compiled a record of 145-78. In his inaugural season as head coach, Lavin directed the Bruins to the 1997 Pac-10 Championship and the NCAA Elite Eight.
During his time working the sidelines at both Purdue and UCLA, Lavin’s teams qualified for 13 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances (1989-2002). Lavin was an assistant coach on the Bruins 1995 National Championship team that finished with a 32-1 record.
During Lavin’s tenure as a head coach, he was one of only two coaches in the country, along with Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, to lead his team to five NCAA “Sweet 16s” in six years (‘02, ’01, ’00, ’98, ’97). Lavin guided UCLA to six consecutive 20+ game winning seasons and to six consecutive NCAA tournaments. As head coach, his career record in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament is 10-1.
In 2001, after the Bruins finished 23-9, Lavin was honored with the Pacific-10 Coach of the Year award. He is the only head coach in NCAA Men’s Basketball history to lead his team to victory over the No. 1 team in the country in four consecutive collegiate seasons (Arizona ’03, Kansas ’02, Stanford ’01, Stanford ’00).
As head coach at UCLA, Lavin recruited and signed the No. 1 rated recruiting class in the country in both 1998 and 2001. He signed seven McDonald’s High School All-Americans. One or more of his former UCLA players or recruits has been chosen in the NBA draft over the past nine consecutive years (1997-2005). As a result, the Bruins have the longest streak of any college in the country of consecutive years having a player drafted to the NBA. Six of Lavin’s former Bruin players are currently members of NBA teams.
Steve Lavin begins his third season in the broadcast booth as an ABC and ESPN College Basketball Analyst.
