Biographical details | |
---|---|
Born | Sparta, Tennessee | May 3, 1977
Playing career | |
1995–1999 | Tennessee |
1999 | Cleveland Rockers |
Position(s) | Point guard |
Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
2000–2001 | Auburn (assistant) |
2001–2004 | Chattanooga (assistant) |
2004–2009 | Western Carolina |
2009–2013 | NC State |
2013–2019 | Missouri State |
2019–2024 | Tennessee |
Head coaching record | |
Overall | 393–260 (.602) |
Accomplishments and honors | |
Championships | |
As coach:
As player:
| |
Awards | |
| |
Kellie Jolly Harper (born May 3, 1977) [1] is an American basketball coach who most recently served as the head women's basketball coach of the Tennessee Lady Vols. Prior to coaching at Tennessee, she served as head coach of Missouri State, NC State, and Western Carolina.
Born Kellie Jean Jolly in Sparta, Tennessee, [2] she is a graduate of White County High School in Sparta, where she earned many honors as a high school basketball player. [3]
In college, she was one of the starting point guards for the Tennessee Lady Volunteers during their three consecutive NCAA women's national championships from 1996 to 1998. [4] In 1997, Harper was named to the Final Four All Tournament team. [5]
On January 28, 2008, Harper earned her 66th win, passing Beth Dunkenberger as the second winningest women's basketball coach in Western Carolina history with a 60–49 victory over College of Charleston at the Ramsey Center.
NC State athletic director Debbie Yow fired Harper on March 26, 2013, after Harper compiled an overall four-year record for the Wolfpack of 70–64 but only 23–39 within the Atlantic Coast Conference.
On April 10, 2013, Harper was named head coach of the Missouri State Lady Bears, a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. [6] Beginning with the 2014–15 season, she led the Lady Bears to five consecutive top-three finishes in the MVC and five consecutive postseason trips, including berths in the NCAA Tournament in 2016 and 2019.
The 2018–19 season proved to be a career year for Harper. The Lady Bears finished the regular season 20–9 (16–2 MVC), after starting the season 1–7. Harper was voted the Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year for her efforts. She became the first Missouri State coach to win the award since Cheryl Burnett in 1994. [7] After defeating top-seeded and nationally ranked #24 Drake Bulldogs in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament Finals, Harper's team received an 11–seed in the Chicago Region. Harper guided the Lady Bears to the Sweet Sixteen with upset wins over 6–seed DePaul and 3–seed Iowa State Cyclones, in games in Ames, Iowa. The Lady Bears fell to 2–seed Stanford in the Sweet Sixteen. Harper was named the Kay Yow Coach of the Year award winner for 2019. [8]
On April 1, 2024, Harper was fired as Tennessee head coach after 5 seasons and four straight NCAA tournament appearances. The Lady Vols won six NCAA tournament games in those four years. They were eliminated twice in the Sweet Sixteen and twice in the second round. [9]
In 1999 she married Jon Harper, a member of her coaching staff at Western Carolina, North Carolina State, Missouri State, and Tennessee. She has two children, Jackson and Kiley.
Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Western Carolina Catamounts (Southern Conference)(2004–2009) | |||||||||
2004–05 | Western Carolina | 18–14 | 10–10 | T–5th | NCAA First Round | ||||
2005–06 | Western Carolina | 9–20 | 8–10 | 5th | |||||
2006–07 | Western Carolina | 24–10 | 15–3 | 1st | WNIT Second Round | ||||
2007–08 | Western Carolina | 25–9 | 15–3 | 2nd | WNIT First Round | ||||
2008–09 | Western Carolina | 21–12 | 14–6 | T–3rd | NCAA First Round | ||||
Western Carolina: | 97–65 (.599) | 62–32 (.660) | |||||||
NC State Wolfpack (Atlantic Coast Conference)(2009–2012) | |||||||||
2009–10 | NC State | 20–14 | 7–7 | T–5th | NCAA First Round | ||||
2010–11 | NC State | 14–17 | 4–10 | 10th | |||||
2011–12 | NC State | 19–16 | 5–11 | 9th | WNIT Second Round | ||||
2012–13 | NC State | 17–17 | 7–11 | 7th | WNIT Second Round | ||||
NC State: | 70–64 (.522) | 23–39 (.442) | |||||||
Missouri State Lady Bears (Missouri Valley Conference)(2013–2019) | |||||||||
2013–14 | Missouri State | 14–17 | 8–10 | T–6th | |||||
2014–15 | Missouri State | 18–15 | 13–5 | 3rd | WNIT First Round | ||||
2015–16 | Missouri State | 24–10 | 14–4 | T–2nd | NCAA First Round | ||||
2016–17 | Missouri State | 16–15 | 12–6 | 3rd | WNIT First Round | ||||
2017–18 | Missouri State | 21–12 | 15–3 | 2nd | WNIT Second Round | ||||
2018–19 | Missouri State | 25–10 | 16–2 | 2nd | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
Missouri State: | 118–79 (.599) | 78–30 (.722) | |||||||
Tennessee Lady Volunteers (Southeastern Conference)(2019–2024) | |||||||||
2019–20 | Tennessee | 21–10 | 10–6 | T–3rd | Postseason not held due to COVID-19 | ||||
2020–21 | Tennessee | 17–8 | 9–4 | 3rd | NCAA Second Round | ||||
2021–22 | Tennessee | 25–9 | 11–5 | 3rd | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
2022–23 | Tennessee | 25–12 | 13–3 | 3rd | NCAA Sweet Sixteen | ||||
2023–24 | Tennessee | 20–13 | 10–6 | T–4th | NCAA Second Round | ||||
Tennessee: | 108–52 (.675) | 53–24 (.688) | |||||||
Total: | 393–260 (.602) | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion |
The NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team represents North Carolina State University in NCAA Division I men's basketball competition. NC State is one of the seven founding members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Prior to joining the ACC in 1954, the Wolfpack were members of the Southern Conference, where they won seven conference championships. As a member of the ACC, the Wolfpack has won eleven conference championships, as well as two national championships in 1974 and 1983.
Deborah Ann Yow is an American college sports administrator and former college basketball coach. She was the director of athletics at North Carolina State University, and held the same position at the University of Maryland and Saint Louis University. She previously served as the head coach of the women's basketball teams of the University of Kentucky, Oral Roberts University, and the University of Florida.
The NC State Wolfpack women's basketball team represents North Carolina State University in NCAA Division I women's basketball.
Debbie Antonelli is a college basketball analyst who works for ESPN, Big Ten Network, CBS, FOX, and Westwood One. She also does WNBA games for ESPN and NBATV, and has been the main play-by-play voice of the Indiana Fever; since its inception, in 2000.
The 2014–15 Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2014–15 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lady Bears, led by second year head coach Kellie Harper, played their home games at JQH Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 18–15, 13–5 in MVC play to finish in third place. They advanced to the championship game of the Missouri Valley Tournament where they lost to Wichita State. They were invited to the Women's National Invitation Tournament where they lost to Tulsa in the first round.
Tricia Cullop is the current head coach of the University of Toledo women's basketball team. She has led Toledo to five MAC regular-season titles and two MAC tournament championships. She was the 2022 Carol Eckman Award winner for coaching integrity in women's college basketball.
Frank Weston Moore is an American college basketball coach who is the current women's basketball head coach at NC State. A head coach at all three levels of NCAA women's college basketball since 1987, Moore has been named Coach of the Year eight times by three conferences and over 20 regular season or conference tournament championships.
The 2015–16 Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lady Bears, led by third year head coach Kellie Harper, played their home games at JQH Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 24–10, 14–4 in MVC play to finish in a tie for second place. They won the Missouri Valley women's tournament to earn an automatic trip to the NCAA Women's Basketball where they lost to Texas A&M in the first round.
The Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represents Missouri State University in NCAA Division I women's basketball. The team has a storied history making 2 NCAA Final Fours, reaching 17 NCAA Tournaments, and claiming 13 conference regular season titles. The Lady Bears compete in the Missouri Valley Conference.
The 2016–17 Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lady Bears, led by fourth year head coach Kellie Harper, played their home games at JQH Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 16–15, 12–4 in MVC play to finish in third place. They lost in the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Tournament to Evansville. They received an automatic bid to the Women's National Invitation Tournament where they lost to Iowa in the first round.
The 2017–18 Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lady Bears, led by fifth year head coach Kellie Harper, played their home games at JQH Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 21–12, 15–3 in MVC play to finish in second place. They advanced to the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Tournament where they lost to Northern Iowa. They received an automatic bid to the Women's National Invitation Tournament where defeated Louisiana Tech in the first round before losing to TCU in the second round.
The 2018–19 Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lady Bears, led by sixth year head coach Kellie Harper, played their home games at JQH Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 25–10, 16–2 in MVC play to finish in second place. They won the Missouri Valley women's tournament to earn an automatic trip to the NCAA Women's Basketball where upset DePaul and Iowa State in the first and second rounds to advance to the sweet sixteen for the first time 2001 where they lost to Stanford.
Amaka Agugua-Hamilton is the current head coach of the Virginia Cavaliers women's basketball team.
The 2020–21 NC State Wolfpack women's basketball team represented North Carolina State University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Wolfpack were led by eighth year head coach Wes Moore and played their home games at Reynolds Coliseum as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The 2020–21 Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lady Bears, led by second year head coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton, played their home games at JQH Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference.
The 2021–22 NC State Wolfpack women's basketball team represented North Carolina State University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Wolfpack were led by ninth-year head coach Wes Moore and played their home games at Reynolds Coliseum as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The 2021–22 Missouri State Lady Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Lady Bears, led by third year head coach Amaka Agugua-Hamilton, played their home games at JQH Arena and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference.
The 2022–23 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team represented the University of Tennessee in the 2022–23 college basketball season. Led by former Lady Vol Kellie Harper, entering her fourth year as head coach, the team played its games at Thompson–Boling Arena as members of the Southeastern Conference.
The 2022–23 NC State Wolfpack women's basketball team represented North Carolina State University during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Wolfpack were led by tenth-year head coach Wes Moore and played their home games at Reynolds Coliseum as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The 2023–24 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team represented the University of Tennessee in the 2023–24 college basketball season. Led by former Lady Vol Kellie Harper, in her fifth year as head coach, the team played their games at Thompson–Boling Arena as members of the Southeastern Conference.