Mike Anderson Hired As Arkansas Basketball Coach, School Announces

After plenty of speculation and very strong rumors, the Arkansas Razorbacks have confirmed the hiring of Mike Anderson as the new head coach of their men’s basketball team. Anderson has spent the last five seasons as the coach of the Missouri Tigers, leading that team to the NCAA tournament this season, where they lost in the first round. Last year, Anderson lead Missouri to a first round win over Clemson.

Said Anderson, about his hiring:

“It is a tremendous honor to be named the head men’s basketball coach at the University of Arkansas. I want to thank Chancellor (Dave) Gearhart and Athletic Director Jeff Long for this opportunity to lead the Razorback Basketball program. I am extremely excited to once again be a part of this special University and Razorback Athletics. With the continued passionate support of all Razorback fans, I am confident that we will have the opportunity to succeed on and off the court and continue to build on the University of Arkansas’ championship tradition.”

Anderson’s teams play a fast paced style of basketball, comparable to Nolan Richardson’s teams at Arkansas through parts of three decades. It will be interesting to see if Anderson can get his team rolling in the SEC, which has been less strong than the Big XII in recent history.