Ron Hunter
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamTulane
ConferenceThe American
Record70–74 (.486)
Biographical details
Born (1964-04-07) April 7, 1964 (age 60)
Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
Playing career
1982–1986Miami (OH)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1987–1993Milwaukee (assistant)
1993–1994Miami (OH) (assistant)
1994–2011IUPUI
2011–2019Georgia State
2019–presentTulane
Head coaching record
Overall515–388 (.570)
Tournaments1–4 (NCAA Division I)
0–1 (NIT)
1–1 (CBI)
1–2 (CIT)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Summit League tournament (2003)
Summit League regular season (2006)
3 Sun Belt tournament (2015, 2018, 2019)
3 Sun Belt regular season (2014, 2015, 2019)
Awards
2× Summit League Coach of the Year (2003, 2006)
Sun Belt Coach of the Year (2014)

Ronald Eugene Hunter (born April 7, 1964) is an American college basketball coach and the current men's basketball head coach of the Tulane University Green Wave. His son, R. J. Hunter, was a first-round NBA draft pick for the Boston Celtics.

High school

Hunter attended and played for Chaminade Julienne High School in Dayton, Ohio from 1978 to 1982.

Coaching career

IUPUI

From 1994 to 2011, Hunter served as the head coach at IUPUI.[1] Under his direction, the team advanced from an NAIA program to NCAA Division I. In its third season as a Division I program, Hunter led IUPUI to its first, and thus far only, NCAA tournament appearance in 2003. On January 24, 2008, Hunter coached a game against Oakland University while barefoot. He did this to benefit Samaritan's Feet, a foundation that works to provide hope and love to impoverished children around the world by washing their feet and giving them a new pair of shoes. His goal was to collect 40,000 shoes; however, before tip-off, over 110,000 pairs of shoes had been donated.[2]

Georgia State

On March 21, 2011, it was announced Hunter would replace Rod Barnes as the Georgia State Panthers' men's basketball head coach.[1] During his first season at GSU, Georgia State won 22 games, the fourth most in school history.

Hunter captured national attention for a moment that occurred in the 2015 NCAA tournament. After tearing his Achilles celebrating the Panthers' Sun Belt Conference tournament championship, he was forced to coach their subsequent NCAA appearance while sitting on a rolling stool due to his injury. In their second-round game against the three seed, Baylor, Hunter's son R. J. hit a deep, game-winning three with seconds left on the clock. When the shot went in, Hunter's stool slipped out from underneath him while exuberantly celebrating, sending him tumbling to the floor while continuing to display his jubilation. The moment spurred a torrent of media attention and resulted in multiple features, interviews, and a spot in 'One Shining Moment' at the conclusion of the tournament.[3]

On November 20, 2017, in a win over Eastern Washington, Hunter earned his 400th career win.[4]

Ron Hunter has played a key role in the ongoing transformation of the athletics culture at Georgia State, particularly with the basketball program and their continuing ascension from being one of the most unsuccessful programs in NCAA Division I history to being one of the premier Mid-Major programs in the nation. Some of Ron Hunter's most notable wins as head of coach of Georgia State are: VCU (2011),[5] #16 Baylor (2015), Georgia (2018)[6] and Alabama (2018).[7] Hunter also notched a win against crosstown foe, Georgia Tech, in a 2017 charity exhibition known as the 'A-Town Showdown for Hurricane Relief'.[8]

Tulane

On March 24, 2019, Hunter was named the head coach at Tulane, replacing Mike Dunleavy.[9]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
IUPUI Jaguars (NAIA Independent) (1994–1998)
1994–95 IUPUI 16–13
1995–96 IUPUI 22–7
1996–97 IUPUI 16–11
1997–98 IUPUI 17–9
IUPUI Jaguars (Mid-Continent Conference/The Summit League) (1998–2011)
1998–99 IUPUI 11–16 6–8 6th
1999–00 IUPUI 7–21 4–12 8th
2000–01 IUPUI 11–18 6–10 6th
2001–02 IUPUI 15–15 6–8 6th
2002–03 IUPUI 20–14 10–4 2nd NCAA Division I Round of 64
2003–04 IUPUI 3–11* 2–6* 2nd
2004–05 IUPUI 16–13 9–7 4th
2005–06 IUPUI 19–10 13–3 T–1st
2006–07 IUPUI 15–15 7–7 4th
2007–08 IUPUI 26–7 15–3 2nd
2008–09 IUPUI 16–14 9–9 4th
2009–10 IUPUI 25–11 15–3 2nd CBI Quarterfinals
2010–11 IUPUI 19–14 12–6 3rd
IUPUI: 274–219 (.556) 114–86 (.570)
Georgia State Panthers (Colonial Athletic Association) (2011–2013)
2011–12 Georgia State 22–12 11–7 5th CIT Second round
2012–13 Georgia State 15–16 10–8 5th
Georgia State Panthers (Sun Belt Conference) (2013–2019)
2013–14 Georgia State 25–9 17–1 1st NIT first round
2014–15 Georgia State 25–10 15–5 1st NCAA Division I Round of 32
2015–16 Georgia State 16–14 9–11 6th
2016–17 Georgia State 20–13 12–6 2nd CIT first round
2017–18 Georgia State 24–11 12–6 2nd NCAA Division I Round of 64
2018–19 Georgia State 24–10 13–5 1st NCAA Division I Round of 64
Georgia State: 171–95 (.643) 99–49 (.669)
Tulane Green Wave (American Athletic Conference) (2019–present)
2019–20 Tulane 12–18 4–14 12th
2020–21 Tulane 10–13 4–12 10th
2021–22 Tulane 14–15 10–8 5th
2022–23 Tulane 20–11 12–6 3rd
2023–24 Tulane 14–17 5–13 T–10th
Tulane: 70–74 (.486) 35–53 (.398)
Total: 515–388 (.570)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

*18 wins (including 8 conference wins) vacated by NCAA[10]

Personal life

Hunter and his wife, Amy, have two children: Jasmine and Ronald (R. J.).

References

  1. ^ a b Katz, Andy (March 21, 2011). "Coach who shed shoes for charity changes jobs". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  2. ^ "IUPUI coach will roam sidelines barefoot to help charity". ESPN. January 23, 2008. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  3. ^ Cooper, Sam (March 20, 2015). "Dramatic R. J. Hunter 3-pointer gives Georgia State upset over Baylor (Video)". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  4. ^ Holmes, Mike (November 20, 2017). "Panthers Top EWU 68-50; Hunter Earns 400th Career Win". Georgia State University. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  5. ^ Holmes, Mike (January 4, 2012). "11 in a Row! GSU Earns First Win at VCU, 55-53". GeorgiaStateSports.com. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  6. ^ Bradley, Mark (November 22, 2018). "Georgia State beats UGA by 24, and it was no upset". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  7. ^ "Georgia State scores dramatic upset of Alabama". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 6, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  8. ^ "Panthers Top Tech 65-58 in 'A-Town Showdown'". Georgia State University. October 28, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  9. ^ Bradley, Mark (March 24, 2019). "Ron Hunter says he's leaving Georgia State for Tulane". The Atlanta Journal–Constitution. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
  10. ^ "2014-15 MBB Record Book (.pdf)" (PDF). IUPUI Athletics. Retrieved February 28, 2024.

External links

Men's basketball head coaches of the American Athletic Conference
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