Xavier coach Sean Miller receives extension through 2028-29

Xavier Musketeers head coach Sean Miller instructs the team during the first half of a Sweet 16 college basketball game between the Xavier Musketeers and the Texas Longhorns in the Midwest Regional of the NCAA Tournament, Friday, March 24, 2023, at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.

Ncaa Xavier Texas Ncaa Sweet 16 March 24 0318

Credit: Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

Xavier coach Sean Miller received a two-year extension through the 2028-29 season, the school announced Thursday.

Miller went 27-10 and guided the Musketeers to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament last season in the first campaign of his second stint at the school. The Musketeers were eliminated by No. 2 seed Texas.

“We are proud of the season we had last year and even more excited about the future,” Miller said in a statement. “Xavier’s tradition and the Big East Conference have always held special places in my heart. We are competing in the best league and on the biggest stage in college basketball. We have a big challenge ahead but there is no place where I would rather be.”

Miller, who turns 55 next month, is 147-57 in six seasons at Xavier (2004-09, 2022-23). His victories are fourth-most in school history, one behind third-place Skip Prosser.

Miller has guided Xavier to one Elite Eight (2008) and two Sweet 16 bids (2009, 2023).

In between the Xavier stints, Miller went 302-109 in 12 seasons at Arizona from 2009-21 and guided the school to three Elite Eight appearances. But he was fired in April 2021 just a month after the school was charged with five Level I violations.

A federal investigation into college basketball corruption alleged that Miller made payments to then-Wildcats player Deandre Ayton, but Miller denied the allegations. He was not sanctioned by an independent panel.

Miller sat out the 2021-22 season before returning to Xavier.

“There is no doubt Xavier Basketball is headed in the right direction,” athletic director Greg Christopher said in the news release. “When we brought Sean back to Cincinnati, I was confident he was best positioned to lead our program. The success we enjoyed last year — including recruiting, player development and reaching the Sweet 16 — demonstrates Sean was the right person for the Xavier program.

“This extension reinforces that message. Sean is an elite college basketball coach and a proven winner who understands the expectations, traditions and values of Xavier and the Big East Conference. The future is bright under his leadership.”

–Field Level Media

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