Why Scott Drew thinks top Baylor assistant Jerome Tang would win at K-State or Mizzou
No one will be surprised if Kansas State or Missouri ends up hiring Jerome Tang as their next men’s basketball coach.
Tang has been mentioned as a prime candidate with both the Wildcats and the Tigers since they parted ways with Bruce Weber and Cuonzo Martin last week, respectively. Tang, the longtime associate head coach at Baylor, is thought to be the hottest assistant on the market for this hiring cycle.
That comes as no surprise to Baylor coach Scott Drew.
“First and foremost, Coach Tang has had opportunities in the past,” Drew said during a news conference leading up to the start of the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday. “And people see that he does a great job and would be a great head coach.”
Tang has been by Drew’s side for 19 years in Waco, Texas, and if now is the time for him to take over his own program, no one expects the Bears to stand in his way. There is strong mutual interest between K-State and Tang, according to sources.
So much so, that it might be possible for K-State to formally interview Tang and discuss a deal that would bring him to Manhattan this week, because even though Tang is helping the No. 1 seed Bears prepare for a first-round game against No. 16 seed Norfolk State on Thursday, he isn’t a sitting head coach.
K-State’s other top candidates, such as Brad Underwood (Illinois), Chris Jans (New Mexico State) and Todd Golden (San Francisco) are all thought to be focusing strictly on the NCAA Tournament.
One reason Tang is considered a hot name with the Wildcats? He has helped the Bears become a college basketball juggernaut. Baylor is coming off a national championship, back-to-back Big 12 championships and 10 trips to the NCAA Tournament in the past 15 seasons.
Another reason: recent associate head coaches that made the jump to head coaches found tremendous levels of success this season. Mark Adams (Texas Tech), Tommy Lloyd (Arizona) and Hubert Davis (North Carolina) all guided their teams to the NCAA Tournament this year. Duke is also going that route next season with Jon Scheyer.
“The good thing is he can be selective,” Drew said of Tang. “He’s never just taken something for money or because he wants to be a head coach. When he feels called to go somewhere, he’s going to go. And definitely it’ll be exciting for us.”
Drew is confident Tang will succeed as a head coach because his other assistants have won after spreading their wings elsewhere.
Grant McCasland has led North Texas to 103 victories over the past five seasons, including a run to the second round of last year’s NCAA Tournament. Paul Mills is fresh off a Sweet 16 appearance at Oral Roberts. And Matthew Driscoll has reached both the NIT and the NCAA Tournament at North Florida.
Drew has no doubt Tang will do the same.
“They have all had those opportunities and done well,” Drew said, “and Coach Tang will do exceptionally well when he gets that opportunity also. No doubt about it.”
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 2:18 PM with the headline "Why Scott Drew thinks top Baylor assistant Jerome Tang would win at K-State or Mizzou."