Auburn hires former UALR coach as men's basketball assistant

Wes Flanigan
Wes Flanigan

Former University of Arkansas at Little Rock men's basketball head coach Wes Flanigan has been hired to be an assistant coach at Auburn, Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl said Monday.

Flanigan had a 22-42 record in two seasons at UALR and was fired March 9 after the Trojans (7-25) finished the season with the most single-season losses in program history.

Flanigan was an All-SEC point guard and played for Auburn from 1993-1997, and he finished with the second-most career assists (573) in program history.

“Returning to Auburn is a dream come true for me,” Flanigan said in a statement. “I’ve always wanted to come back to Auburn to coach basketball at some point. I want to thank Coach Pearl and the staff for giving me this opportunity."

Flanigan, a Parkview High graduate, was the 1992-1993 Gatorade High School Player of the Year, and he began his coaching career as an assistant at Northwest Mississippi Community College from 1999-2004.

He was an assistant at UALR, Alabama-Birmingham, Nebraska and Mississippi State before the Trojans hired him to replace former head coach Chris Beard in 2016.

“Auburn basketball is very fortunate to have been able to attract and welcome home a former great in three-time captain Wes Flanigan,” Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said in a statement. “I‘ve known Wes and admired his work for many years as a competitor. Known as a hard-working, tough-minded, passionate basketball coach and teacher, Wes will make our student-athletes better on and off the court.”

Read Tuesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.

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