A Kruger is out at UNLV for the second time.
UNLV announced on Saturday that it has fired Kevin Kruger as its men’s basketball coach. Kruger has been fired despite leading the Runnin’ Rebels to winning seasons in all four of his years as their head coach.
UNLV athletic director Erick Harper made clear in his statement on the matter that the firing occurred because Kruger failed to meet the program’s expectations.
“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Coach Kruger for his hard work, commitment, and dedication over the past four years as head coach of the Runnin’ Rebels. While there have been notable achievements during his tenure, there have also been challenges. We have significant aspirations for our men’s basketball program, both within the Mountain West and on a national level, with the goal of competing in the NCAA Tournament. Our expectation is to contend for and win championships. After evaluating the program as a whole, I believe a change is necessary to achieve these goals,” Harper said in his statement.
UNLV went 75–54 under Kruger and 40-34 in conference play. They made the NIT once but did not make the NCAA Tournament in any of his four years. Runnin’ Rebels fans were frustrated after the team lost in the quarterfinals of the Mountain West tournament to Utah State on Thursday, and two days later, Kruger has been fired.
Kevin Kruger is the son of Lon Kruger, who also had coached UNLV. The difference is Lon’s tenure from 2004-2011 was a successful one and ended when Lon left to take the Oklahoma job.
