Pete Thamel: USC's Andy Enfield 'a person of interest' for SMU head coach search
USC basketball coach Andy Enfield emerged as a “person of interest” in the SMU coaching search, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel. On The Pony Express’ Billy Embody confirmed the interest on the latest Hot Board 4.0.
“USC coach Andy Enfield has emerged as a person of interest in the SMU men’s basketball search, sources tell me and (Jeff Borzello),” Thamel wrote on Twitter. “No deal is imminent. There’s multiple candidates, with Enfield expected to top the list.”
Enfield has been the coach at USC since the 2013-14 season and is 219-146 with the Trojans. However, USC went 15-18 this past season and missed the NCAA Tournament.
SMU unexpectedly dismissed head coach Rob Lainer after a 20-13 season and NIT appearance. He was quickly hired by Rice as the team’s new head coach.
Lainer went 30-35 in two years with the Mustangs and is 141-135 overall as a head coach. But now, SMU’s attention turns to Enfield, possibly bringing him to the great state of Texas and the ACC.
Enfield and USC’s season ended in a quarterfinal loss to Arizona, 70-49, of the Pac-12 Tournament.
“It’s always difficult to lose your last game,” Enfield said. “Very proud of our team, the seniors, these two guys here and some others. Our team really battled today. First half our defense was outstanding. Really made it tough on Arizona. And they made it tough on us.
And just didn’t bounce our way. Our offense wasn’t good enough. We missed a lot of shots and flipped some balls up off balance.”
Enfield credited his team for playing better down the stretch. However, it just wasn’t enough to make a run.
“But very proud of our team the last month, playing great basketball,” Enfield said. “Really turned our season around after all the injuries we had and all the adversity. Very, very proud of our team to come back and play our best basketball.
“This team has improved dramatically from the beginning of the season, especially with guys in and out of the lineup all season. And for them to stick together and really compete the last month, they’ve done a great job.”