McNeese Officially Hires Baylor Assistant Bill Armstrong As Will Wade's Replacement

The two coaches worked together for six seasons at LSU.

Baylor assistant coach Bill Armstrong talks to the team from the sideline. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

McNeese, the lovable Cinderella men's basketball team of this year's NCAA tournament, has officially named their new head coach—Baylor assistant Bill Armstrong.

Will Wade coached McNeese to the NCAA tournament, which saw them upsetting No. 5 Clemson in the first round of the tournament. However, they fell to No. 4 Purdue in the second round on Saturday. And, with their loss, the team also lost Wade as he accepted a new position at NC State.

Armstrong worked under Wade when he coached LSU from 2017-22 as both an assistant coach and an assistant head coach. Wade himself was ecstatic that Armstrong was replacing him at McNeese.

"I couldn't be happier for McNeese or the SWLA community," Wade said, via a press release. "They're getting a great coach in Bill Armstrong. I worked with Bill for six years at LSU and he'll be a great fit at McNeese. Bill and I share the same philosophy: he's a relentless recruiter, a tireless worker and he pays attention to the important details. The players are going to love playing for him and I have no doubt he will build on the success of the past two years."

Armstrong beat out a list of other potential candidates, which included former West Virginia coach Bob Huggins, former Toronto Raptors coach Sam Mitchell and former Tennessee coach Donnie Tyndall.

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