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Oregon Ducks Name Gonzaga's Kelly Graves New Women's Basketball Coach

Graves signs a six-year deal to become the seventh head coach in program history.

By David Piper
James Snook-US PRESSWIRE

It's official:

The 51-year old Graves is the former head coach at Gonzaga for the last 14 years, where he went 317-176 and has made the last six NCAA Tournaments. Graves was signed to a six-year contract.

The turnaround Graves orchestrated in Spokane was remarkable, as he turned the program from winless in conference play to undefeated within a span of four years. In addition to being a proven winner in the Northwest, Gonzaga also ranked in the top-20 in attendance, something of vital importance as the Ducks are trying to pay off a new basketball arena and have seen sagging attendance in the women's program for the last decade. He also previously turned down the Washington job, so we know he has good taste.

You can never grade a hire when it is made, but Graves seems about as good a bet a to succeed as you could have in this situation. He has already rebuilt a program, sustained it at a high level, and done so in the Northwest recruiting many of the same kids he will look to recruit at Oregon. With the talent on hand, this could be a pretty quick turnaround.

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