Episode 178: Russ Turner, Playing Bigger and Finding Other Advantages

Guest: Russ Turner, UC Irvine Head Coach

In this week's coaching conversation, UC Irvine head coach Russell Turner joins the Basketball Podcast to discuss playing bigger and finding other advantages.

Russell Turner, the winningest coach in UCI history, concluded his 11th season at the helm in 2020-21. Turner has guided the Anteaters to 227 wins, averaging over 20 wins a season. Turner who enters his 12th season as head coach at UC Irvine in 2021-22, has led the 'Eaters to six postseason appearances (2013 CIT, 2014 NIT, 2015 NCAA, 2016 CIT, 2017 NIT and 2019 NCAA).

Turner became the only coach in UCI history to amass 200 wins. He has been named the Big West Coach of the Year four times in his career and has led the 'Eaters to Big West regular-season titles in five of the last eight seasons. On the national stage, Turner has been named a finalist for the Skip Prosser Man of the Year award in 2017 & 2020, and the Hugh Durham Award in 2019 & 2020. Bracketbusters.com also named him one of the Top-10 Big West Coaches of the Century.

UCI's 2020-21 team was the second youngest in the country, and Turner led the Anteaters to a Big West Tournament final for the fourth-consecutive season. He is one of only seven coaches in Big West history to reach over 200 wins and currently ranks fifth all-time on the Big West career wins list.

Turner was named UC Irvine's head coach April 9, 2010, after serving the previous six seasons as an assistant coach for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association following positions at Stanford University and Wake Forest University.

Breakdown

1:00 - Staff Continuity

3:30 - Coaches That Influenced Him

5:30 - Recruiting

7:00 - His Defensive Philosophy

10:30 - Understanding The Individual

12:00 - Butter Possessions

15:00 - Focus Cue

20:00 - Undervalued Defensive Players

23:00 - Playing Deep

27:00 - Transition Defense

30:00 - Fouling