And just like that — there’s another Big Ten opening.
On Monday, Michigan State announced that longtime coach Suzy Merchant is stepping down for health reasons. The university said that Dean Lockwood, who had assumed the role of acting head coach after Merchant was involved in a car accident and has been leading the team since then, will be interim head coach until a permanent replacement is named.
This opening could impact Minnesota as it hunts to replace Lindsay Whalen; Michigan State has a more expansive history in terms of women’s hoops success, especially recently. The Spartans are the last Big Ten team to make a national championship appearance, a game they lost to Baylor in 2005. But the Spartans have also made 12 tournament appearances since then.
GO DEEPER
Who will replace Lindsay Whalen as Minnesota’s next head coach? 3 candidates to consider
There are some obvious names that rise to the top of this coaching search, but given that Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller is still pretty new in the position and has hired only one women’s sports coach for the Spartans, he’s a bit of an unknown entity in terms of what he might prioritize.
Last June, after Spartans softball coach Jacquie Joseph retired following a nearly three-decade career in East Lansing,…
