Kim Mulkey Hometown: Hammond, La. Position: Head Coach Alma Mater: Louisiana Tech

Success = Kim Mulkey. No matter what she's attempted in basketball, whether as a player or along the sideline, Mulkey has found success. In just 12 seasons as Baylor's head coach, she attained 300 career victories and ranks No. 4 among the nation's winningest active Division I head coaches (.811) and No. 5 all-time by percentage. Of the two active coaches ranked ahead of her, Mulkey reached 300 wins the fastest, as it took Geno Auriemma (UConn) 13 seasons to attain the milestone and Stanford's Tara VanDerveer 14 years it.

When the Women's Basketball Hall of Famer accepted the position as Baylor University's head women's basketball coach on April 4, 2000, few could have predicted the dramatic and prestigious transformation the program was about to undergo. In just 12 years at Baylor, the former Olympic Gold medalist has twice guided the Lady Bear basketball program to the pinnacle of women's basketball, the 2005 and 2012 NCAA national championship, 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, 12, 20-win seasons including three, 30-win campaigns, and an NCAA single-season record, men's or women's, 40 victories. In addition, over the past seven seasons, Mulkey has led the Lady Bears to three Final Four appearances (2005, '10, `12) and seven Big 12 Conference titles.

The 2005 national title was Baylor's first for a women's team sport, and just the second in school history overall.

In winning the 2005 title, Mulkey became the first person, man or woman, to win a basketball national championship as a player, assistant coach and head coach. En route to the 2005 NCAA championship, the Lady Bears won their first Big 12 Conference championship and were the league's tournament champion, too. In 2009, the Lady Bears added to the trophy case with another Big 12 Tournament crown, claimed both the 2011 regular season and tournament crowns and captured the 2012 regular season title by a record seven games and again earned the tournament crown.

Mulkey has produced amazing results since taking over the program's reins, averaging 28.1 wins a season. In her 12 years at the program's helm, she has posted an impressive 338-79 (.811) record which ranks her No. 4 nationally in winning percentage. In addition, the Lady Bear program ranks No. 5 among the NCAA Division I's winningest teams over that span.

In 2012, Mulkey swept all Coach of the Year awards, winning WBCA, USBWA, Associated Press, Naismith and Big 12 Conference honors.

Since coming into the league in 2000-01, Mulkey ranks as the Big 12's winningest coach by both victories (338) and percentage (.811).

Since taking over a squad that was just 7-20 the season prior to her arrival, Mulkey has guided the Lady Bears to 12 postseason appearances, including 11 NCAA Tournaments and a trip to the 2003 WNIT finals. In 2004, the Lady Bears made their first trip to the NCAA Sweet 16 and have now played in seven Sweet 16s, four Elite Eights and three Final Fours. In 2001, Sheila Lambert was a Kodak All-American and was awarded the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award, which recognized the nation's best player 5-7 or under. Mulkey won the inaugural award in 1984.

Under Mulkey's tutelage, Sophia Young became the program's first two-time Kodak All-American and also the school's first AP All-American and Brittney Griner garnered the program's first national Freshman of the Year honor and National Player of the Year kudos. Griner also earned the program's first Honda Cup award. In addition, Baylor landed its first-ever players in the WNBA when Lambert and Danielle Crockrom were each drafted in the first round after the 2001 season and Steffanie Blackmon was drafted in 2005.

Young became Baylor's highest draft pick when she was selected No. 4 by the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2006. Young, who completed her seventh season with the franchise in 2012, is annually among the team's leading scorer and rebounder and is a four-time WNBA All-Star. In 2007, Bernice Mosby became Mulkey's fourth first-round WNBA draft pick when the Washington Mystics made her the fourth player selected overall. In 2008, Angela Tisdale was drafted by the Chicago Sky and Jessica Morrow was selected by the Atlanta Dream in 2009.

Not only has Baylor's progress registered on the national level, local fans have taken notice, too. The Lady Bears continue to break all-time attendance records and annually rank among the nation's top 25 in NCAA women's basketball attendance, including three top-10 finishes, ranking No. 8 twice (2005-06 and 2009-10) and a program-high sixth in both 2010-11 and 2011-12. For the past seven seasons the Lady Bears have eclipsed the 100,000 fan mark at home and have been ranked in the top 15 in NCAA attendance each of those seasons. Baylor drew a Ferrell Center record-breaking 166,593 fans in 2010-11 and a record 8,563 a game to rank sixth nationally in 2011-12. In fact, since Mulkey's arrival, some 1,273,785 fans have come through the Ferrell Center doors.

In her first season as a head coach, Mulkey returned the Lady Bear program to the national spotlight. She took a team that was 7-20 in 1999-2000 and 12th (2-12) in the Big 12 and molded it into a cohesive, confident unit that finished sixth (9-7) in the Big 12 and earned the school's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth. Baylor, along with four other schools, posted the biggest turnaround in NCAA Division I with a 14-game improvement, going from 7-20 to 21-9. In addition, the Baylor squad was ranked in the AP top 25 poll for six weeks, climbing as high as No. 20 and finished the season ranked No. 23.

Baylor's second season under Mulkey produced even better results. The team finished 27-6 and ranked No. 7 in The Associated Press' final ranking. For the first time in program history, the Lady Bears were selected to host NCAA Tournament games. Baylor hosted first and second round games and set a Lady Bear attendance record when 10,074 fans packed the Ferrell Center for Baylor's second-round game against Drake. In fact, the Waco first and second rounds ranked second nationally in attendance compared to other sites.

Her third season proved to be her most challenging. Working with a 2002-03 team that returned only one starter and listed only three upperclassmen on its roster, Mulkey guided her young squad to a 24-11 record and after being snubbed by the NCAA selection committee, the Lady Bears advanced to the WNIT finals. In the championship game, SEC rival Auburn narrowly defeated the Lady Bears, 64-63.

Year four yielded even more success for Baylor women's basketball. Mulkey guided the Lady Bears to the program's first-ever NCAA Sweet 16, where they lost to tradition-rich Tennessee (71-69) on a controversial last-second call. Baylor finished the season at 26-9, was ranked No. 15 in the AP's final poll and achieved its highest finish ever in the coaches poll at No. 11.

The 2004-05 season proved to be Mulkey's breakthrough year. The squad posted a 33-3 record and claimed the Big 12 Conference title with a 14-2 mark. En route to the NCAA championship, the Lady Bears defeated three No. 1 seeds. Steffanie Blackmon and Young were both named All-Americans with Young becoming Baylor's third WBCA All-American. Blackmon became BU's third WNBA draftee when the Seattle Storm selected her. In addition to earning Big 12 Coach of the Year honors, Mulkey received the New York Athletic Club's prestigious Winged Foot Award.

After losing two starters off the 2005 NCAA championship squad, Mulkey guided the 2005-06 Lady Bears to a 26-7 record and a 12-4 Big 12 mark, good for a second place league finish and a final AP ranking of No. 10. Year six under Mulkey also produced the program's first two-time WBCA All-American and Big 12 Player of the Year in Young. A first-round WNBA pick of the San Antonio Silver Stars, Young ended her career as the Big 12's leading scorer (2,480) and rebounder (1,316).

Fielding a 2006-07 team that featured eight underclassmen on the 11-member roster, the team's 26-7 record was an impressive achievement. Led by Mosby, the Lady Bears were again selected to the NCAA Tournament and finished third in the perennially tough Big 12 Conference with an 11-5 mark. As a team, the Lady Bears led the nation in blocked shots with 7.2 a contest. Baylor finished the year ranked No. 19 in the AP poll and No. 20 in the coaches poll.

Facing the 2007-08 season with, for the first time, no dominant scorer and rebounder returning, Mulkey guided the squad to an impressive 25-7 mark, a second place Big 12 Conference finish and another NCAA Tournament berth. The team featured a balanced offensive attack with five players averaging double-digit scoring. The Lady Bears were led by All-American and All-Big 12 performers Tisdale and Rachel Allison.

Mulkey's ninth season along the sideline was highlighted by another trip to the NCAA's Sweet 16 and a Big 12 Conference Tournament title. Despite the loss of junior post Danielle Wilson, the team's top scorer and rebounder, to a late-season knee injury, the Lady Bears posted a 29-6 record, a final Associated Press ranking of No. 5 and a 12-4 Big 12 record, good for second place.

Entering the 2009-10 season with just one senior and one returning starter, Mulkey was tasked with molding a cohesive unit out of a roster filled with nine underclassmen, including five freshmen. By season's end, that's exactly what she had accomplished. The Lady Bears advanced through the NCAA Tournament to the Final Four in San Antonio before losing to the eventual NCAA champion and undefeated Connecticut Huskies. The Lady Bears ended the season with a 27-10 record and were ranked No. 14 by the AP and No. 4 in the final coaches poll. Freshman sensation Griner garnered several postseason awards including national and Big 12 Conference Freshman of the Year, AP All-American (second team), first-team All-Big 12 and Big 12 Co-Defensive Player of the Year. Griner set an NCAA single-season block record with 223 rejections and BU led the nation in blocks per game.

After a Final Four appearance and the loss of only one player, expectations were high for the 2010-11 squad. Despite a couple of early setbacks, the loss of two returning starters, and a late season injury to Melissa Jones, the Lady Bears persevered. In spite of the adversity, the Lady Bears posted a 34-3 record, advanced to the NCAA Championship Elite Eight, swept both the Big 12 regular season and postseason tournament titles for the second time in program history and were ranked No. 1 nationally for a school record seven weeks. Griner was named to every All-American team and was a finalist for the Wade Trophy and Wooden and Naismith Awards. Freshman Odyssey Sims was the USBWA National Freshman of the Year and earned the same honor from the Big 12. In addition, Mulkey was the USBWA's National Coach of the Year and received Big 12 Coach of the Year honors.

The 2011-12 Lady Bear season was as perfect as it could be. En route to claiming its second NCAA crown in seven years, Baylor ran the table, posting an unprecedented 40-0 mark and won both Big 12 Conference crowns. In addition, BU swept both national and league Player and Coach of the Year honors as Griner was the consensus national player of the year while Mulkey earned national coach of the year honors. Baylor was ranked No. 1 from wire-to-wire in both polls and raced through conference play with a Big 12-record 18-0 mark. Griner and Sims were named consensus All-Americans while Destiny Williams was a WBCA All-America honorable mention. Griner and Sims were both named to the All-Big 12 first team and the league's All-Defensive team and Williams was a second team selection while Kimetria Hayden was a honorable mention pick. Mulkey, a 2000 inductee into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, came to Baylor from Louisiana Tech where she spent 19 years as either a student-athlete or coach in the legendary Lady Techster program. During her tenure in Ruston, Mulkey was associated with 11 Final Four squads and three national championship teams. She has either played or coached in the national championship game on eight occasions.

Over her 15-year stint as an assistant and associate head coach at her alma mater, Louisiana Tech posted a 430-68 (.864) record and advanced to seven Final Fours. Mulkey held the title of associate head coach for her final four seasons. Her responsibilities at Tech included coordinating recruiting, tutoring Lady Techster guards, overseeing the players' academic progress and running the summer camps. Because of her diligence, no Lady Techster was ever declared academically ineligible.

As recruiting coordinator, Mulkey had the opportunity to recruit and coach several Lady Techsters who would go on to play in the WNBA.

In 1999, Women's Basketball Journal ranked Mulkey as one of the nation's top three assistants. Those ratings were compiled during Women's Basketball Journal's annual coaches' survey, which asks the nation's top head coaches to send in votes on various topics.

As a player, Mulkey led the Lady Techsters to a 130-6 (.956) record, two national titles and four Final Fours from 1980-84. During that time the 5-foot-4 playmaker, known for her spectacular passes and French braids, also led Louisiana Tech to its first two national championships (1981 and 1982) and was a part of the USA's Gold medal-winning team at both the 1984 Olympics and the 1983 Pan American Games.

Mulkey averaged 6.38 assists and 1.56 steals per game and currently ranks second on Tech's all-time list in assists and 12th in steals.

In addition, the summa cum laude scholar was a two-time Academic All-American as a business major. In recognition of her success in the classroom and on the basketball court, Mulkey was inducted into the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America Hall of Fame in June 2003.

Her athletic career began at an early age. Mulkey, a native of Hammond, La., played Dixie Youth baseball as a 12 year old as well as two years of Pony League baseball and made the all-star team two of the three years. At Hammond High School, she led the basketball team to four-straight state championships, posted a 136-5 record and finished her career with a then-national record 4,075 points. She earned all-district, all-state and All-America honors each of her four years at Hammond High. She also graduated as her class' valedictorian with a perfect 4.0 grade point average. Mulkey has a street named after her in her hometown of Tickfaw, La.

Mulkey is a member of the National High School Hall of Fame, the Louisiana High School Hall of Fame, Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and Louisiana Tech Athletics Hall of Fame. In 1999, she was the lone female named among the Louisiana Sports Writers top 25 athletes of the 20th century and was listed by Sports Illustrated as one of the top 50 sports figures of Louisiana for the 20th century. In June of 2000, she was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame located in Knoxville, Tenn. Additionally, Mulkey was inducted into the Baylor Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007 and entered the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.

In her highly successful rookie season as a head coach, Mulkey was named National Coach of the Year by Real Sport magazine and honored by the Dallas Morning News and Waco Tribune-Herald as Big 12 Coach of the Year. She added Big 12 Coach of the Year honors and the prestigious Winged Foot Award to her resume in 2005, then was named 2011 Big 12 Coach of the Year and USBWA National Coach of the Year. In 2012, Mulkey swept national coach of the year honors, claimed the Winged Foot Award and was tabbed the Big 12's top coach. In addition, Mulkey is a member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.

She is a highly sought after motivational speaker and speaks on a broad range of topics in addition to Lady Bear basketball and is frequently requested both locally and nationally. Mulkey is extremely active in and around the Waco community, donating her time and money to many organizations. Born May 17, 1962, in Santa Ana, Calif., Mulkey has two children, daughter Makenzie (21) and son Kramer (18).

Makenzie and Kramer are both extremely active in sports. Makenzie enters her junior year at Baylor with two years of basketball and a season of softball under her belt. She went to the NCAA Championship Elite Eight in basketball and the Women's College World Series in softball as a freshman and helped BU claim the 2012 NCAA basketball national title. She earned Academic All-Big 12 honors as a sophomore and has been named to both Baylor's Dean's List and the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll every semester. During her four years at Midway High School, she played basketball and softball and also participated in volleyball. She has the impressive accomplishment of earning three state championship rings. Makenzie was a starter on Midway's 2010 state championship softball team, as a junior she also started on the school's state championship basketball team and joined Midway's state championship volleyball team during the playoffs as a sophomore. For her impressive athletic accomplishments, Makenzie was named 2009-10 Super Centex Female Athlete of the Year by the Waco Tribune-Herald. Not only is she an outstanding athlete, she ranked No. 8 academically in her graduating class

Kramer, a senior at Midway High School, is a three-sport standout, playing football, basketball and baseball. As a three-year varsity starter in baseball, where he plays shortstop and occasionally pitches, he is one of the nation's top collegiate recruits. The two-time first-team all-state selection and MaxPreps All-American has also earned Waco Tribune Herald Super Centex recognition twice. He was the District 8-4A MVP as a junior after hitting .438 with 39 RBI. A two-year starter at quarterback for Midway, he led the Panthers to the 2011 Class 4A title game and also plays point guard on the basketball team

Mulkey's autobiography, "Won't Back Down" with Peter May, a retired Boston Globe senior sportswriter, appeared in bookstores Nov. 5, 2007, and the paperback edition became available Sept. 8, 2008.

THE KIM MULKEY FILE

PERSONAL

Born: May 17, 1962
Hometown: Hammond, La.
Children: daughter Makenzie, 21; son Kramer, 17

NAMED BAYLOR'S HEAD COACH
April 4, 2000

Coaching Experience

Player

Combined Record as Collegiate Player and Assistant Coach:
(19 years) 560-74 (.883)

Record as Head Coach:
(12 years) 338-79 (.811)

HONORS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

• Led the Lady Techsters to a 130-6 record as a player
• During 15-year stint as assistant and associate head coach, Louisiana Tech posted a 430-68 record and advanced to seven Final Fours

1981

• Won Gold medal for South Team at Olympic Festival (Syracuse, NY)
• Won AIAW National Championship

1982

• Member of USA Basketball Select Team
• Won NCAA National Championship.

1983

• Won gold medal at Pan Am Games in Caracus, Venezuela.
• Academic All-American

1984

• NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship winner
• Academic All-American
• James Corbett Award (Louisiana's College Athlete of the Year)
• Naismith "Small Player of the Year"
• Olympic Gold medalist at Los Angeles games

1985

• Inducted into National High School Hall of Fame

1986

• Inducted into Louisiana High School Hall of Fame

1990

• Inducted into Louisiana Sports Writers Hall of Fame

1992

• Inducted into Louisiana Tech Athletics Hall of Fame

1999

• Lone female named among Louisiana Sports Writers top 25 athletes of the 20th century
• Named one of top three assistants by Women's Basketball Journal
• Listed by Sports Illustrated as one of the top 50 greatest Louisiana sports figures of the 20th century

2000

• Named Baylor's fourth head coach
• Inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame

2001

• Named one of Top 50 Female High School Athletes of the 20th Century
• National Coach of the Year - Real Sport Magazine .
• Big 12 Coach of the Year - Dallas Morning News and Waco Tribune-Herald

2002

• Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Senior College Coach of the Year

2003

• CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame

2004

• Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Senior College Coach of the Year

2005

• Big 12 Coach of the Year
• Winged Foot Award
• Dallas All Sports Association College Coach of the Year
• Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Senior College Coach of the Year
• Baylor Staff Memeber of the Year (Student Government Association)

2007

• Inducted into Baylor Athletic Hall of Fame

2010

• Inducted into Texas Sports Hall of Fame

2011

• Big 12 Coach of the Year
• USBWA National Coach of the Year

2012

• Big 12 Coach of the Year
• Winged Foot Award
• AP National Coach of the Year
• USBWA National Coach of the Year
• Naismith National Coach of the Year
• Russell Athletic/WBCA National Coach of the Year

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