The hottest men’s basketball coaching candidate won’t be coming to save your school.
Saint Louis coach Josh Schertz has agreed in principle to an extension to remain with the program, athletic director Chris May announced Friday, according to the Associated Press.
This agreement comes amid widespread speculation that Schertz would have been a top candidate for openings such as Syracuse and Providence.
Syracuse moved on from Adrian Autry earlier this week, while Providence officially axed Kim English on Friday, one day after losing to St. John’s in the Big East Tournament.
Schertz is only in his fifth season as a head coach but he has shown that he’s ready to take the next step in his coaching career, possibly to a power conference.
This season, he led the Billikens to a Atlantic-10 regular season crown in just his second campaign, and the team is now 28-4 after Friday’s 88-81 win over George Washington in the conference quarterfinals.
This year’s team peaked at No. 18 in the polls in the school’s return to the national rankings for the first time in five seasons.
Saint Louis is projected to be a No. 10 seed in the NCAA Tournament, according to ESPN’s projections prior to Friday’s slate, which would mark his first appearance in the Big Dance and the school’s first taste of March Madness since the 2018-19 campaign.
Schertz is 46-19 in his two years with the program.
Before Saint Louis, Schertz spent three years with Indiana State.
He went 11-20 in his first year before a 23-13 rebound in his second season and finally a 32-7 year that included a regular season title in his third and final campaign.
An 84-80 loss to Drake in the conference tournament that season prevented Schertz from coaching in the NCAA Tournament for the first time.
Schertz also enjoyed a strong run with Division II Lincoln Memorial.
As Syracuse, Providence and others search, Kansas State hired Belmont’s Casey Alexander to begin what surely will be a hectic coaching cycle.
