University of Southern California has fired men’s head basketball coach Kevin O’Neill, the school announced Monday .
During his four-years at USC, O’Neill put together a 48-65 overall record, including 7-10 this season.
“I enjoyed my four years at USC,” O’Neill said. ” I enjoyed the people I worked with, the players I coached and our fans. I thank USC for allowing me to guide their program. I couldn’t be more proud to work anywhere.”
USC assistant coach Bob Cantu will run the team while a search is conducted for O’Neill’s replacement.
“I would like to thank Kevin O’Neill for his four years of service to USC,” Athletic Director Pat Haden said. “It was hard for me to evaluate [O’Neill] as a head coach until this year when he had enough players and veterans to compete. As the season progressed, it became evident to me that we needed new leadership in our men’s basketball program.”
Haden added:
“I feel confident that Bob Cantu will capably guide our team on an interim basis while we search for a new coach.”
Prior to USC, O’Neill had been a head coach at Marquette, Tennessee, Northwestern and Arizona (as an interim head coach).
He also had a few stints in the NBA in the early 2000s, acting as an assistant for the New York Knicks, the Detroit Pistons, and the Indiana Pacers.
O’Neill was hired as the Toronto Raptors head coach in 2003, but was fired after the team failed to make the playoffs.
ESPN’s Myron Medcalf discusses USC’s firing of head basketball coach Kevin O’Neill in the video below:
