April 6, 2009

FSU Sports Info

Florida State University Director of Athletics Randy Spetman announced Monday that head basketball coach Leonard Hamilton has received a new five-year contract that will keep him as the Seminoles' head coach through April 30, 2014. Terms of the new contract are still being finalized.

"Through a lot of hard work and dedication, Leonard has built the Florida State program into one that we are all very proud of," Spetman said. "He continues to bring in quality student-athletes who represent Florida State in a first-class manner both on and off the court."

Hamilton, who was named the 2009 National Coach of the Year by Basketball Times and the ACC Coach of the Year by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association, guided the Seminoles to one of the most successful seasons in school history with a 25-10 record, a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament and the first ACC Championship game appearance in school history. Additionally, under Hamilton's direction, the men's basketball program has had a 100 percent graduation rate and Florida State was one of just seven schools that played in the 2009 NCAA Tournament to hold this distinction.

"I am very appreciative that our administration has shown a high level of confidence in me and in our staff," said Hamilton. "Much of the credit for our accomplishments goes to our staff and our players who have worked so hard to put us in position to be successful. I feel that the future is very bright for this program."

The Seminoles' 25 wins is tied for second most in school history while their 10 conference wins is the third highest in school history. It marked the first time since the 1992-93 season that the Seminoles had won at least 10 ACC games in a single season. Hamilton's coaching has produced three of Florida State's four All-ACC First Team selections, including two in the last three years. One of those pupils, Al Thornton, was the 14th overall selection in the 2007 NBA Draft ? just the second Draft lottery pick in school history. In 2009, Toney Douglas earned All-ACC First Team honors, was the runner-up for ACC Player of the Year and was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year.

With 20 or more wins in three of the last four seasons, Hamilton, the 21st winningest coach in ACC history, has put the Seminoles on the cusp of becoming the next great program in one of toughest conferences in the nation. Florida State ranks as the fourth winningest program in the ACC in the last three seasons with a cumulative record of 67-38 for a winning percentage of .638. During the last four seasons, Hamilton has elevated the Seminoles' play in the ACC as he has guided Florida State to a 33-31 record (.516 winning percentage) - tied for the fourth highest win total in ACC play since the start of the 2005-06 season.

"We are very anxious to keep moving ahead as we take the program to higher heights and continue to make Florida State basketball a program of significance both nationally and in the ACC," said Hamilton. "We took a big step this season in moving towards becoming the kind of basketball program we can be on an annual basis. We are very happy to be here at Florida State and are proud to represent the entire university community."

Hamilton just completed his seventh season as Florida State's head coach. He has a career record of 331-305 (20 seasons as a collegiate head coach) and a 131-95 record at Florida State.

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