CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Fighting Illini women's basketball head coach Shauna Green announced the addition of Associate Head Coach Calamity McEntire to her staff on Thursday (April 7), pending approval by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.
"I am absolutely thrilled to be able to reunite with Calamity; she is one of the top assistant coaches in the country and will bring an abundance of experience to Champaign," Green said. "Calamity is a tireless recruiter and relationship builder that will help bring top talent to our program. She values the overall development of our young women and our student-athletes will grow in all areas with her guidance."
McEntire, who brings more than 16 years of Division I coaching experience, most recently served as an assistant coach at the University of Texas. At Illinois, she will serve her second stint alongside Green after previously working as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator on her staff for four seasons at Dayton.
"I'm super excited and grateful for the opportunity to be in Champaign with Coach Shauna Green and join the Fighting Illini family," McEntire said. "I have so much respect and trust in Shauna, not only as a coach and leader, but in who she is as a woman. We both have a strong passion for developing young women and preparing them for life through the game of basketball. I'm looking forward to working with Shauna again!
"The University of Illinois has the perfect combination of being elite both academically and athletically. The support and commitment to excellence is in place. Now it's time to get to work on building a championship foundation one day at a time."
During the 2021-22 season at Texas, McEntire's impact was immediately felt as the Longhorns posted a 29-7 record and claimed the Big 12 Tournament Championship en route to an appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight. UT reached as high as No. 6 in the national rankings and the program's 29 victories marked its most in six seasons, while the team's championship run was the first for the Longhorns since 2003.
McEntire, however, is no stranger to title runs. Her tenure at Dayton (2017-21) featured three Atlantic 10 regular-season championships (2018, 2020, 2021) and one conference tournament crown (2020). McEntire helped coach the Flyers to postseason appearances in each of her four seasons at UD, including two NCAA Tournament berths (2018 and 2020) and two WNITs (2019 and 2021).
In her role as recruiting coordinator for Dayton, McEntire was central to the staff's efforts that resulted in the Flyers' signing some of the top classes in program history, including the 2020 class that ranked in the top-25 nationally. Dayton's 2018, 2019 and 2020 recruiting classes all ranked No. 1 in the Atlantic 10 Conference.
Off the court, McEntire was selected to the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's (WBCA) NEXT UP program in 2020, and was recognized as one of 50 Impactful DI Women's Basketball Assistants by Silver Waves Media in April 2020.
Prior to her time at Dayton, McEntire spent one season at Hawai'i (2016-17) and four seasons at Arizona (2012-16) where she served as the Wildcats' recruiting coordinator. There, she helped the Wildcats sign a top-25 class in 2014, the highest-ranked recruiting class in program history at the time. On the court, McEntire worked with UA's guards and helped to develop Davellyn Whyte, who went on to become the No. 16 pick in the 2013 WNBA Draft.
McEntire spent four seasons at Boise State (2008-12) before moving on to Arizona. With the Broncos, she served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. McEntire has also made stops at UC Santa Barbara (2006-08) as the Director of Women's Basketball Operations and at Fresno State (2004-06) as an assistant coach. She also gained a wealth of knowledge from legendary coach Pat Summit while she worked as a manager at Tennessee from 2001-03.
A native of Kiowa, Okla., McEntire played two seasons of collegiate basketball at Eastern Oklahoma State from 1999-2001. She earned her associate's degree in physical education during that time, and later earned her bachelor's degree in sport management with a minor in business from Tennessee in 2003.
