Amir Abdur-Rahim Hired as USF HC After Kennesaw State's NCAA Tournament Appearance

The University of South Florida announced that it has hired Amir Abdur-Rahim as its next men's basketball head coach.

The 42-year-old just led Kennesaw State to a stunning turnaround after the team won just one game during his first season leading the program (2019-20).

The Owls went 26-9 and won the Atlantic Sun before making the Division I NCAA tournament for the first time in school history.

The No. 14-seeded Owls nearly picked off No. 3 Xavier and even led by 13 points in the second half before falling 72-67 in the first round of the tournament.

Kennesaw State moved from Division II to Division I in 2005. The Owls never posted a winning season in D-I until Abdur-Rahim led them to one this year.

Abdur-Rahim takes over the program after it parted ways with Brian Gregory after six seasons. The Bulls have posted losing seasons in each of their last four campaigns, including a 14-18 record and 7-11 mark in American Athletic Conference play last year.