Report: Richard Pitino Agrees to Xavier HC Contract After New Mexico Stint

After a strong tenure with New Mexico, Richard Pitino is reportedly moving on from the Lobos.

Per ESPN's Jeff Borzello, Pitino agreed to become the next head men's basketball coach at Xavier. The deal comes after Xavier's former coach, Sean Miller, departed for Texas.

Pitino, the son of legendary coach Rick Pitino, began his coaching career as an assistant at Charleston in 2004 and went on to be an assistant at Northeastern and Duquesne before joining his father's staff at Louisville from 2007 to 2009.

He then served as an assistant for Billy Donovan at Florida from 2009 to 2011, helping the Gators reach the Elite Eight in 2011. After the 2010-11 season, he returned to Louisville to be an associate head coach and helped take the Cardinals to the Final Four in 2012.

Pitino got his first head coaching gig in 2012 at FIU, and it took him just one season to prove himself as a head coach. After leading the team to its first winning record in more than a decade, he left to become Minnesota's head coach.

From 2013 to 2021, Pitino led the Golden Gophers to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances, reaching the Round of 32 in 2019. He was also named Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2017 following a 24-10 season.

Pitino was fired by Minnesota after the 2020-21 season and was subsequently hired as New Mexico's coach shortly after. Pitino helped revive a struggling program, winning the Mountain West Tournament championship in 2024 to take the Lobos to their first NCAA tournament in 10 years.

This season, Pitino guided New Mexico to a 27-8 finish, winning the Mountain West regular season title. In the tournament, the No. 10 Lobos upset No. 7 Marquette in the first round before falling to No. 2 Michigan State last week.

Pitino has found success wherever he's been, but the pressure will be on at Xavier, a school with a rich basketball history.

The Musketeers were once a perennial championship contender but haven't had the same success recently. Under Pitino, Xavier will look to become a basketball powerhouse once again.