Illinois tabs Law as women’s coach

Law comes to Illinois following 12 years as an assistant coach under C. Vivian Stringer at Rutgers, including the last four years as associate head coach. She will be just the seventh Fighting Illini women’s basketball coach.

Law helped guide the Scarlet Knights to a pair of Final Fours, three Elite Eights and three Sweet Sixteen appearances, including the 2007 national championship game where Rutgers came up short versus Tennessee.

"This is a dream come true," Law said. "I’m very excited about the vision here and the possibilities of taking the Big Ten by storm. This is the dawn of a new era and we plan to take the University of Illinois to a new level.

"For many years the state of Illinois has been rich in talent and we plan to keep the best players here to take the Fighting Illini to a national level and become the diamond of the Midwest. This is one of the happiest days of my life. This is a dream job for me."

Law replaces Theresa Grentz, a member of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, who resigned to pursue other career opportunities.

Grentz compiled an impressive 671-311 record in 33 years as a collegiate head coach, with the last 12 spent at Illinois. The Fighting Illini went 210-156 under Grentz, advancing to the postseason in 10 of 12 seasons.

"Jolette quickly stood out among all the candidates for the position with her experiences as a player, as an assistant coach at an extremely high level and as a proven top recruiter," Illinois athletic director Ron Guenther said. "She made a great impression on us during the interview process and it was very obvious why the teams she has been associated with have always been extremely successful."