Utah names Giacoletti new basketball coach

Giacoletti, who was the former head coach at Eastern Washington, will be formally introduced at a Wednesday afternoon press conference.

The 41-year-old Giacoletti replaces the legendary Rick Majerus, who spent the past 15 years as the Utes head coach. Majerus resigned from his position in January due to health reasons and assistant Kerry Rupp led Utah the rest of the season.

Giacoletti led the Eagles to the NCAA Tournament this season for the first time in school history after his club won the Big Sky Conference Tournament. Eastern Washington lost to second-seeded Oklahoma State in the first round.

The Cowboys went on to win the East Rutherford bracket and will take on Georgia Tech in this week’s Final Four.

In five seasons at the helm, Giacoletti compiled a 69-50 record with the Eagles, including a 17-13 mark this year.

Giacoletti was previously employed as an assistant at Illinois State and Washington before taking over the head coaching duties at North Dakota State in 1997. For his career, he owns a 117-83 record as a head coach.

The Utes ended the 2003-04 campaign with a 24-9 record before losing to Boston College in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.