Rhode Island announced it has hired former Indiana coach Archie Miller as the school’s next men’s basketball coach.
“Archie's goals for this program are the same as mine,” athletic director Thorr Bjorn said in a statement. “Not only do we want to win Atlantic 10 championships, but we want to build a program that competes late into March each year. His passion and enthusiasm are contagious. I am so excited to partner with him in showcasing URI basketball on the national stage.”
Miller first became a head coach at Dayton at 2011, where he spent six seasons. He took the Flyers to four straight NCAA tournament appearances, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2014.
Indiana hired Miller to replace Tom Crean in 2017, but Miller couldn’t replicate his Dayton success in Bloomington. Miller failed to lead the Hoosiers to March Madness in four seasons, with his best chance coming in 2020 before the tournament was canceled. Indiana fired Miller last year after a 12–15 season.
Rhode Island brings Miller back to the A-10, where Dayton also plays, in hopes he can get the team back to the top of the conference. The Rams made the NCAA tournament in 2017 and 2018 with Dan Hurley as head coach, but haven’t been back since Hurley left for UConn.
Rhode Island is coming off a 15–16 season, 7–12 in conference. The Rams finished at No. 11 in the A-10 standings.