UCSD Director of Athletics Earl W. Edwards announced Bill Carr as the new men’s basketball head coach in a press conference at RIMAC Arena on May 17.

Carr described his opportunity with the Tritons as a “gold mine.” He emphasized focusing on the advantages of the UCSD basketball program and ensuring that his players make an influence on and off the court.

“Everything is in place here to be successful, and that’s exactly what I intend to do,” Carr said. “We’re always going to talk about what we do have, the pluses of being at UCSD. We’re going to talk about the people that are in the program. I told the [players], I come here to win, and that’s what we’re going to do. We’re [also] going to be representatives of the university off the court.”

Carr said that he had the opportunity to meet the team and study tapes from the past season, which the Tritons finished with a 9-18 conference record. He felt positive about what he has seen and highlighted the style of play he wants to implement.

“It was refreshing,” Carr said. “[The players] got into the workouts, and they picked things up really quickly. They’re more athletic than people think they are. We are going to pressure [the opposition]. And on the other side of the ball, we’re going to make sure we pass it around. Everyone is going to get a chance to touch it and shoot it. There are certainly going to be roles for each of the guys on the team, and we’ll make that perfectly clear.”

Carr brings with him 14 years of coaching experience. He was the associate head coach at Long Beach State the past two years and from 1999 to 2002, he served as the head coach of Spring Hill College in Mobile, Ala. Carr went 84-23 (.785) at Spring Hill and coached the Badgers to three National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Tournament appearances. In addition, he garnered the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honor for his inaugural season at Spring Hill in 1999-2000. He began his coaching career at the University of San Francisco, where he spent nine years as assistant coach. He helped lead the university to the 1998 NCAA Tournament after it won the West Coast Conference Tournament Title.

His 14 years of coaching experience will be an asset to the basketball program, according to Edwards.

“His strong interpersonal skills and contacts in northern and southern California for recruiting will help us tremendously and revitalize our basketball program,” Edwards said.

Athletes who excel on the court and in the classroom are the type of players Carr and his staff will be looking to recruit. When asked about how he will address the lack of athletic scholarships being offered to potential recruits, Carr said he is confident that he and his staff will find the right players for UCSD.

“[My staff and I] are going to work hard and get out and find the right athletes who fit the academic profile of this university,” he said. “I know they’re out there, and I certainly know they’re out in California. We’ll find people who will want to compete at a high level — both academically and athletically — and I think that’s how we’ll be successful.”

Carr also said that he would like to add more height to the lineup and intends to recruit taller players for the upcoming season. The basketball team will graduate one senior in June, guard Cameron Jackson. Carr will have time this spring to get more acquainted with the players.

“I certainly want them to all come back,” he said. “Hopefully through the end of the school year this year, they’ll give me a chance to coach them … find out if it’s for them or not. And then, we’ll make a decision in the summer.”

At a March 10 press conference, Edwards announced that UCSD would not rehire former men’s basketball coach Greg Lanthier. Rather, he expressed a desire to find a replacement that would enhance the existing program.

“Basketball needs to be a high-profile sport, and we’ll be looking for someone, preferably with head coaching experience, who can build on the foundation that we have in place,” Edwards said.

UCSD men’s basketball is the only nonscholarship program of its kind in NCAA Division II and competes in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, one of the premier Division II conferences in the nation.