Todd Lickliter named NABC National Coach of the Year

April 2, 2007

Atlanta, Ga. - Butler men's basketball coach Todd Lickliter has been selected as the Division I Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). Lickliter received his award on Sunday evening (April 1) at the AT & T/NABC Awards Show at the Sydney Marcus Auditorium in Atlanta, Ga. The program was part of the Final Four weekend activities.

Lickliter, who completed his sixth season at Butler, guided the Bulldogs to a school and Horizon League record 29 victories in 2006-07. He led Butler to a regular season co-championship in the Horizon League and then took the Bulldogs to the Sweet 16 of the 2007 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship. Butler defeated Old Dominion in the first round of the tournament and then beat #18 Maryland in the second round, before falling to defending national champ Florida in the Sweet 16.

Butler was picked sixth in the Horizon League's preseason poll, but the Bulldogs wasted little time proving the predictors wrong. Lickliter's club opened the season with a 40-point win at Tulane and then captured the Midwest Region title of the NIT Season Tip-Off with back-to-back victories over Notre Dame and Indiana. The Bulldogs continued to roll in New York, defeating #22 Tennessee and #23 Gonzaga to capture the NIT Season Tip-Off championship.

Lickliter led the Bulldogs to 10 straight wins to open the season, including a victory over Purdue in the Wooden Tradition. The 10 wins matched the second-fastest start in school history and the fifth-longest winning streak in school annals. Butler cracked the Top 25 on Nov. 27 and the Bulldogs were nationally-ranked for a school and league record 16 consecutive weeks. Lickliter's club became the first team in Horizon League history to break into the nation's Top 10 on Feb. 5

The 2006-07 Bulldogs became the first team in league history to record 20 wins before February and the first Horizon League team to win 26 regular season games. Butler had three wins over teams that were ranked in the Top 25 and seven victories over squads that advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Lickliter is the first Butler basketball coach to be selected for the NABC's highest award. He's also the first coach in Horizon League history to be honored by the national coaches organization. The Butler coach, who owns the top three single season win totals in Butler history, has guided the Bulldogs to a six-year record of 131-61, with four postseason tournament berths and two trips to the NCAA Sweet 16.

Story provided by Butler University Office of Sports Information