UCLA signs Howland to seven-year deal

Jul 1, 2008 - 6:23 PM LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- Coming off a third straight trip to the Final Four, UCLA has rewarded basketball coach Ben Howland with a lucrative new contract.

UCLA on Tuesday announced a seven-year extension for Howland that will keep him under contract in Westwood through the 2014-15 season.

Howland, 51, will make a base salary of $1.97 million next season, escalating to $2.3 million in the final year of the contract. The deal also includes an incentive package with a maximum value of $235,000 per season.

"I have said this before, but there is no place I would rather be coaching than UCLA," Howland said. "I grew up a Bruin fan and this is my dream job."

While he has yet to win a national championship, Howland is the first coach to guide UCLA to three straight Final Fours since John Wooden. Last season, the Bruins went 35-4, setting a school record for wins.

Howland is one of just three coaches in the history of college basketball to win at least 30 games in three consecutive seasons. The Bruins also have captured three straight Pac-10 Conference regular-season titles, making Howland the first UCLA coach to accomplish that feat since Wooden.

"UCLA is a special name in college basketball, thanks to coach Wooden, and I am proud to be the caretaker of the program," Howland added.

Since the NCAA expanded the NCAA Tournament to 64 teams in 1985, UCLA is one of only four schools to make three straight appearances in the Final Four. Michigan State was the last to do it from 1999-2001.

"(Howland) has returned UCLA to the nation's elite, as illustrated by three straight Final Fours and three consecutive 30-win seasons," UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero said. "He is an outstanding recruiter, and the foundation Ben has built for our program promises to keep us at the forefront for the foreseeable future."

After guiding Pittsburgh to a pair of "Sweet 16" appearances in his four seasons there, Howland was named UCLA coach in 2003, replacing Steve Lavin, who was fired after the Bruins' first losing season in 55 years.

UCLA went 11-17 in Howland's first year but improved to 18-11 the following season. In his five seasons at UCLA, he has a mark of 126-45, including 97-17 the last three years. Last season, the Bruins lost to Memphis, 78-63, in the national semifinals.