Mar 27, 2009 - 10:51 PM
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Coming to the Crimson Tide after guiding Virginia Commonwealth to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three years, Grant will be officially introduced in a press conference Sunday.
"I am pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement in principle with Anthony Grant to become men's basketball coach at the University of Alabama," athletic director Mal Moore said. "As our search progressed over the last few weeks it became readily apparent that Coach Grant is an excellent fit to lead our program. His record at Virginia Commonwealth is outstanding and his coaching background is filled with championship success at the collegiate level."
A former assistant at Florida, Grant, 42, guided VCU to a 24-10 record this season that concluded with a last-second loss to UCLA in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. It was the second appearance in the NCAAs since Grant took over in 2006, notching a opening-round upset of Duke in 2007.
Overall, Grant compiled a 76-25 record in three seasons with the Rams, including 45-9 record in the Colonial Athletic Association with two league tournament titles.
Prior to that, Grant served for 10 seasons under Billy Donovan at Florida, helping the Gators claim the first of their back-to-back national titles in 2006.
Grant replaces Mark Gottfried, who resigned on January 26 amid pressure surrounding a third straight subpar season for the Crimson Tide.
Alabama went on to finish 18-14, including 7-9 in the Southeastern Conference, and missed the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season.
"We have been given the opportunity to create a very special situation for men's basketball at the University of Alabama and we look forward to getting started," Grant said. "There's a commitment throughout the athletic department to make sure that we have the resources necessary to compete for championships."
