Joseph McKeown ( ; born May 12, 1956) is a retired

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

basketball coach and former player who currently serves as the head

women's basketball Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It was first played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large parts via women's college compet ...

coach at

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

. McKeown previously served as head coach at

New Mexico State New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a Public university system, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1888, it is the state's oldest public institution ...

and

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

until joining Northwestern in 2008. He is the father of former Northwestern women's basketball player and current commentator Meghan McKeown.

Playing career

McKeown attended

Mercer County Community College Mercer County Community College (MCCC) is a Public university, public, community college in Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. More than 7,000 students enroll in one or more credit courses each year. Esta ...

and then was a star basketball player at

Kent State Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio, United States. The university includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio located in Ashtabula, Burton, East Liverpool, Jackson Township, New Philadelphia, ...

, and was named co-captain during his senior season. After graduating, McKeown became an assistant at Kent State and then

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Coaching career

He has over 750 wins as of March 5, 2024. He won the

Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. The A-10's member schools are located most ...

's coach of the year award a record 5 times during his tenure at

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

, and has also received the same honor in the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

. McKeown remains George Washington's all-time leading coach in terms of wins and winning percentage. His teams have reached the postseason 19 times, with a 20th postseason trip all but certain in 2020.

New Mexico State

In 1986, he was named head women's basketball coach at New Mexico State. He posted a 68–20 record.

George Washington University

In the 1991–92 season, he led the Colonials to a national ranking of 6th, which is the program's highest ranking ever. From 1991 to 1998, the team posted eight consecutive 20 win seasons including 5 Atlantic 10 titles. In 2007, he led the team to a 28–4 record, breaking school records for wins and winning percentage. He previously served as an assistant coach at

, and

. McKeown left George Washington after the 2007–08 season.

Northwestern University

McKeown and his family moved to

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to find better healthcare and services for his son with autism. Since 2008, he has been the head women's basketball coach at Northwestern University. McKeown was named Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2020 when the Wildcats, who had not been picked to finish in the league's top five in the preseason by league coaches and media and had been tapped by an

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panel to finish anywhere from 7th to 12th in the 14-team league, shared the Big Ten regular-season title with

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. On March 24, 2025, McKeown announced that he will retire at the end of the 2025–26 season.

USA Basketball

McKeown was selected to be the head coach of the USA representative to the World University Games held in Seoul, South Korea July 5–13, 2015. The team won all six games, including the championship game against Canada. The first three quarters the game were quite close with four ties and four lead changes. In the fourth quarter the USA exploded for 34 points to pull out to a large lead, and won the gold-medal with a score of 82–63.

Head coaching record

References

External links

Northwestern bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:McKeown, Joe 1956 births Living people American men's basketball players American women's basketball coaches Basketball coaches from Pennsylvania Basketball players from Philadelphia George Washington Revolutionaries women's basketball coaches Junior college men's basketball players in the United States Kent State Golden Flashes men's basketball players Kent State Golden Flashes women's basketball coaches New Mexico State Aggies women's basketball coaches Northwestern Wildcats women's basketball coaches Oklahoma Sooners women's basketball coaches 20th-century American sportsmen